Constant Motion

"I thought you said you could handle it!" Vaati hissed through his teeth at the Hero. He stood with his hands on his knees after having expelled a burst of frenzied magic to rescue the both of them from falling into a pit of rusted pikes.

"I didn't know the floor would disappear if I messed up!" Link retorted, breathless. He paused as a thought crossed his mind. "Actually, there was a puzzle in the other part of the temple that did the same thing," he said to himself. Vaati threw his hands up in the air and groaned.

"Let's just... Keep going." Link nodded and got up from the ground he had been kneeling upon and started down the hall. "Wait." He stumbled mid step and tried to wipe the annoyance from his face.

"What is it?" He turned to see the mage making a gesture with his hands, his thumbs and forefingers pressed together in front of him. Then he brought both hands into a praying position, which Link found odd. After holding that pose for a second longer, he held out his hands with one on top of the other. He removed the hand he held on top slowly.

In his palm was a perched a small, faintly glowing and pure white bird. It ruffled its feathers when he took away the hand that had covered it, its tail was twice the length of its body. He cooed softly to it and gave its tiny head a caring pet with his finger.

"What is that?" Link asked, almost in awe. The contrast of the comely looking bird against the darkness he had gotten used to was very welcoming and he couldn't help but stare at the charming little creature. It hopped up to Vaati's shoulder and noticed Link. It cocked its head curiously at him.

"He is my Totem." When he said the last word, the bird chirped at him. He grinned at it. "Sorry, my friend. He can scout ahead for me since I cannot see very far." He gave the bird a nod and it took flight, zipping past Link with a minute 'whiff' and down the hall, out of sight. "Shall we go?"

"Alright."

Walking onward, they met little obstacles besides a few loose tiles in the floor. As they went, Vaati felt as if the ceiling was getting lower. Perhaps that might have only been in his head, he thought. Occasionally, they would pass a door or two. Though they knew to keep heading straight, they looked into the small windows on the doors out of curiosity. In some of these presumably locked rooms were hulking figures that they thought best not to disturb. Most of those rooms didn't seem to have anything inside while still being locked. It was the empty ones that Vaati sensed the most ill intent.

The hall's path was long and soon it began to wind in a subtle downward spiral. The floor on which they walked lost its tiles and became roughly gouged stone like one would find in a man made cave. The only sound was their footsteps beneath them before Link broke the semi silence.

"How far ahead can you see?" He asked. Vaati stopped and closed his eyes, opening his mind to the magic within him. He heard Link stop and through his closed eyelids, saw a white outline of him turn to face him. He could also see the defining features of the ground, walls, and ceiling, but everything beyond Link's white silhouette was completely black.

"I do not see anything past what we can see without magic." It wasn't too helpful of a comment. Link shrugged and continued walking. Vaati followed but kept his eyes closed and willed his senses further. He hated being so confined. He was beginning to think there just wasn't anything of interest down the path they traversed. Then, when he gave another push of his magic, he was jolted to finally see something other than the four corners of the tunnel.

"Link," he spoke. The Hylian stopped. "There is another room up ahead. The hall opens into it."

He nodded and continued onward at a quicker pace and the room came upon them. It was dimly lit by greenish-bluish lanterns lining the walls. It was a small square room, only about the size of their loft back in the village, with a walkway down the middle. The walkway was elevated above a lower portion; the bottom floor could be accessed by four short sets of stairs that branched from each corner on either side of the center path. It was difficult to tell with so little light, but the floor looked exceptionally reflective, as if it were made of glass.

As soon as they cleared the doorway, a stone slab fell into place behind them, effectively blocking any exit.

"I do not know what I expected," Vaati said, annoyed. Their only way was forward. Link hummed in contemplation.

Across the way, on the opposite side of the room, was another doorway that was adorned with iron bars. In the center of the iron bars was a small empty recess, circular in shape. As Vaati surveyed the rest of the room, Link had knelt down onto his hands and knees and was peering over the side of the small bridge. He let out a small 'Hah' and motioned for the mage to join him. He knelt beside him and peered over the edge, noticing another faint light coming from under the path. There was a simple pedestal sitting directly in the center of the bottom floor and an orb just about the size of the alcove on the gate rested atop it.

"Think that will get the gate open?" Link asked as he stood up. Vaati gazed at it intently.

"Most likely," he said, and without any more prompting, Link started making his way to one of the sets of stairs. Vaati was taking in every element presented to him. The shining floor, the strangely colored lanterns, the pedestal, the orb itself. He knew it wouldn't be as easy as just walking up and grabbing it. It was then that he noticed two things. First, Link was a step away from placing a foot on the shiny floor. Two, the floor was not reflective because it was made of glass.

Vaati's eyes widened. "Link! Wait!"

It happened in a split second. Link's foot was hovering over the glossy floor when he felt a sharp tug at the back of his tunic. The sorcerer had appeared behind him and had the collar of his tunic in his grasp, holding him back from taking another step. Link turned back to look at the stoic man.

