Link rode Epona, Samba running alongside, down the path between Ybayba Enapu and his hometown of Kochyrae. The distance that took almost all of the day on Link's feet took Epona and Samba a fraction of the time. Epona simply ran over some enemies, Link slashing at more, while Samba charged through them in a stab. By the time they got to the gates of Kochyrae, it was only mid-afternoon. Link grinned and patted Epona's neck as they went through the small canyon through which the path ran. "Oh, Epona, you're a blessing from the goddesses!" he praised. Epona snorted back, a glint in her eye.
Samba chuckled, smirking. "And you have no idea how good it feels to run full-pelt like this!" he added, hopping along in his highest sustainable speed. As mentioned before, the Rings could not fuel his stamina infinitely if he dashed as fast as he could, which was almost as fast as Epona's dashing. That said, Epona herself noticed that while Link rode her, her own energy never seemed to flag unless she was forced to dash. Even so, both runners' breath returned far quicker than before they met the Rings. (Link, of course, did not notice the effect on Epona.)
Link nodded, then beckoned. "C'mon, we're getting close," he said. "You should hide."
"Right," Samba agreed, holding his paw up and hiding.
In a few minutes, Link returned to his home on horseback. He looked around. People were out and about, but seemed a bit nervous. Some commented on his horse, some were happy to see him again, but all of them were clearly tense. 'Must be the moblins,' Link knew. He went over to the shop and hopped off Epona, telling her to stay.
"Link!" Betta greeted with raised eyebrows as the adventurer entered. The swordsman was behind the counter. He smiled. "Welcome back!"
Link smiled and nodded, stopping before the counter. "Thanks. Where's Grandpa?"
"Out back, making a bow," thumbed Betta. "Whatcha need?"
"To tell you we've got a horse now," smirked Link, crossing his arms. "Epona is now our best buddy."
Betta dropped his jaw, widening his eyes. "Really?" he asked. He got out from behind the counter, smirking, doubtful. "Gotta see this for myself..."
"Right this way," Link smiled, holding a hand out.
Betta's jaw dropped lower as he saw the mare standing right outside the shop, grazing on some grass. "That's...How'd you do it?" he asked, incredulous.
Link put his hands on his hips and smiled. "You were partly right—I gave her food, kindness, courage, and time, but she needed one more thing," he answered. "Music."
"Music?" Betta repeated, raising an eyebrow, pausing a moment. Then, he raised his other and grinned. "Of course! The song that Darcia's mother taught her! Epona loves that song," he nodded. "Since she knows that only trustworthy people know it, she must've warmed up to you guys real fast after you performed it. She fine with Samba?"
Link shrugged. "She doesn't hate him, and she'll ride when he's in his Ring, but I don't think she likes him," he replied. He shook his head and frowned seriously. "But that brings me to why I came back here—the moblins."
Betta nodded, frowning as well. "Yeah...They're in the woods somewhere, for sure," he said. "I don't know where...you'll have to figure that out, yourself. But once the ground starts crunching and getting thick, you're on the right track."
"Right," Link grunted as he mounted Epona again. "Thanks. Tell Grandpa I said hi!" He rode off to the Korken Woods.
Link let out Samba when they had entered the woods, and the three went along at a slower pace. Link paused in the first section of the forest, Epona stamping the ground unhappily. "You can tell we're gonna be in for some annoyance, can't you?" he asked her. Epona simply whinnied.
"Let's start looking," Samba groaned. With the lizalfos jogging beside Epona, the trio went through one path.
After exploring a few sections and getting lost twice, winding up at the entrance again when they did, they found a little clearing with a moblin. Once they had taken care of the beast, Link, as he had been doing, mentally noted where they had gone from the entrance. They had turned right this time, having gone left and forwards the other two times. "Okay, turning left from here will get us lost, I know that from exploring in my childhood," Link pointed to the clearing in the trees that separated the segments of the Korken Woods, "so..."
"Forward," Samba decided, and they went on. There they found another moblin.
"You know," Link said as they slew the monster, Samba kicking it upwards before Link rode by and slashed it in midair, "I haven't gone this way my whole adventure. That first way went towards the Forest of Peril, and the second was to Betta's camp."
"Maybe we should keep going this way, then?" suggested Samba as they went through another way.
"Sure," Link nodded. They found an empty area next, then got lost. Upon turning right at the entrance again, they found a moblin in the same place as before. "Huh..."
