Chapter Six
The sun was fully up by the time Link arrived at Lake Hylia. He had had to dismount Epona and take a terrifying leap into the waters, but he thankfully survived it and swam over to Fyer's. He paid the man the Rupees he requested, and went into his giant and nervous-making cannon. A buildup of power shot him clean across the lake and the sky until he landed in the Desert Province.
Link decided he was ready to take matters into his own hands. He had been anxious, really, about using the Twilight Gemstone without someone else around to help him, but it was now or never.
Link took the thin rope from between his shirt and his tunic and, before thinking twice, he dropped it beneath his shirt and the cold stone touched his skin. Instantly, he doubled over, falling to his knees, and the transformation was over before Link had noticed it had begun.
He shook himself, getting rid of stray furs and the jitters that had crept onto him. He then began to run, dashing across the sandy plans of Gerudo Mesa. The sun indicated that it was probably around eight o'clock; the villagers would notice his disappearance, probably raise a few eyebrows at each other, mutter a simple comment, and be on their way with their duties. Rusl would casually tell Uli and Colin that he was going to visit a friend, kiss his wife, son, and daughter goodbye, and make his way to Castle Town to visit Telma's Bar.
Ilia…Link had forgotten to talk to her, even though he had told Colin he would. 'No time to regret that now,' he thought firmly as he dodged sand worms. He ran for a while until he came across a Bulblin Encampment, surrounded by boarish Bullbos. He spied King Bulblin; Link stayed out of eyesight and quickly fumbled with the necklace around his neck. It was held fast in his fur but, after much persuasion, Link was about to get it loose and he turned back into a human. He stood up, brushed the sand from him, and strode into the Bulblin Encampment.
A fiery arrow stabbed into the sand next to him; Link drew the Master Sword and held up his shield, furious at being tricked; he turned to King Bulblin, ready to lunge, but the giant bellowed a few commands that made the other Bulblins lowered their weapons, looking reproachfully at first King Bulblin and then at Link. Their looks turned to sheepishness as King Bulblin continued talking, in a language that Link could not understand and anyone else would dismiss as gibberish.
After a few tense minutes, King Bulblin turned to Link with an apologetic look on his face. "Bulblins did not know it was you I spoke of," he explained guiltily. "They think, 'there man, I shoot'. Sorry."
Link sheathed his sword. "That's quite all right," he returned frostily. "So you did not tell them that I was the one whose help you had enlisted?"
"I told them that I asked great man for help, but I didn't say who," replied King Bulblin. "But I told them he strongest side." King Bulblin tossed his gaze towards Arbiter's Grounds. "We go there, yes? We should find out what the undead beings are."
Link nodded slowly. "Right. Good idea. Let's go, then."
OoO
Link, King Bulblin, and the other Bulblins trekked towards Arbiter's Grounds. Link knew perfectly well that the Bulblins were conversing about him, doubtful that he was the "strongest side", but he didn't care. All he wanted to do was find out what evil was plaguing Hyrule and rid the place of it. Being near the Mirror Chamber wouldn't be too bad, either. He knew that it was wrong, but he really wished that there was some way that the Twilight Mirror wasn't completely shattered. A piece of the Twilight still existed in the land of the Light, so that must mean something…right?
Link and the assortment of Bulblins entered Arbiter's Grounds, cautiously descending the steps. Into the entrance room they went, and Link hesitated as he looked at the sand pits.
A Bulblin made a noise – it sounded like he was deriding Link – and confidently jumped into the sand. Link shouted "NO!" and reached for the Bulblin, but it was too late. The sand began pulling the Bulblin in deeper and deeper.
"Save him!" ordered King Bulblin. The Bulblin began waving his arms around frantically, trying to make his back to the others, a panicky look overtaking his features. Link's mind raced, but as he plunged his hand into his equipment bag, a sand worm leapt from the pit and knocked him off balance. Link caught himself and ferociously kicked the worm, pulling his Double Clawshots from his bag. The Bulblin was almost completely submerged; Link shot out one Clawshot; it gripped onto the Bulblin's shirt, and Link heaved, pulling him closer. The Bulblin's head broke the sand, and Link began pulling harder. He employed the other Clawshot and, after a few tense moments, the Bulblin was safe. Link crossed his arms and glared at the panting archer.