"It would be inadvisable to disturb the water." Link glanced at the surface for a moment before comprehension dawned on his features. He brought his foot back onto the step he was about to step off of.

"Damn, you're fast." He uttered. Vaati took the compliment in stride. "What's down there?" Link peered over the side.

"I," Vaati hesitated, "I do not know. There is nothing I can sense. But," he pulled Link away from the edge, "The simplest way I can put it is that I have a bad feeling about it." Link heard the seriousness in him and wasn't going to ignore the mage's warning.

"So," his face turned to the pedestal they were even with now, "How are we going to get that then?" Vaati followed his eyes to the orb, thinking. The highest point of the artifact was too far below the main bridge directly above it to simply reach down. What would be the best way to obtain the item without touching anything else in the room?

...

"Are you sure this is best way to do this?" The Hero asked from below the mage. He was upside down, held by the ankles. Vaati was standing on the underside of the bridge, his feet held to it by magic. "Can't you just fly down here and grab it?"

"I use the wind to carry myself through the air. I do not 'fly'. The wind might upset the water." He held on a little tighter as Link swung his torso down. "Can you reach it?" Link had his arm outstretched just inches above his target.

"Almost," he grunted. "Can you lower me a bit more?"

"I think so. I am going to let go one of your ankles." He did it as he said it which didn't give Link the time to readjust and he swung out a little in a panic. "Hold still."

Link rolled his eyes and held his tongue, then looked back at his quarry. With Vaati stretching out one arm, his fingers were just brushing the round surface.

"Little closer," he said. Vaati carefully detached one of his feet from the bridge and lifted the remaining heel. He hung on by just his toes. Link was then able to wrap the tips of fingers around the widest part of the orb. "Got it!"

Just as he removed the key from its place, a crackling sound met his ears.

"What was that?" Vaati asked, unable to see what Link was looking at. Link stared at the pedestal they were hanging above.

Cracks splintered from the crevice the ball had been resting upon and were darting around the plinth. They both were transfixed as they watched the thing fall apart into pieces that splashed into the water below. They held their breath, still hanging. The rubble settled but the water rippled ceaselessly, reflections from the eerie lanterns danced all around.

The water was lapping more and more aggressively as they watched. Through the waves, they were starting to see 'things' moving under the surface.

"Uh, Vaati?" Link tore his eyes from the water to look up at the mage who's lips were a thin line.

"Right," he made sure his grip on Link was firm before swinging him, back and forth, until Link was able to reach out and grab the edge of the bridge. Once he saw Link hoisting himself up and over, Vaati made to walk to the other edge, but stopped.

He looked down and saw what he assumed was one of those 'things' they had seen swimming under the water before. It was half submerged, the top half humanoid and staring back at him with hollow eyes. His breath hitched. As he stood there motionless, another humanoid thing was slowly rising from the water noiselessly. Then another. They were grotesque, with pale, leathery skin and empty sockets where eyes should be. He too had to wrench his attention away from them and get to the edge of the bridge. Once up, he spotted Link who had waited for him to reappear.

"What are you doing? Get the gate open!" Link shook himself and ran for the bars. As Vaati was getting a leg onto the bridge, an icy, slimy hand had wrapped itself around his ankle, pulling him back over. At the touch, he felt his body go limp. Fear gripped him, he was unable to move, unable to breathe and he could feel himself falling back over the edge where the water was waiting.

Just as his squeezed his eyes shut, he felt another hand grab him. This one was warm and had caught him at the crook of his elbow. He opened his eyes to see Link, orb abandoned next to him, was pulling him as hard as he could away from the things that had a hold on him from below. He hefted him up onto the stone bridge and held onto the back of his tunic as he unsheathed his sword. He only saw the glint of metal as it was brought down.

He suddenly regained control of his body. He sucked in a large breath of air and was shuddering violently. Link helped him to stand, no words passing between them, only the sense of escape. Link scooped up the stone and ran towards the gate, Vaati ambling behind him.

Link thrust the orb into its place at the gate. It glowed brightly for a moment. Then the bars seemed to turn into molten metal and were falling away at an agonizingly slow rate. Link tried to ignore the slapping of wet body parts as the things that had attacked Vaati were coming out of the water towards them. He willed the bars to melt faster. Once, there was a big enough hole he thought about trying to squeeze through, but looking back at the mage he knew that wouldn't be so easy. He looked like he was in a state of shock, still shuddering and he had fallen to one knee. Link reached back and took hold of his wrist, pulling him up again. He dragged him through the portal. Vaati was heavier than before.

"Vaati, come on!" He gave a mighty yank and that was when he saw the bodies, piling on top of one another, climbing towards them at an alarming speed. All reserves to be gentle were lost and Link was practically dragging Vaati into the next stretch of hallway. The bodies didn't stop at the exit, following them into the cramped tunnel. Vaati was tripping over himself.

They both lost their footing and tumbled to the ground. Link fell to his knees and it was a struggle getting back up. Vaati was on his hands and knees breathing hard. He couldn't tell what was wrong with him but didn't have the time to ask. That sickening slapping noise was just behind them, upon the sorcerer.