After defeating the second moblin again, they turned another way. Link had begun drawing a little map on a piece of scrap paper, marking where they had gone and where they got lost. "It's lucky that the trees grow in such clumps around here that it's kinda grid-like," he commented as they found another empty clearing. "Makes this much easier."
They got lost again. However, the third direction from the second moblin's area yielded a third moblin. Link made a small gasp while Samba defeated it. "What is it?" Samba asked as the monster vanished, turning his head, alert.
"I just realized we're trying to find a moblin base," Link said, looking sheepish. "And here we are finding moblins in each part of the forest in a line." He smacked his forehead. "Of course!"
"Just follow the moblins!" Samba grinned. "Alright. If we find a part of the forest without a moblin, we'll turn around."
"We should also keep a lookout for hoofprints," added Link, looking down as they went. "Noticed the ground was a bit tamped in the spot we left the last section."
So they went on. They ended up getting lost sometimes, and once it looked like their idea was shot when they found a moblin spot that had no moblin spots anywhere around, but when they looked down carefully, they found moblin tracks in one direction after turning left from the moblin spot, like Link said. They got back on track after that. It took a few minutes, but they eventually found one last area with three moblins and rough, overgrown ground in one direction. "We found it!" Samba pumped his arm as they entered.
"Wow! I didn't think it would be that easy," Link muttered.
Samba half-eyed him. "What, you wanted to spend hours with trial-and-error?" he asked flatly, not even looking as he blocked a javelin.
"Well, no, but..."
After clearing the area, they faced the rough patch. "Well, we're about there," Link said.
"Yeah...which means I gotta hide again," Samba sighed, holding his paw up and doing so.
Link looked at his hand with the rings and nodded. "Right. Epona? Let's go..." He slowly urged her forth. When she broke some thorns with a snap and made no sounds that indicated pain, he pushed her a bit quicker along.
After navigating a natural corridor with overgrown forest floor, they found a large clearing full of thorns, late afternoon sunlight, and a few tree stumps...around a square fortress built with sharpened logs jammed close to each other to form walls. Sentry towers were visible at the corners and at the front, where a large set of gates stood with two huge beams blocking intruders. Link stopped a bit outside the exit to the corridor. Samba flew from his ring. "Well, we're here," he said. "These moblins look a bit more organized than others—they can't have been here that long, and yet they've got a fort."
"So how should we do this?" wondered Link.
"Well, first, we should leave Epona out of this; look at the ground around there," Samba answered. Link looked. The ground seemed different there. Samba flew a little closer, then returned, bobbing in a nod. "Yep, looks like they've been stamping around so much, they crushed out all the thorns," he reported. "I bet it's even better inside, with all the traffic they have."
"Alright, that's handy," Link nodded. "But where will we put her?"
"Just let her go—remember, we've got her song," Samba reminded. "And if worse comes to worse, we're at full strength. Just hide and I'll hop across as fast as I can, and we might be able to make it..." He did not sound very confident, however.
"...I'll leave her by the entrance, just in case," Link decided. "But I think the next thing to do is take out those sentries..."
"Agreed," Samba nodded. He returned and Link rode forth a little further; there was no way he could aim at the sentries from that distance without much missing (or luck). He soon attracted the attention of the sentries on the tower, who grumped, tossed something over the walls, and trained their bows on Link. Link was quicker to the draw, however, and had dispatched one before he had to duck the other's arrow. He took care of that one, watching it, too, fall off the tower, then watched the gates, half-expecting them to unbar. They remained shut and barred.
Parking Epona on the far side of one of the towers, against the wall, Link got off carefully. Indeed, the ground was hard, beaten down with pigmen hooves. He let Samba out. "Think there's a switch up there for them?" Link pointed.
"Probably," Samba nodded. "You go look." He smiled and, holding his paw up to check first, stroked Epona's offered head.
Link nodded and went up the tower they were right beside. To his surprise, he found a large wooden disk with a decagon-shaped indent. It was just the right size for the Thunderforge. He reported this to Samba. "I bet they carried some sort of crank or something," came the reply.
"That's probably what they threw over the wall," Link guessed. "Clever."
