Link is in possession of the greatest sword in Hyrule's history, but there won't be much time to celebrate. And back in Centropolis, the rift created by his sudden departure only deepens...

Chapter 10 – The Powerful & the Powerless

The only light in the tunnel was creeping in from outside. That light itself was not particularly bright due to the canopy of trees soaking up the sunlight in the area. Needless to say, Link was longing for a lantern right about now, or even a flashlight; he was starting to regret leaving Centropolis so hastily without packing some modern conveniences.

A row of old torches lined each marble wall. Roy unsheathed his sword and pointed it against each torch, summoning a spark of flame that was just enough to ignite them. He took one off the wall and handed it to Link.

Outside, a conversation had started between Peach and Lucario. It was of no concern to Link, but his acute Hylian ears twitched out of instinct, picking up bits and pieces all the way through the corridor.

"Has Mario changed his mind?" Lucario asked. It was his same powerful voice, reduced to a whisper in the back of Link's head.

"No..." Peach answered sadly.

"And Luigi?"

"Still missing…"

More members of the Brotherhood? Was there trouble in the ranks? Maybe Roy would budge, but looking at Marth's stony expression in the torchlight told Link that he wouldn't get a real answer if he bothered to ask.

The dirt path eventually led to a circular room. Roy lit the remaining torches, filling it with light. On a pedestal in the center of the room was a marble casket.

"You're raiding your own tomb," Roy said. "Doesn't that feel weird?"

Link rolled his eyes as they surrounded the coffin. "Not until you said it…"

"Have you prepared yourself for what you may see?" Marth asked. Link nodded and gulped as the hoisted the top off of the coffin and set it aside.

There was a short silence. An assortment of tools and weapons sat within the coffin, but a body was nowhere in sight.

"Maybe someone got here before we did?" Roy suggested.

"It was sealed by the sword," Marth replied. "I do not believe this tomb has been disturbed."

Link rummaged through the items before securing each one while Marth and Roy discussed what may have happened to his old body. There was his trusty Hylian Shield, the sheathe for the Master Sword, the Gale Boomerang, an empty bomb bag and quiver, Hero's Bow, both clawshots, the Dominion Rod, and a few miscellaneous objects.

"The only stuff missing are the unwieldy things like my iron boots, ball and chain, and the spinner," Link spoke up. "But I kept those at home." There was no telling what happened to them.

Roy raised a brow, "You carry around a ball and chain? A little extreme, dontcha think?"

"I told you, I usually keep it at home."

"To pillage a tomb and take nothing of value makes little sense," Marth stated, countering Roy's earlier suggestion.

"Well Marth, maybe you can tell us what happened to his old body. Did it get up and walk away?"

Marth closed his eyes, ignoring the flippant remark. "Perhaps Lucario has the answer."

"Uh huh."

A thunderous voice rattled their minds.

"Come quickly!" Lucario demanded urgently. "He is here!"

The trio traded glances before dashing back through the tomb.

Derwin was comforted by the lights from the windows of his home. He unlocked the door and entered to find his father sitting in a recliner chair in the living room. The television was off and the older raccoon's dark eyes were fixated on him.

Neal Tate, a gray-furred raccoon much like his son, was known for his serious, sometimes uninviting demeanor. Growing up in a different, harsher period in Centropolis only solidified the wall he projected around his compassion – a wall that slowly began to crumble upon the inception of his own family. Unfortunately, facets of the curt, angry Neal were known to reemerge during heated moments.

Derwin knew that whenever any one of his parents sat there waiting for him, he was in trouble. Was he late? They would have called if they were worried…

"I'm home," he murmured.

"I got a call from Link's parents..." his father started. "What's this stuff about Link missing and you not telling them where he is?"

Derwin's heart skipped a beat. The last thing he needed was for his own parents to react the way Albert and Nora did.

"Did they tell you everything?"

"About the magical fantasy world and the pokemon? Yeah, you could have come up with something better than that. "

Maybe it was naïve for him to think the Jensens wouldn't have spread word, but at least he didn't have to go over every agonizing detail while getting increasingly incredulous looks along the way again.

"Everything I said is true! His nightmares were from his old life. Lucario took him back to Hyrule because of the demon."