"Vaati!" The shout reverberated off the walls and snapped him out of it. He looked up into those hollow eyes, his will returning to him. In a flash, he was on one knee facing the horde. He threw both of his hands in front of him, palms facing his torso, and a gust of wind came to his call. The force of the blast was powerful enough to blow every crawling creature back where they came from. Vaati didn't stop there. He made a clawed hand at the ceiling in front of him and brought it down hard. There was a deafening rumbling followed by the ceiling caving in behind them, effectively cutting off the way back and separating them from harm. When the rumbling stopped, they sat there, too stunned to do much else.

They caught their breath during the small reprieve, not speaking a word. Once they were breathing normally and silence reigned, they began hearing a faint thumping sound. Vaati looked at the rocks and stood up. He looked to Link who was also staring intently at the barricade. He could hear it too.

"Let's move."

They moved quickly at first, wanting to put a lot of distance behind them, then it was back to the monotony of the long dark hallway. Link was the first to slow his pace. He could hear a limp in Vaati's steps. Not long after that, Vaati called for them to stop. Link acquiesced and turned to find the mage holding onto the wall for support as he rubbed at his ankle.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"My leg is numb." He lowered himself to the floor while massaging his calf, willing the feeling to come back.

"That's where that thing grabbed you, right?" Vaati nodded distractedly. "When I cut off the arm that was attached to you, the hand kind of... disintegrated." Vaati lowered himself into a sitting position and gave him his full attention. "I don't know if that helps." Vaati gave a sudden nod of recognition.

"It does, actually." He held out a close first. After a moment he opened it and a little ball of light was nestled in his palm. He brought the light to his ankle.

A ghostly image of a severed hand was latched firmly to him, causing a hand-shaped bruise to appear. Link reeled back.

"What is that?"

"I cannot recall the proper name, but I've read about them before. The bodies we saw weren't their true forms. When you cut it, was it like cutting through nothing?" He looked to see Link nodding in response. "It is because they exist on a different plane from our physical one." He closed his hand but the light didn't disappear. It was poking out from in between his fingers and spreading to cover everything up to his wrist. He opened his hand again and it was like he was wearing a glove of light. He grabbed the transparent hand and squeezed. The appendage appeared to shatter into shards and disappeared. He let out a sigh of relief as he rubbed at his foot again.

"Much better." He looked up at Link from the ground. "Let me see your sword." Link acquiesced despite finding the request a bit strange. He pulled the Master Sword from its scabbard and held the blade out to the mage. Vaati took his still glowing hand and held it over the shinning surface. As he suspected, little glowing specks littered at the point where Link had sliced the limb. "Some of it is still on your blade." Link understood what he meant to do and set the tip into the ground in front of Vaati.

Before he set to work he paused, staring at the particles. As he watched, he was intrigued to find that the bits were slowly vanishing on their own.

"What is it?" Link had noticed his hesitation. Vaati shook his head.

"Nothing." He decided to help it along. Touching the cold metal with his glowing hand, he focused on the diminishing flecks. With his aid they were lifting up into the air like little insects of light and vanishing. When he finished, he released the magic and the glow faded from his hand. Before he took his hand back, something grabbed his attention. That something was moving within the sword, as if it were almost alive.

He was seeing images, feeling emotions that weren't his. Some of the feelings were connected to a rapid flow of scenes. Anger at unjust imprisonment, the sadness of loss, the determination to do what was right despite the cruelty received. And then, there it was, buried under all of the life poured into it, a life-force of its own. The sword was alive.

Vaati gasped and jerked his hand away. He was back in the dark halls in the depths of the Shadow Temple with Link standing over him, looking a bit concerned.

"Is everything alright?" Link asked of him. He blinked a few times, having been fixated on the Master Sword.

"Yeah..." he said slowly while getting to his feet. He was entirely too curious not to ask at that point. "Link, where did you get this?"

"What, the Master Sword?" Link asked midway through sheathing it. "From the Temple of Time."

"That is the temple near where Hyrule Castle used to be." Link nodded at Vaati's statement.

"That's right. Only the 'Hero of Time' can wield this sword," Link explained. Vaati was very interested in a blade that was able to choose its wielder.

"What else do you know about it?" He asked. Link shook his head once.

"Not much," he said, thinking. "Only that it has another name; the Blade of Evil's Bane."

Vaati grinned satisfactorily. "That is a fitting name."

They checked themselves over, making sure they hadn't lost any equipment or find any other injuries they might have missed. When Link was ready, he suggested they keep moving. Vaati disagreed.

"I would like to wait for my Totem to return." Vaati said while brushing off a bit of dirt from his tunic. "I want to have a little more warning before we come across another room like the few we have escaped from."

"Are you afraid?" Link had an almost teasing air to him. Vaati shot him a vicious glare.

"If you knew the terrors a hostile spirit was capable of, you would not treat this situation so lightly." He said rather venomously. He folded his arms and leaned against the wall, intent on not moving any farther. "To meddle with spirits is a grievous offense. Death is not the worst that could happen to us." Link swallowed.