"Bet someone smarter had to tell 'em to do that," Samba mused, petting Epona as Link got out the Thunderforge. The human slammed it into the socket and pushed the handle, found that didn't work, then pulled. Soon, he heard a dull THUNK and one of the beams barring the door slid back. He removed his hammer and went down the ladder to go up the other tower and do the same. The doors did not open right as soon as the beams were both gone. Link climbed down the tower to join Samba, who had trotted over after making sure their horse was okay.
"So, ready to fight like never before?" asked Samba, rubbing his paws together. "It's going to be intense, storming a fort..."
"They have bombs, right?" Link asked. "You think they're stupid enough to put 'em all in one place?"
Samba raised his eyeridges before grinning evilly. "I think so," he nodded. He beckoned. "C'mon, let's go!"
Together, they opened one of the huge doors outward and stepped inside. They appeared to be in a sort of foyer. The three walls around them each had a thick door of logs nailed to planks to keep them together. One on the left appeared unlocked, one in front was barred with a thick beam and covered with a giant padlock, and one on the right bore a smaller padlock. As well, indeed, two crank-like objects lay on the ground in the nearby corners. There was no ceiling. They noticed a crude flat roof over the room before them, however. The door to it had a symbol of a bomb painted onto it.
But the first thing they noticed were the two moblins in the room. They were big, brown, and bulging with brawn. They stopped and snorted, snarling and spinning, swinging their spears into stance, when the swordsmen stepped inside. Link frowned while both him and Samba drew their weapons. "These look new," Link muttered.
"That's a heavy moblin," explained Samba, eying one. "They're bigger versions of common moblins, and they fight better, too, with spears that they swing and stab with. They can knock you back if you block and stab you again quickly if you're not careful, and they can charge you from a distance if angered."
While he spoke, the moblins came after them. Link's shield was knocked away from the opening stab, and he barely got away from a second stab by sidehopping. Beside him, Samba ducked, then jumped up with a kick, stunning the creature about two heads higher than him. Both of them hacked away at them, and in turn, the moblins swung their spears and, when Samba backed up a bit too much, charge at them. Their spears stuck in the wooden walls, however, and they had to take a moment to retrieve them. After a brief, but exciting battle, both moblins fell.
Link crouched down and picked up a small key that fell off of his. "Alright, we can open that door, I guess," he said, looking at the door with the small padlock, "but what about this other one?" He looked at the unlocked door.
Samba tried to open it, but it would not budge. "It must be barred from the other side and open only one way," he guessed. "C'mon, let's continue on!"
The next room was much larger. Straw mats littered the ground, while a few piles of leaves lay scattered about. "Must be the barracks," Link muttered.
"What, did the mass of moblins tip you off?" grumbled Samba. Indeed, about ten moblins and three heavy moblins were in the room. Samba began charging his paws with electricity. "I'll handle the meatier 'blins, you get the others!"
"Right!" nodded Link, charging up a sword spin.
While they fought, they saw a large gate ahead with a heavy beam, but no cranks in sight. They both knew that not even together could they lift it. They also noticed one of the heavy moblins, hanging back because of how many moblins there were in the way, began to back off after the duo defeated more and more moblins, including the heavy moblins. Link and the Master Sword made short work of the regular moblins, a pair of whom were using bows, and one of the sentry towers on the corner of the building shot down at them while they fought. Link retaliated with his own bow. Samba, meanwhile, was first firing a blast of electricity at, then stunning the bigger ones with kicks before slashing as normal. Link joined in with the second heavy moblin just when Samba defeated his.
Finally, the room was clear. Link panted and began to sheath his sword. "Well, that was quite an exercise," he commented.
Samba growled and put a paw on Link's arm, stopping him. "Wait—there's one left," he said, looking at the far corner. Shaking and crouching as it hid in the shadows was the remaining heavy moblin. Samba took a step toward it, and the moblin cringed. "Coward...Let's leave it be," he scoffed.
Link narrowed his gaze and lowered his sword again. "No—it'll just go and attack my village if we leave it," he reasoned.
"Really?" Samba asked, raising a doubtful eyeridge.
"I don't wanna take any chances," Link shook his head. He dashed over to the heavy moblin, sword raised.
"LINK!" Samba ran after him. "Stop!"
"And let it run off to get more reinforcements?" Link called behind him. Samba caught up, but Link shoved him off, still running. "I'm doing this because I have to, Samba! For my village!" He faced forwards again and readied the Master Sword, preparing for a leaping stab.
Samba squeaked and fell, rolling to a halt. He growled and got up quickly, reaching for Link. "Have you no mercy?" he demanded.
