Chapter 13-
As the three of them snuck up on Mirodo palace, Ralf had to struggle to keep up with Link and Din. As they came up through the swamp, they found a troop of Vires flying by, and ducked down into the grass to avoid being seen.
"They're swarming all over the place!" Ralf said nervously. "How in the name of the Goddesses are we going to get in?"
"Very carefully." Link replied. Reaching into his back, the Hero drew out two magic cloaks. "I bought these while back in Saria town. They'll render us invisible so we can sneak inside."
"But there's only two of them... and three of us!" Ralf exclaimed.
"Din and I can squeeze beneath one... you will use the other one."
Din's face turned a deep red, but she only nodded, and said nothing. Donning the cloaks, the three of them made their way towards the entrance.
Link and Din were able to move quietly enough, but Ralf kept stumbling over his own feet. Finally they were able to make it to the platform elevator, that would carry them down into castle's interior. The monsters were surprised to see the platform begin to descend with no one on it... but they quickly decided it must have been some sort of malfunction, and went back to their patrol.
---
Deep in the palace's interior, they quietly moved forward, undaunted by the ominous darkness and gloom of the palace's interior.
"Boy, this place looks homey." Din said sarcastically.
"Expect for the monsters, no one has lived here for centuries." Link replied, looking around. "These castles were used as fortresses during the resettlemnt of Hyrule after the flood, then abandoned when the countryside became safe again."
Looking at the walls, Ralf noticed a torn tapestry that depicted an endless ocean, and sailing ships going from island to island. On another wall, he saw a pair of old rusted cutlasses hanging side by side. "All I see is a bunch of old junk from Hyrule's pirate days during the flood."
"You would do well to learn from the past, Ralf." Link admonished him. "It's a lesson my family learned long ago."
"Whatever." Ralf mumbled in an annoyed voice.
Link ignored his complaining, and turned his attention back to the Oracle who was under the cloak with him. "I hope you're not uncomfortable under there, Din. I'm sorry about this predicament, but there were only two people in our party when I bought these cloaks."
Din looked up at Link, who was pressed tightly against her. "Oh, it's no problem, Link... I don't mind it at all!" Having him this close, Din could feel the warmth of his body, hear the gentle beating of his heart...
"No, not now, Din!" She told herself. "Wait until after we've saved Nayru!" But now, she was determined to tell Link how she felt when this fight was over.
They had just crossed a bridge, when their cloaks suddenly began to crumble around them.
"The cloaks' magic has run out!" Din exclaimed. "They're giving out... and burning up!"
"It was bound to happen anyway." Link shook his head. "Now, get your weapons ready, I hear something ahead."
As they crept forward, the group swore they heard... chanting. Ahead, they saw a bright light at the end of a dimly lit corridor. Staying out of sight, they peered into the entrance way.
"Wizzrobes!" Din hissed in anger.
"And they've got Nayru!" Ralf spat.
Sure enough, the Wizzrobes had Nayru chained up, hanging from the ceiling, and were standing around her in a circle, chanting some kind of Anicent spell in a language none of those present could understand.
"Don't worry, Nayru! I'll save you!" Impulsive as ever, Ralf leaped down, and rushed towards the captured Oracle.
"I wish he would have waited." Link said with a sigh.
"Ralf's as impulsive as a child." Din replied, rolling her eyes. "we'd better get down there and help him."
The two jumped down into the room, and rushed at the Wizzrobes. "Good thing I picked up this mirror shield in Town." Link thought silently. One of the Wizzrobes sent a fireball at him... and Link used the shield to send it flying right back at him, making the creature explode in a puff of smoke.
"Nice trick." Din told him. "But here's one Nayru taught me." Din concentrated for a moment, and was soon encased in an energy shield that protected her from the Wizzrobes blasts. She then leapt all around the room, hacking and slicing the evil sorcerers down with her blades.
"Nayru's Love" Link said with a smirk on his face.
"No, I'm Nayru's Love... and don't you forget it!" Ralf said defiantly. Rushing over to Nayru while the other two kept the wizzrobes busy, he cut her down with his small sword. "I got Nayru, but she's still unconscious! Let's get out of here!"
"You'll never leave here alive, human!" One of the wizzrobes hissed.
"We'll see about that, mage!" Link yelled back, as the three of them began fighting their way towards the exit.
---
Shadow Link couldn't believe it.
After centuries of searching, after scouring Hyrule of one side to the other looking for this place, the evil shade had finally found it.
The tomb of the heroes.
Built in days of Ganon's first defeat, this ancient crypt was one of the few buildings to survive straight down though every period of Hyrule's history. It's existence known only to a select few, it was the final resting place for all the heroes of the house of Link- and their families. The tomb looked like an endless room, with row after row of sarcophagi (above ground tombs) as far as the eye could see. The tombs were in pairs, with each Link being buried next to his wife.
As he passed the various crypts, Shadow Link glanced at many of the names on the graves. One Sarcophagus read Hero of Twilight, while the one beside it read Henna the fisher-woman.
"Hm, his body must have been returned to Hyrule after his death." Shadow Link mused.
Looking at another Grave, the Shade saw Hero of the Winds written on it, with the grave next to it read Medli.
"Good riddance, you tramp!" Shadow Link growled. "You tricked me.... and you nearly killed me, too!"
As he approached the center of the Tomb, he saw two large graves set above all of the others; one read Hero of Time on it, while the one beside it said Malon. At the base of this tomb... he found wha he was looking for.
There, on a pedestal in the center of the room, sat many treasures used by the various Links. Among them sat the three objects Shadow Link was looking for: the three Spiritual stones used by the Hero of Time. Picking them up, he stuffed the Kokiri Emerald, the Goron's Ruby, and the Zora's Sapphire into the bag.
"Good... now, if the Zola can retrieve the Wind Waker, the Rod of Seasons and the Harp of Ages from the bottom of the Hylian sea... all I'll have to collect will be the four Transformation masks." He laughed to himself. "Soon, I'll have a weapon more powerful than the master sword itself!"
Suddenly, a foul wind picked up in the tomb, and the lids of all the Crypts rattled at once. In his mind, Shadow Link heard the voices of allthe dead Links speaking:
Begone from this place, Shadow Link... do not defile our graves with your foul presence.
At that moment, fear... real fear... filled Shadow Link's heart, and he fled from that place in terror. As he ran out the door, the Hero's shade materialized in the tomb.
"Well done, my children." The Shade told them reassuringly. "As the magic of this place keeps teleporting it from place to place, he will never find the location of this tomb again." The spirit that was once the Hero of Time stared after the fleeing Shadow. "But I truly fear what he has planned for our descendant."
"You must protect him, as you did all of us." The Hero of twilight's voice rang out. "It is your duty!"
"You're one to talk about duty!" Henna's ghostly voice echoed. "You ran away, and allowed Hyrule to be flooded!"
"That happened long after his death!" The Hero of the Winds whispered. "It's not his fault his son couldn't protect Hyrule!"
"No... but it fell to you to clean up his mess after Hyrule flooded!" Medli's soul hissed at her husband. "Stop defending his actions!"
"ENOUGH!" Malon finally yelled out in disgust. The thunderous voice of the matriarch of the house of Link, caused all of the others to fall silent. "This bickering is pointless! My husband will see to our child's well being, as he did with every one of you during your lifetimes!"
"Thank you, my dear." the Hero's shade replied, as he vanished from the tomb. "I can only hope your faith in me... and in young Link... is not misplaced."