"I didn't mean anything by it," he said quietly. Vaati eyed him wearily for a moment. It wasn't that he was truly irritated at Link's tease, he was just entirely ready to be done with this place forever. He sighed quietly.

"It's fine." After they stood there for a moment in silence, Vaati was relieved to hear the flapping of bird wings. His relief quickly turned to concern however when he heard the weak and frantic chirping that followed. Link whipped around and was blinded by Vaati's glowing scissor tail. He ducked out of the way as the tiny bird flew towards Vaati's chest and he caught it in his hands, cradling it gently. It relayed what it had seen to him and he stood stock still, his face looking more solemn as the seconds wore on. Soon, the bird disappeared completely with a faint tinkling.

"What is it?" Link asked. Vaati didn't answer immediately.

"Well, there is a large chamber ahead. And then, beyond it, stairs that lead into a tall circular room." He paused and his lips were set into a thin line. "There is something large in the first room and it attacked my bird." Link gave a blank face.

"You make it sound like that makes things worse." He said. Vaati nodded.

"A physical entity cannot touch my Totem." He blinked and looked to Link. "Whatever is waiting for us is probably not friendly." Link looked over his shoulder pensively.

"Then we must be going the right way," and with that, he made off. Vaati rolled his eyes.

'The calculations of a hero,' he thought internally. Then he grudgingly followed Link.

Just over a hundred paces forward, Vaati was able to sense it. He placed a hand on Link's shoulder to stop him. He nodded forward.

"That thing I mentioned before is just ahead," he said just above a whisper, "I think we might be able to sneak past it." Link knew he must have meant with his magic and he gave him a gruff nod.

"Good idea," he whispered back. He allowed a moment for Vaati to perform whatever spell he had in mind to get past their next Trial. After they had stood quiet for a few moments, Link noticed a change all around him. It was like there was a warm breeze that had suddenly whisked past him, an antithesis to the chill of the underground. Vaati gave him the go ahead with a brisk nod and they started to make their way forward. It was still a little ways to go before Link noticed any change in the scenery.

The walkway had opened up into a new room, bigger than any they had so far come across. They could not see the ceiling through the darkness, but the way ahead was clear. They stopped at the entrance and gave a searching look around.

Vaati was the first to spot the thing. It was big, just as his Totem had told him. It seemed to have its back turned to them, so he could not truly discern any recognizable shapes. It just looked like a large dark mound lying on the floor. He pointed it out to Link.

It took him a moment of squinting, but he was able to see the large creature Vaati had mentioned. It was a dense mass that moved up and down as it took deep breaths. It appeared to be sleeping. With the help of the magic, they'd be able to get through this room without incident. His eyes scanned the other side and fell upon an open doorway. There was a faint light coming from down the hall after. He looked back, shrugging a shoulder for Vaati to follow. He did so, holding his breath as he eyed the beast.

Just as they started making their way around it, the thing let out a loud snort in its slumber, causing Vaati to jump. After it returned to stillness, they waited until they were sure it was safe to move again. Vaati was eager to hurry it up and so took the first step.

He heard the sound but couldn't comprehend what made it, let alone react to it. There was a whistling gust like a sword sweeping through the air and all he had the time to do was look up as something long and black that looked to be made of fur was coming down upon him.

Link saw it as it was it happening and his instincts kicked in. He grabbed Vaati's shoulder and pulled him back, knocking him to the floor as a loud thud shook the ground. They looked between each other, wide eyed.

Before they could make any kind of move for the exit, the beast was stirring. The mage scrambled to his feet, his heart racing, and he and Link backed away several feet, landing them at the beginning of the chamber again. The large thing was sitting up and moved to lay in front of the passage they were trying to get to. It turned toward them with giant cat-like slits for eyes, and stared down at the two. Then, they heard something they weren't expecting. It spoke.

"Did you truly think that little magic trick would work?" Vaati was more shocked by the words than Link was by its mere ability to speak. His spell should have masked all traces of their presence. Why hadn't it worked? He had even been able to fool Ganondorf with this spell. Did he slip up? Or was this thing more powerful than he realized? This was a situation he had never encountered before and it was making him more uneasy than anything they had seen so far in the temple.

"I bid you to answer my question quickly," it said. Vaati stuttered, unable to think of what it might consider a suitable answer. Then Link spoke up.

"We were hoping it might," he said a little sheepishly. Vaati smacked himself in the forehead. The thing laughed a booming laugh at the two of them.

"Nothing can pass through here without my knowledge." With no discernible mouth, it was hard to tell, but Link thought it grinned before its next statement. "Or my permission."

"Well, can we have your permission?" Link asked. Vaati was beside himself. Was everything so simple to the Hylian? The thing was laughing again.

"Not so fast. If you want my permission, you have to pass my test."

It was another Trial. That thought put Vaati back in a reasonable state of mind. They just had to pass this Trial and then they could move on. He took a steadying breath.

"What is your test?" He asked in a regal voice. The thing leered in what he was now realizing a toad-like manner. It turned to Link instead, making Vaati feel a little put off.