"Not for enemies!" retorted Link. The moblin's eyes grew wide as it saw the swordsman take a leap, flipping his sword down, grasping with both hands, raising it overhead. "HAAAA—"
"AH SURRENDER!" it cried, holding its hands up near its face in a "stop" gesture.
Link landed—feet on the beast, sword in the wall. He quickly yanked the Master Sword out and jumped off the piglike being. "What?" he asked, wide-eyed. "Did you just say—"
"Bwee! Ah surrender, please, don' hurt me!" pleaded the moblin, eyes watering a little as it clasped its meaty hands. It snorted a sniff. "Ah'm beggin' ya!"
Link blinked in wonder at this before yelping and flying forward, holding his rear. He turned and saw a snarling, arms-crossed Samba in the follow-through for a leaping punt. The lizalfos put his footpaw down and snorted testily, snout down. "Just because your home is in trouble doesn't give you the right to be a tailhole, Link," he admonished. He scoffed and gesticulated towards Link, wrinkling a nostril. "Honestly, what the hell? I thought you were honorable."
"Yeah, but..." Link sighed and shook his head as he rubbed his rump. He put his sword and shield away, then turned back to the moblin, hand on hip. "Alright, we'll let you go," he said. "I'm...sorry for scaring you like that."
The moblin blinked, then let out a huge breath of relief. "Ha-woof! Bwee...Thank ya kindly," it replied, smiling a bit. It stood up slowly, brushing its knees. "This here big guy's in yer debt!" They saw that he (they assumed from the "guy" and voice, and just in general) was actually a fair bit different from the others. His body was a slightly richer brown, his eyes were a vivid indigo instead of green or red like the other moblins, and he had a sizable belly around his middle, making his belt sag a bit. He still bore grand muscles on his frame despite the paunch. His clothing was also different; instead of a simple loincloth, he wore a pair of ragged black shorts with a dodongo-hide belt, a small bag hanging by a cord on his side, and he actually wore something up top aside from a rusty metal collar, this being a rather patchwork vest of gray, black, brown, and dull red. He had dark studded leather bracers on his forearms and nothing on his bald head save for a few earrings. They noticed that his tusks weren't as yellowed as the others' and his odor was significantly more bearable.
Samba tilted his head to a side, approaching the heavy moblin. "You look a lot different than the others," he noted, "and you speak Hylian. What gives?"
"Hylian? Nah, Ah'm speakin' Labrynnan!" chuckled the deep-voiced pigman boisterously, belly shaking. "Mus' be the same language. Sure glad Ah tried..."
Link and Samba raised their eyeridges. "Labrynnan? That mean you're from Labrynna?" asked Link.
"Yep!" the moblin nodded, smiling proudly and crossing his arms.
Samba nodded, crossing his own arms. "That would make sense, then," he agreed. "Moblins from Labrynna and Holodrum are supposed to be a sight smarter than Hyrulian moblins."
The moblin's face fell. "Bwee...Ah guess yer wonderin' what Ah'm doin' 'ere w'these here dummies, huh?" he supposed.
"Well, we're in a hurry," Link admitted. "We're trying to rout you guys so you'll stop attacking my village."
"Oh?" The moblin's ears perked up. "Really? Hmmm..." He looked past Link at the far wall, the same one the swordsmen came from. "That there's the bomb cache," he pointed. "Ya can't get in 'cept from the front, and that's barred purdy good, as well as locked. Only the moblin general has the key, but Ah betcha he hid it bah now..."
"Great," Samba growled, frowning. "Maybe we can beat it outta him."
The moblin shook his head. "Naw, big guy don't know human speak," he informed. He smirked. "But doncha worry—there's a way you can get in, if ya wanna take care of this place real good."
"Blowing it up?" Link smirked. "That was one of our plans."
The moblin laughed again. "Well, ainchu just a couple-a troublemakahs!" he chuckled. "An' it seems we both got the same idear, so Ah reckon we oughtta do sum'n. Y'all can call me Bigg'n, bah the way," he added, putting a hand on his sturdy chest. "An' Ah ain' innis gig fer kicks, Ah's innit fer survival, so iffen ya don't wanna hurt meh, y'all pals in mah book."
Samba smiled and nodded, holding a paw out. "Samba, and this is Link," he introduced as Bigg'n shook it, grasp firm. "Nice to meet another monster who speaks Hylian—well, Human, I guess," he corrected.