Neal leaned forward, letting the light from the lamp pour onto his gray fur. He sighed and skeptically said, "So what you're saying is that the monster in his dreams is real and it's coming to get him?"

"Sorta – it's more like he's going after the demon. He's Hyrule's hero."

There was a short silence broken by a cynical laugh. "You really expect anyone to believe that? Did Freddy convince you that that was a good story?"

"Dad, I'm telling the truth!" Derwin whined. Neal rose from his seat.

"Enough!" he commanded, causing his son to flinch. "You can skip dinner and go straight to your room for the night until you decide to start telling the truth!"

"That's not fair! You're punishing me when I didn't do anything wrong!"

"Derwin, your best friend is missing and you're leaving his parents in the dark. You could stand a worse punishment; after all, you could benefit from skipping a meal or two."

"W-what's that supposed to mean?"

"If you gain any more weight, you won't need to catch the school bus. We can roll you down the street!"

Derwin narrowed his eyes. "You know, I'd expect something like that from the kids at school because they're jerkasses! But..but not you!"

"Derwin..." Neal began remorsefully, already regretting his words. But it was too late – the door had already been thrown open and his son disappeared into the cover of night.

"Come back!"

Neal ran to a closet for a jacket and flashlight and was startled by the presence of his wife. Tia, a brown raccoon, leaned against the wall. Her arms were folded over her blue sweatshirt and a deep, subtle fury emanated from her bright eyes.

"I usually stay out of your spats because you asked me to. Father-Son battles of testosterone, you call them. But you know what? What you said was low and uncalled for."

Neal looked away. "He's too sensitive for his own good..."

"Sensitivity is not a weakness! He doesn't have to put up with half the crap we did growing up as raccoons. It's a different era."

"He's going to need a thicker skin than what he's got now!"

Tia's hand slowly guided Neal's face, and his vision, to her own. "It's not about that at all. Kids can be cruel; don't you think he knows that firsthand? We are his parents: his safety net, his anchor, his validation. Anything we say will impact him a hundred times more than some brat at his school! Just imagine the teasing and insults he gets at school, and then imagine that coming from someone you love and respect unconditionally. It's like taking a knife to his heart, but trading the knife up for a sword."

"Alright!" Neal admitted, defeated. "I got caught up in the heat of the moment! I was still so frustrated about him lying. He's been friends with Link for so long, and I kept imagining what Albert and Nora were going through. Why won't he tell us the truth? And then there's his weight – I noticed he was putting on pounds but didn't want to say anything and hurt his feelings. We've been tiptoeing around that for too long."

The fire in Tia's eyes was long extinguished by a solemn and understanding gaze. "Hun...look, I know you made a mistake," she murmured, slipping on a coat. "Let's just find our son before this nightmare gets any worse."

Neal silently agreed, grabbing a flashlight as the two ventured out into the streets of the city.

Link, Marth and Roy exited the tomb, finding Peach and Lucario on alert. Their eyes were glued to the sky.

"Where is he!" Link growled, wielding the Master Sword.

"He's using the trees as cover," Lucario said, his paws brimming with power. "Such cowardice, but not unexpected."

"And this is a tight space. We are at a disadvantage," Marth noted.

"Then let's turn the tide a little!" Link shouted enthusiastically. He led them through a hole in one of the ancient walls and out into an open field: the ruins of the Temple of Time.

A wordless synergy manifested as the team spread out into a circle, keeping their immediate surroundings covered at all times. The trees back towards the tomb rustled. Kneph was still hiding, but now they knew exactly where he was...or so they thought. The rest of the trees in the forest began to swing and sway as the perimeter was blasted by a violent wind.

The scream that haunted Link's dreams for years pierced his ears, and a vision relegated to his subconscious was as real as possible when the wraith-like demon burst from the cover of the forest. A white ceramic mask covered his grotesque face, but holes remained to display the empty sockets that served as his eyes; two vacuums devoid of life and yet so full of malice, focused intensely on his being.

In the second that Link acknowledged the reality of the situation, Kneph had already swooped out of the sky, aiming his two rugged blades right for the Hylian's neck.

It's taken ten chapters to get here, but the rematch with Kneph is nigh. Link's got backup this time...but Kneph has some new tricks. Will he get his revenge on the demon?