"You must answer three questions correctly for me to allow you to pass." It said finitely. Link looked to the mage.

"That doesn't seem too bad." He shrugged. Vaati agreed.

"Do not attack or make any sudden moves. I will handle this," Link nodded as Vaati took a step forward. The giant shadowy frog had its beady eyes on him.

"What are your questions?" He tried to sound polite, though Link could tell he was making quite an effort to do so.

"Very well, sorcerer. My first riddle."

Riddle? It just said questions before. Had Vaati known what it meant? Link looked at Vaati's face and found he was unperturbed by this. He looked rather confident actually. Link shrugged to himself. He was perfectly fine with Vaati taking care of this Trial on his own.

"This is something that belongs to you, though others use it more than you do. What is it?" The frog thing licked its lips with a long black tendril that gave Link the shivers.

"My name." Vaati said without hesitation. They heard a rumbling sound and it took them both a moment to realize the beast with giggling.

"Very good. That is correct, of course," it smacked its lips excitedly. Link was blinking in confusion. He answered that extremely quickly. He hoped he wasn't cheating somehow. He had a feeling there would be bad consequences if he were. "Onto my next riddle.

"This is something that everyone has. It will sometimes make you happy and other times make you sad. It won't end until the day you do. What is it?"

Link was stumped. He wanted to try and work it out and so paid careful attention to the riddle. It wasn't any good. Even Vaati was taking a little longer to answer. It was another few seconds and then Vaati smiled.

"The answer is my memories." He stated. The big cat eyes squinted with glee.

"Oh ho! You are a clever one, mage." It shifted around in its spot. "There are not many who can come up with the right solutions so quickly. However," Vaati's proud demeanor fell at the toad's impish tone . It inclined its head toward Link. "I have not heard any answers from you, Hylian." Link was blinking more than ever. He pointed at himself as if there was another he could have been referring to.

"Me?" He gulped. Its grin widened and it hummed.

"Yes. I have amended my earlier proclamation. In order for me to allow you both to pass, you," he nodded to Link again, "Must be the one to answer my last riddle."

The only response Link could think to say was simply the word, 'crap', though he wouldn't actually voice it. Had it somehow guessed he wasn't very good at this? His willingness to let Vaati do this alone was likely evident enough.

"Er..." he stammered.

'Agree to his terms. I will help.' Vaati's voice infiltrated Link's thoughts. The words weren't as comforting as he was sure Vaati meant them. The way the frog thing looked, it seemed almost as if it were expecting them the cheat in some way and was watching closely to make sure they didn't.

"A-alright. I'll answer your riddle." He called to the creature. It grinned widely again.

"How splendid!" It did a little dance on the spot excitedly and Link was having a hard time figuring out if it was toying with him, or if the beast was genuinely this animated. It stopped its dancing and made a thoughtful face. "Oh, I've nearly forgotten." The light giggle it made gave no such indication that it had forgotten anything. "Any trickery from you, mage, would be unacceptable, I think."

"No tricks from me," Vaati said with his hands up, a sign of submition. There was a slow, low, laugh that made Vaati suddenly very uncomfortable.

"No, you see," the frog/cat's grin was visible in its eyes then, "I will not be allowing any tricks."

A fissure in the darkness opened up below the two eyes. It was the mouth that they previously could not see. Something shot out of its maw towards Vaati who didn't have the time to assess what was happening until the thing was already upon him. In an instant, the flying object stopped directly in front of him, waist high and within arm's reach. He only caught a glimpse of it, a tiny ball of green light, before it glowed too brightly for him to look at. He shielded his face reflexively.

The light faded to reveal that Vaati had become encased in a sort of green field of magic. Link watched, helpless, as he removed his hands from his face and took a look at his prison. He reached out a hand to one of the walls and, upon contact, a spark lit up and he reeled back. He then crossed his arms over his chest and closed his eyes in an annoyed manner.

"He can hear nothing from us, and we can hear nothing from him." The frog had settled back into a lounging position and was looking pretty pleased with its work. "Now, you must answer my last question."

Link was at a loss. Would he be able to answer correctly? What were the consequences of getting it wrong? Would Vaati be able to get himself out? He wanted to pull at his hair in frustration but was trying to remain outwardly unperturbed. He cleared his throat.

"You wouldn't go easy on me if I asked, would you?" He said timidly. To his surprise, the beast shook the room with its boisterous laughter. He wasn't sure what to make of that.

"I like you, human." It said after sobering up, but was still chuckling between its words. "Very well, your riddle will involve something you're familiar with."

Link imagined his face lighting up. It would go easy on him and it had already given him a hint. He gave one last glance at Vaati who seemed to be attempting to keep up with the situation, then faced the frog.

"Alright, I will answer."

"Good." It re-positioned itself and cleared it's throat. "Here is your riddle:

"This has feathers, a head, and a very skinny body, but it is not alive. It can fly, though how far it goes depends on your strength. What is it?"