"Howdy to ya, too," Bigg'n replied with a smile, offering his hand to Link. Link paused, then shook it. "Long story short, a coupla weeks back, Ah got mahself lost up in 'em mountains way north-a here when Ah was tryin' a follow mah tribe," he said, pointing in the direction (where the barred door was). "Got found bah this here tribe what confused me fer one-a dem, so they done kidnapped meh wittout knowin'. Ah tried ta tell 'em, but they wouldn't hear a word of it." He bweed, sighing. "Ah've been tryin' t'escape evah since, an' get back t'mah own tribe, but they've been all ovah the place. Ah got no qualms killin' mah own kind—'specially since they's not mah people—but they've ol' strength in numbers against meh." His face brightened. "But with the ruckkus y'all are doin' 'ere, an' iffen ya blow this place sky-high, Ah should be able to get mah spear an' tail outta here fer real!"
Link and Samba smiled and nodded. "That'd be great, then!" Samba said. "We could save both Link's home and you. I bet your tribe's worried about you."
Bigg'n puckered his lips to the side, nodding gently. "Bweee...Yeah, Ah bet so, too," he muttered. He shook his head and went over to the barred door. "Here, lemme get this here door open fer y'all," he offered. With a grunt, he grabbed and lifted the heavy wood. "Honestly, usin' metal to weigh downnis hunk'a wood...what a waste!" he grumbled, letting it thud to the ground. "Oughtta be makin' more weapons 'n' armor with it..." He grabbed up his spear and smiled at Link and Samba. "Ah'll be waitin' in the gatehouse fer ya."
"But what about blowing this place up?" wondered Link. "We can't get into the bomb cache..."
Bigg'n winked, chuckling. "Well, let's just say that ain't the ONLY waste-a metal they used he-ah," he hinted. "Ah'm sure y'all can figger it out. Get to the gen'ral fer now. Jus' loop 'round, might hafta get creative gettin' inta the kitchen, but jus' loop and y'all can find 'im. Jus' watch out fer 'is own bombs!" He sighed, shaking his head. "Shoulda nevah told 'em how ta make 'em," he murmured as he started to the gatehouse.
Link and Samba looked at each other, exchanging eyebrow/-ridge raises. "Well, that was interesting," Link said. "And...Sorry about that," he added, smiling sheepishly. "I...I just thought about my home, and...I guess I kinda thought that we had to destroy every one of them, that they're just monsters..."
Samba smiled and patted his shoulder. "I know," he replied. "It can be hard to imagine that these creatures are capable of this kinda stuff, too. But remember, monsters are a higher form of animals, many think," he pointed out, "and we know that even animals have emotions."
"Yeah...like Epona," Link nodded. He looked at the gate forward. "Well, let's get going..."
They entered the mess hall, they assumed, to see three tables full of moblins both normal and heavy, all of them eating furiously. The room was smaller than the barracks, which made things very tight. The moblins didn't even look up when the two came in. However, the sentry at the outside corner of the building noticed. It just nocked an arrow and fired.
Link was already holding up his shield and looking down the room. There was a wall built of the same sort of logs as before, but they were not as closely-spaced together. They were about half a log apart from each other. Still not enough space for either of them to slip by, but Link could clearly see the other side...
CLANK! The arrow bounced harmlessly off of Link's shield, and the moblins in the room looked at them. Samba gritted his teeth and drew his sword.
"Hide! I've got an idea!" Link ordered. He started to run to the unfinished wall.
Samba looked at him with a raised eyeridge, then nodded, doing as instructed.
Link grabbed all three rings as soon as they were on his finger in mid-run, ducking under some moblins, before throwing them through the slats of the wall. A second later, Samba was standing with all three rings and on the other side of the wall. The moblins grunted and yelled, trying to stab at him from behind the wall, but their aim was terrible. "Clever," Samba commented, letting Link out after he realized what had happened.
"Still got one more, though," Link said as he drew Betta's sword. The kitchen was a bit bigger than the gatehouse. A sentry stood outside at the northwestern corner. A rough cabinet took up the western wall, while an equally rough counter stood against the northern wall. A fire pit sat in the center of the floor, a large bubbling pot over it. The southern wall held a locked door. Four regular moblins stood in the kitchen, armed with large knives instead of spears.
