Chapter Twenty-Three: A Presence Revealed

"You must not be afraid to do whatever it takes to expand your power. Do you understand me Nylania?"

"Yes Father."

"Good. You're thirteen now. I'm not going to treat you like a child anymore. You should be strong enough to withstand my attacks. Now let's try it again." Astralose raised his hands towards his daughter and released two beams of yellow energy that sizzled and erupted like the plasma on the surface of the sun. Just as it appeared it would hit the girl with ease, Nylania swept her hands outward and an invisible force deflected the attack. The walls of the tiny room shook and a few small chunks of stone broke away from the ceiling, nearly striking Astralose in the head during their descent. "Good! Now attack me! Do it! Don't be scared of hurting me. Focus your abilities. Free your mind of all thoughts except the knowledge that you can defeat me. Do it now!"

Nylania's face quivered and her eyes closed. She balled her hands into tightly clenched fists, causing her already pale white skin to become even milkier. She threw her fists outwards towards her father, unleashing two streams of bright orange fire. Astralose created an opaque force field to protect his body from the flames. As the fire hit the shield, it continued to grow in intensity. Soon Astralose's shield began to turn bright red. A large crack developed in the middle of it. The barrier began to shudder violently. Astralose managed to duck just as the shield shattered into miniscule shards and the flames flew forward at their full force.

They hit the wall behind the crouched man, melting two asymmetrical holes into the walls before Nylania could end her attack. "Amazing!" gasped Astralose as he stood up. "Truly amazing! Never before has an attack managed to break through my defenses. I no longer have any doubts in your abilities my daughter. We will stop here for now and let you rest. You may go and do what you please."

"But Father, do we have to stop? It's so boring when we're not training. There's nothing to do here."

"Go outside and explore the forest."

"I've been exploring the forest for the last three years. You can only explore endless rows of trees for so long before it becomes boring."

"Then explore the temple."

"I've already seen all there is to see of that too."

"Nonsense!" scoffed Astralose. "I've lived in this temple for over twelve years and I still find new chambers in it all the time. You just have to look harder."

"All right Father. I'll do it, but I doubt I'll find anything." She turned to leave, but Astralose stopped her.

"Wait! What are you to always tell me before you leave?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I love you," she said as she walked up to her father.

"I love you too," he said as he kissed her forehead lovingly. "Now be off." Nylania spun around and disappeared from the room. She proceeded into the underground chamber that would hold the largest army ever seen in the world twenty-two years into the future. She began to walk alongside of the lava river that ran down the room's center just as she had done on numerous occasions in the past.

The lava stream continued for many miles. Nylania knew that after another half mile the river would make one wide loop around an ancient stone pillar, pass under an eroded archway, and then leap down a massive cliff as a stunning lavafall. It had been almost three months since she had last walked all the way down to the lavafall. She had never been able to get down to its base because every part of the cliff it went down had lava flowing over it, making it impossible to climb down the rock face. However, Nylania had finally learned a flying spell from her father the month before, after what had seemed like ages of study.

This spell allowed her to hover above the ground as long as she could concentrate on the spell and the spell alone. She approached the lavafall cautiously. She gazed down the two hundred foot drop and prepared to cast her enchantment. She closed her eyes and moments later her feet began to lift from the ground. She kept her eyes closed until her feet had risen up to three feet above the floor. That is when she decided to open her eyes.

She directed herself with a wave of her hand over the edge of the precipice. As she slowly began to float downward, she noticed that the lava river emptied into a massive lake of lava only a quarter-mile away. She descended until she was low enough to float over to the nearest patch of lava-free ground. Once both feet were on the ground, she was free to look back towards the lavafall. She admired its vibrant mix of orange and red hues churning together in beautiful swirls of color. After a moment's viewing, she turned away from the beautiful sight and decided it was time to continue onward.

She soon noticed that the farther she walked, the darker it became. Soon the entire area had been blanketed in complete darkness, except for the nearby lava river and lake. A moment later though, Nylania realized that that was not the only source of light. Off to the left was a dim red glow. Curious, she decided to walk towards it. The radiance grew gradually brighter until she found herself only feet before the jagged walls of rock that enclosed the chamber.

She realized that the reddish glow was coming from a small tunnel at the base of the wall. The tunnel was large enough for her to crawl into, but it was much too small for her somewhat overweight father. She lay down on her belly and began to squirm her way into the tunnel like a snake returning to its underground nest. The passageway only stretched for ten feet before it emptied into a tiny cavity that was pitch-black except for one torch alongside of the entrance. Three of the walls were visible because of the torch, but the wall across from the entry was indiscernible.

As soon as Nylania stood up, she heard a deep, booming voice say, "This is my temple! It was built for me and I have inhabited it for seventeen centuries! Who are you to enter the Lost Temple and dwell within it?!" When she did not respond, the voice demanded, "Who are you?!"

"My name is Nylania. What's yours?" she asked, not knowing what else to say.

"Come closer." Nylania took a few tentative steps forward and finally the thus far unseen wall came into focus. It was without any embellishment except for a mask that hung in its center. The mask was vividly colored with ruthless red and orange eyes as its main feature. It had two yellow spikes on its top and a series of multi-colored spikes running along its bottom. "I am Majora," said the mask.