He liked puzzles. He could work out physical puzzles all day long because he enjoyed doing them. Word trickery on the other hand were the bane of his existence. He couldn't help that his jaw was slacked as the words went right over his head.

He roused himself. If he couldn't answer this stupid riddle, he'd be failing Vaati and Marickiya. He would get this even if it took him hours to get it right. He hoped it wouldn't take hours.

"I-I'm sorry, could you repeat it one more time?" He wondered if he was wearing down this thing's patience. It nodded and he let out a breath.

"Of course, young one." It gave him the riddle again and he listened hard.

A head, body, and feathers, but not alive. It wouldn't be any kind of animal. What flies besides birds? Clouds? No, not clouds, that wouldn't make sense with the second part. By strength... Was it something that was thrown?

Link became distracted by the smug look the frog was making. It loved seeing people struggle. That's why it wanted him to answer, Vaati didn't struggle. He tried looking elsewhere to keep from seeing the look of glee in the frog's face.

He felt like he almost had it. The beast said he was familiar with this thing. Assuming it could not read minds, he might even have this thing on him at that moment. This something could be thrown? Bombs? No, that didn't have feathers nor was it skinny. Deku nuts? Still no feathers.

His face lit up. Skinny body, a head, feathers, and you pull back with all your strength to let it fly. He had the answer. He grinned, feeling confident.

"I have a question." The Hero of Time said abruptly, making the frog creature blink repeatedly.

"What is your question, human?" It said after composing itself.

"If I answer your question correctly, then my friend and I would be allowed to pass, right?" Link asked. The beast's pupils became slits as it eyed him.

"Yes," it said after its pause.

"You won't change your mind again? You'll keep your word that you'll let us go?" The thing was grinning wildly with its eyes again as Link said this.

"A keen mind, you have." It said, clearly delighted. "You have my word. Now, do you have an answer?"

Link breathed in, hoping he hadn't missed a part of the riddle, then let it out slowly. He was sure of himself.

"The answer is an arrow."

There was a breath of silence. Then a high pitched cackling rent through the air. The frog-being leapt onto its back legs and seemed to be dancing. It would have been a comical sight apart from the fact that this was its reaction to his long, thought out answer.

"You have been the most wonderful treat, my young Hylian." It stated after falling back down to the ground on all fours again. "To the both of you," it clucked its tongue and the green prison fell away from Vaati like a crashing wave of water, "You are both clever."

Vaati looked to Link questioningly, but he was facing the creature and didn't notice.

"You are both clever in different ways and have made this quite entertaining for me. As promised, you are free to go." And just like that, it moved away from the doorway. Link looked back at Vaati, both sharing baffled expressions. Then Vaati shook his head. He gestured with his hand towards the next hall. 'Shall we?'

They carefully made their way to the exit, Vaati going through first with Link on his heels. He made a side glance at the creature who was watching them the whole time. It gave him a wink. Link smiled and faced the new hallway. Once they were both in the clear and heading onward, his smile widened and he almost let out a laugh of relief.

"You'll meet up with your other companions shortly."

He stopped and turned back to the creature. Only his view of the thing was obstructed by the sudden appearance of a wall keeping them from going back. 'Again?' he thought annoyed.

"What is it?" Vaati asked, but then he looked past him at the new wall and he sighed. That gimmick was getting quite old.

"Did you hear what it said?" Link asked.

"When?"

"Just now." Link looked back at the mage who gave him a blank look. "It said we'd be meeting up with the others soon."

"I did not hear it say that." He put a hand to his chin. "Did you say anything about the others while I was... indisposed?" Link shook his head. Vaati hummed.

Could it read minds after all? It had that smug look the whole time he was working out the clues. Or perhaps it just knew what all was going on in the rest of the temple. It seemed to have spoken only to him just then. He groaned internally, not wanting to think about it.

"What was your riddle?" Vaati asked as he motioned for them to keep going. Link jogged to walk beside him.

"You really couldn't hear us?"

"It seems my magic was neutralized." He crossed his arms. Link thought for a moment.

"I can't really remember all of it." Vaati gave him a bemused expression.

"But you were able to answer it?" Link nodded.

"I asked if it would go easy on me," he rubbed at the back of his neck. Vaati grinned.

"I think it was rather fond of you."

"Quiet." Link said flatly.

They both came to a stop. The cavern walls had become man made stonework once again and were sloping down, following a flight of stairs which they stood at the top of. They could not see all the way down.

"These steps go fairly deep. It will be a long walk." Vaati made the first step. "What else is new, though."

"It could have been worse. At least we didn't encounter that Dead Hand." Link said thoughtfully as he made to follow.

"What exactly is that, by the way?" Vaati said offhandedly. Link scoffed at his apathetic attitude.

"Oh man, do I have a story for you."

0000

They had been walking for hours and that was not an exaggeration. Their path was a straight shot, just as Aine had earlier explained, though she could swear it was slowly bending leftward.