"And those are just their cooks, nothing special," Samba noted before Link even tried to ask if they were a specific sort of moblin. The two took care of the five enemies, then grabbed the key from the last moblin. After breaking a few pots sitting around the room and retrieving the recovery hearts within, the two stood before the door. "Well, shall we?" Samba asked, tossing and catching the key.
"Let's," Link nodded. "And this is important to me...May I—Oh!" Samba had given him the Master Sword mid-sentence. "Thank you..."
Samba nodded and gave the key to Link. Link unlocked the door, and the two went inside. As soon as they entered, a bolt of wood fell before it, barring them from escape. The room, which they decided was the armory given the racks of spears all over the walls, was interesting—a half wall stood before them midway in the room. They saw a few bows hanging on the far wall. The final outside sentry stood at the corner of the room. One other sentry stood on a tower situated against the wall, in the middle of what would be the same wall of the bomb cache, that appeared hastily built compared to the other ones. They could see the barred door from before at the far end of the room.
And coming from around the half wall was a larger-than-normal heavy moblin riding a giant boar. It wore armor on its top and bottom, decorated with alternating red and blue marks. Tied on the belt of the moblin was a large bag made of dodongo hide. The moblin, holding a bow in the hand not holding the reins, snorted and scowled at Link and Samba. It pulled its steed to a stop to smirk, reach into the bag, and pull out a round, deep blue bomb about as big as Link's head. With a pair of flat metal rings on its fingers, it snapped a spark on the fuse, which began to hiss and sparkle as it went down. The moblin gave a warcry before tossing the bomb at Link and Samba, who jumped out of the way. It blew up behind them, but they were out of the radius. Both drew their swords at the laughing moblin, who drew its bow back before riding forth at them, using its tail to smack the boar's butt.
"This must be the moblin general," Samba guessed aloud as they strafed, avoiding the beast and the arrows from both him and the sentry. "He's riding a bullbo, and he'll probably circle around, charging at us or firing at us with bombs and arrows. I just hope not bomb arrows..."
Link knew that fighting with his sword wasn't going to work as well as before. And as he got hit in the shoulder by an arrow, he realized that he'd have to take care of annoyances first. "Samba, distract him while I get the sentry!" he called, grabbing his own bow.
"Right!" Samba shouted at the general and waved his sword. "Over here, bonehead!" he called. The general came towards him. Samba jumped aside as the beast came at him, but then found a bomb right there—with a fairly short fuse. "MEEP!" Samba trotted back, but he started a little too late—the bomb exploded, blowing him to his stomach and harming him for a full heart of damage.
Link, meanwhile, was quickly aiming at the sentry, which was aiming at him. Link fired just before the sentry, who didn't duck while Link did. After the moblin fell from its perch and was defeated, Link turned to Samba. "You okay?" he asked. An arrow whizzed past his face and the general shouted, refocusing Link's attention.
"Yeah..." grumbled the lizalfos, getting up. "That hurts..."
Link frowned. "Should we attack the bullbo?" he asked. He slashed at the general as it passed, but his sword clanked off the armor as expected. He rolled out of the way before the bomb went off.
"No, that'll take ages, and it's kinda cruel," Samba replied, avoiding a charge. "Bullbos are tough suckers."
Link avoided more arrows, then another charge. He saw another bomb tossed behind the general and got an idea. "I think I got it," he called. He ran over to Samba. "Try and slow him down with Volt Claw!"
"Right!" Samba nodded, and he cast the spell after avoiding another pass by Link, holding both paws at the moblin. Its armor was, indeed, magnetic, probably being simple iron, and the moblin yelped as it was pulled back, fighting against being taken off the bullbo. The bullbo, whose reins were being pulled back, as well, thought it had to stop, so it did.
While Samba did that, Link ran over to the bomb it had dropped. Samba let go for a moment, and the moblin had to take a moment to get its balance back. In that amount of time, Link had grabbed the bomb and thrown in to the general. It exploded almost as soon as it hit. The moblin yelled in pain while the bullbo took off from the explosion. Some armor was blown away from the general's body.
"We got it!" Link grinned, pumping his arm in victory. "Dodge, pull, bomb!"
And this strategy was employed to great use, as well as the fact that, occasionally, it failed to stop before slamming into a wall, causing the bullbo to get its tusks stuck. This happened the second time Link threw a bomb at it. The general tried to make things harder by firing more arrows and actually throwing bombs, but in the end, it was bombed thrice total before all of its armor was gone. Link knew he could probably slash at it if he needed to, but there was little point when he could blow it up with its own weapons. However, the general moved quicker now that its armor was removed, and it was unaffected by Volt Claw.