"Don't do something stupid like that," he chided angrily. "You could have died." Even though he acted mad, Link's heart was pumping quickly. It had been much simpler crossing the sand pits when he was simply with Midna; now he had half a dozen Bulblins to look after, and he wasn't even entirely convinced that these creatures were trustworthy.
Nevertheless, he aimed his Clawshot at a target and it latched on; Link was pulled across the room. He remained on the wall and used his other Clawshot to pull the Bulblins across. It was tiring but effective, and soon they made their way into the main room where he had first seen the four Poes. Thus far, there had been no sign of any other enemies more threatening than the sand worms, but Link was still on his guard. He kept the Master Sword sheathed as a sign of friendliness to the Bulblins, but he was prepared to draw it in case of trouble.
The small band trooped up the staircase right in front of them and entered the room. All of the doors that he had opened previously had remained open, so there was no need to take out his Spinner and use it as a missing gear. However, there was the throbbing problem of how to get all seven of them up to Stallord's room. As Link contemplated this problem, King Bulblin tapped him on the shoulder.
"Where are we going?" he asked in a low voice. The other Bulblins were looking around aimlessly, almost confusedly. It then occurred to Link that he had been automatically making his way through Arbiter's Grounds and towards the Twilight Chamber without consulting the others.
"I—" Before Link could finish his statement, one of the Bulblin's burbled out in surprise, pointing at a strange being dragging itself out of the large sand pit in front of them. Without needing to be told, Link knew that it was one of the undead beings that King Bulblin had talked about. It looked similar to a ReDead, like a decaying corpse, but its body parts were all very long and skinny. Its head was long but wide, and its fingertips were close to its knees, with two-inch long nails. Like ReDeads, it dragged its feet across the ground, with horrible, red eyes gleaming into his.
"It's them!" shouted King Bulblin unnecessarily. "The undead monsters!" He and the other Bulblins took out their weapons nervously, but, if what King Bulblin had said before was true, then those wooden clubs would be of no use against this being. The humanoid cadaver approached Link, eyes set fixedly, slowly and agonizingly. Link could feel his heart thudding with fear, his forehead damp and his hands slick, but he did not make a move. He daren't move, until…
The corpse was near; Link's left hand flew towards the Master Sword, grasping the hilt and releasing it free, plunging down across the body's chest. The force he employed would have – should have – killed any other being, or at the very least sent them flying, but all that happened was that the corpse stumbled backwards. Link's most valuable tactic, the Mortal Draw, was worthless against this monster.
"That's impossible," he cried, more out of frustration than necessity. He held the sword in both hands and jumped, striking angrily, but it did nothing. Thankfully, these corpses did not seem to have the same paralyzing shriek as ReDeads; if they did, Link's life would be over in a matter of moments.
More corpses pulled themselves from the sand pit, taking jerky steps towards Link and the Bulblins. In seconds, there was at least a score of undead corpses, and only Link and six Bulblins. The Bulblins began beating the corpses with their clubs, but it did not work. King Bulblin held his giant axe in two hands and gave a great sweeping motion, but to no avail. One corpse, cut in half by the axe, simply began dragging itself around by its vicious, terrible claws.
Most of the cadavers seemed to be after Link, though, and did not bother to keep it hidden; they lashed at him voraciously, swipe after swipe, fighting tooth and nail. Link tried to use every method he knew: arrows, bombs, even the Ball and Chain. Nothing worked, not even the Master Sword. Blood seeped from every pore in his body; he could not think properly, he could not even breathe. A cold sweat was drenching him, but he had no time to think about that now. With great effort, he hacked away at a corpse. He could feel the life ebbing away from him…blood was making his hands slippery; he could not hold the Master Sword properly…
A corpse punched him in the spine. He fell to the ground, winded, and felt pain in his lower back as the cold steel of a sword pierced his stomach, and the breath left him.
5