They hadn't said much beyond idle conversations since Aine's minor outburst. The longer the silence went on, the more awkward the Sheikah felt. He was usually the one to start the small, few-sentences-long conversations just to have a mental break. He was actually hoping to meet up with the others soon, in contrast to him being slightly joyed to be alone with Marickiya in the beginning. He was ready to get through the temple and call it a day.

The floor beneath their feet shuddered and they could hear a distant rumbling. They stopped, both holding onto the wall, in case the tremors decided to become more violent. They waited for it to pass wordlessly. Once the trembling settled, they continued on.

That had begun a while ago. It had frightened Marickiya at first, but a it became more frequent, she decided to ignore it. The first time it happened, she asked what was causing it.

"I am unsure," Aine had said to her. He reminded her a bit of Vaati when he said it, calm and untroubled. "It's possible that there is something big held on the lower floors making a fuss. We won't be going anywhere near those chambers, though. Another possibility is the temple is rearranging." He made it sound like that was a common occurrence. Though he seemed undaunted by these possibilities, Marickiya was not as easily alleviated. To her, it felt as if the temple itself was breathing like it was one giant living entity.

"Ah, we're here." Aine exclaimed quietly.

They came to another stop, this time at the top of a flight of stairs. As still as they were, they could feel a subtle breeze coming from its depths. The movement in the air sent a chill down Marickiya's spine. Aine took the first step into oblivion with her behind him. They weren't even ten steps down before she was tired of it.

"How long do these go?" She asked, trying to hold back the whine in her voice. Aine smiled.

"We're going to be walking a while longer." She made a disgusted sound.

"I wish there was a faster way- ACK!"

She missed a step and slid on her bottom down several steps. She landed in front of Aine, managing not to knock him over in the process. He laughed as he helped her up.

"Well, that is one way to get down faster," he said jokingly. Marickiya massaged her rear.

"I do not recommend that method." He laughed at her again.

They trudged on, Marickiya holding onto the wall and walking in front in case she slipped again. She was already dreading having to go back up these to get out of the temple.

They descended the steps for a good half hour before anything interesting happened. She could see the end, still a ways down, but there was a faint light that illuminated it, making it discernible from the darkness. Excited to see something new finally, she picked up her pace a bit without realizing it. She crossed last step and walked onto the even ground, silently thanking it for its existence.

The steps poured right into a large room, circular in shape. The most fascinating thing about this room was that it was completely lit. It wasn't a harsh light, so she didn't need to shield or squint her eyes from it. The light was a brilliant blue in color and emanated from strange crystals. Those crystals covered the dark walls evenly in a line that spiraled around the room and up towards the ceiling which was so far up she could barely make it out. She was in awe at the wondrous sight. It wasn't like any other part of the temple and seemed almost out of place.

"Aine what is this?" She asked happily.

When there was no answer from the Sheikah, she turned back where she had come from to see if he had just not caught up yet. He was standing on the bottom step. She thought maybe he hadn't heard her, but he was doing something weird. His hands were raised and he looked like he was shouting, but no sound could be heard from him. He was acting like there was some invisible barrier and was pounding on it ferociously.

He stopped suddenly and looked past her farther into the chamber. Marickiya followed his gaze. There, standing in the other opening in the wall opposite him, was Link and Vaati. She smiled, feeling very relieved to see the two of them again. She lifted her arm to wave to them. Then, the floor beneath her shook violently, throwing her off her feet.

"What was that?" She cried, not yet fully realizing she was completely cut off from her companions. The rumbling stopped and she scrambled upright, trying to regain her bearings.

The first crash stopped her heart momentarily. She whipped around towards the sound. The first crystal in the spiral had dislodged itself from the wall and tumbled to the floor. She breathed out in an attempt to calm herself. The tremors just knocked the crystal from the wall, that was all. Even as she thought this, the next crystal in the line broke away from the wall as well and tumbled to the floor with another resounding crash. It was just a coincidence, she thought. But then the next fell, and the next one. Each of those crystals separated from their scones in rapid succession, all with anxiety inducing thuds that were becoming increasingly louder and harder the farther they fell. She threw glances at her friends who could only look on helplessly.

The crashes came to a halt. The last crystal had plummeted to the floor. Everything was impossibly still. She wished something would move, but mostly she wished she weren't alone.

Both of her wishes were granted, thought not in the way she hoped just then. All of the broken crystals that lined the outside of the room began shuddering at once. On their own, they rolled across the floor, staying near the walls, but amassing into one place. They piled on top of each other of their own volition, slowly forming a humanoid figure. It was towering over her. Then it stood upright. At its fullest height, it was about four times hers, and its crystalline body was very sturdy looking. The crystal Golem stared down at her menacingly.

Marickiya's heart raced. What was she supposed to do? Even if she could properly utilize her weapons, she didn't have anything that would be useful against this enemy. Wait, she had that magic she fought Ganon with. That could work... only Vaati told her it was dangerous to use it. What if she killed herself in the process?

The Golem started advancing on her. Still caught in her indecision, all she did was stand there, her mind trying frantically to find some way to get out of this mess.

Too late. It was on top of her, rearing its arm back to attack. She gasped and lunged out of the arm's path. She waited too long though and ended up falling flat on the ground. A little winded, she picked herself up as quickly as she could. The Golem was faster though, and by the time she was standing, it had prepared another attack. There was a glint from the glowing crystals as it came flying towards her and collided with her side. Unable to withstand the hit, she was sent flying to the other end of the room where she crumpled to the floor, little lights dancing in front of her eyes. She wouldn't be standing back up any time soon. She watched the Golem turn to face where she had fallen, terrified that this would be the last thing she would see. Her vision slowly faded into a milky whiteness, incapable of comprehending anything else. She waited for it all to be over...

Vaati let out an aggravated yell as he threw spell after spell at the barrier keeping the two of them from entering the room. He was furious. He had seen Marickiya enter the room by herself and was now facing a giant crystal Golem. What was Aine doing allowing her to go first? He was supposed to know about all these traps. His sole purpose for tagging along was to prevent things like this from happening. It was difficult keeping his anger abated while he thought of a way to get inside. His magic wasn't enough, only causing the force field to crackle annoyingly. Link shouted at him to stop.

"Move for a second," Link said, pushing Vaati's shoulder out of the way. He had his sword unsheathed and aimed its tip at the invisible wall. With a desperate roar, he plunged the blade into the wall. Surprisingly, the blade actually pierced the unseen substance and it crackled more violently. Then, with a mighty jolt, the wall rejected him and threw him onto his back a few feet away. That little display gave Vaati an idea.

Before he could explain his plan to Link, he heard a crash from inside the next room. He looked up to find the Golem had approached Marickiya and attacked. She managed to avoid the first attempted blow, but as she was standing up again, she didn't see it taking another swing. He gasped sharply.

"Marickiya!" Link cried, having picked himself up just in time to see her get thrown across the room. He was gripping his hilt tightly and began swinging madly at the barrier. Vaati saw Marickiya fall to the ground and not get back up. Apparently the Golem noticed as well and began making its way over to her prone form to finish her. He had to work fast.

"Link! Hold out your sword!" He screamed at the Hylian. He gripped his shoulder, mimicking the same action used on him earlier. Link tore his eyes away from the horrific scene to watch Vaati take hold of his blade, the sharp edges digging into his palms making them bleed. The droplets ran down the length of the sword. When the entire thing was coated, it was ablaze with a deep red light and his hilt shook slightly.

Just as the magic was finished transferring a bit of his power, something was happening in the room they could not enter. A blaring white light erupted from where they'd seen Marickiya fall. The two men stared wide eyed, still trying to see what was going on through the glare. An explosion rocked the entire cavern, shaking bricks loose from the walls in their hallway. Then, the rumbling and the light ceased altogether, leaving a burning image behind in their vision. They searched the room again.

Marickiya stood solitary in the center of the circular chamber, hunched over and breathing hard. The crystals, having all lost their glow, were littered absolutely everywhere. Some had even shot and then lodged into the walls. The two stood motionless for a moment, not completely understanding what happened.

The moment was short lived in the face of a new threat. The ground was rumbling again, though not from any kind of attack, but from becoming too unstable. It was falling apart right where Marickiya was standing. Vaati used his magical senses and saw that there was a pit below the next room. How far down it went was unknown to him. They were out of time.

"Link! Now!" Vaati pointed at the barrier. Link didn't need any more prompting and used the same maneuver, thrusting the Master Sword into the magical blockage. A few seconds of intense crackling and the thing shattered, the way was clear. By that time though, he only caught a glimpse as Marickiya was falling into a newly created hole. Then, she was gone.

Link felt something move swiftly beside him. Vaati had rushed past him and was running into the crumbling room. He watched the mage take a flying leap off of the edge of the growing hole in the middle of the room and dove without fear into the pit below...

He forced all of his senses to open as far as he could without blacking out from the pain. He used his magic to propel himself faster, otherwise he wouldn't be able to catch up to Marickiya.

He was upon her quickly. With another burst, he had caught up and grabbed her wrist. He twisted around in the air so that he was under her. Adrenaline pushed him to act fast, the floor was within his sight. He called forth his magic and created a protective sphere of wind to surround them. He hoped it was enough to break their fall.

They landed hard, even with the cushion to soften it. Vaati groaned as he hit his back on something sharp. His breath came in gasps, but he couldn't pass out. He knew there would be more debris coming. He struggled to reopen his senses, he needed to see. When he was able to illuminate their surroundings, a boulder came pelting into his vision directly at his face. He yelped and threw his palms in front of him to produce a powerful gust of wind, blasting the large rock away from him. A few more smaller rocks came cascading down to him and he knocked them away as well. Soon, there were no more rocks threatening to crush him and no more sound after the smaller stones settled.

His body ached, but they were alive. He was getting really tired of these split second rescues. He was beginning to forget why they were here in the first place. He groaned again while attempting to sit up. He couldn't move as easily as he wanted and so decided to wait for his healing magic to rectify whatever ailed him. He stared into the endless space above him, where they had fallen from.

For that moment, he would stay there, staring up into the endless darkness and wait.