However, it had become enraged by then. The last bomb blast had destroyed its bow, so now it charged, tossing a bomb sometimes. Link and Samba knew exactly what to do, however. They jumped aside when the bullbo charged at them, and the poor thing caught its tusks in the wooden wall behind them again. Meanwhile, Link had run around back to grab a thrown bomb. With a shout, Link threw the bomb at the general.
It exploded on its bare back, causing it to yowl in agony. It swayed uneasily, turning the bullbo around, giving a weaker cry. It saw Samba before it and, with a final, pained roar, sent the bullbo charging. Samba ran aside easily, and the bullbo, rider and all, crashed headlong into the sentry tower, toppling it over them. As it did, they saw something odd—a large plate of iron nailed haphazardly to the top of the wall. It looked like a big pot lid. Link and Samba heard a clunking rustle and looked back at the pile. The bullbo, giving an annoyed cry, was pulling its way out. A bag was caught on one tusk. It snorted and tossed its head, throwing the bag off and away. The beast disappeared around the half wall for a moment before giving a cry and charging straight out the barred door from before, demolishing it.
"BWEE! WATCH it!" they heard Bigg'n shout.
Link looked back at the bag on the ground. It was the dodongo hide bag the general had! Link happily ran over to it and picked it up, holding it in his hands and smiling at it. "A bomb bag!" he crowed. "Time to blow stuff up!" He looked inside. "It's only got a few left...but there's a pair of those rings sized for humans..." He put the rings onto his thumb and index finger. "Sheesh, just when you thought you had enough jewelry..."
"And let's start with here," Samba suggested, going to the rubble. Using Volt Claw, he pulled off the plate. As he suspected, there was a big hole behind it. "Looks like they couldn't get logs all the same size," he guessed. He pointed back at it. "Alright, gimme a second to leave, then throw the bomb through that opening, hide, and we'll get outta here. Okay?"
Link nodded. "I'll wait here. We'll activate Sync Mode, then you just switch when you're ready," he said.
Samba nodded and trotted off after they did so, having the Master Sword. He noticed that behind the half wall were some targets—probably an archery range. He took care of the sentry that still stood there, then turned and went out the now-open door. Bigg'n held a hand up as the lizalfos approached. "Headin' off?" he asked.
"Yeah," nodded Samba, pausing. "We're about to blow this place to tiny little bits. You might wanna get running. Why'd you wanna wait for us?" he asked.
"Ta make sure you got the job done!" laughed the moblin. "Tell yer friend Ah said bye! Ah gotta git back up north an' home! Bye!" With that, the paunchy pigman was gone, running out the doors.
Samba watched him with a raised eyebrow. "Why do I have the feeling that's not the last we're gonna see of Bigg'n?" he muttered. He shrugged and ran out the doors, too, going to Epona. She looked restless. "You fine, girl?" he asked softly, petting her mane. "Alright, Link'll be here in a sec. Don't worry. We'll get outta here before things get too hairy." He turned and held up his Rings. "Alright, let 'er rip!" he called, switching.
"Got it!" Link replied, getting the sword. He pulled out a bomb (not wondering how such large objects can fit in such a small bag) and snapped his fingers over the fuse as soon as he did. It went longer than the other bombs did, but that was all the better. Holding the bomb over his head, Link threw it through the hole, then quickly switched and hid. Samba let him out as soon as he had, tossing him up onto Epona, who grunted in surprise when Link suddenly fell sitting on top of her. As Samba hid again, Link reared Epona to turn down the path. "GOGOGO!" he urged, and they were off.
A moment later, the fort behind them was rocked by numerous explosions that crescendoed and accelerated until finally, the entire building exploded in an enormous blast.
Back in the village, Betta, carrying a couple bows into the shop, stopped and looked as a distant boom was heard. He waited a few moments, then saw black puffs drift up, his smile rising as the smoke did. "They did it," he whispered proudly. "I knew they would."
Link let them get lost soon after reentering the woods, and they found themselves back at the beginning in minutes. The sun was beginning to set. Link mopped his brow. "It's been a long day," he muttered.
"LINK!" called Betta, catching Link's attention. He waved by the shop, smiling. Link returned the expression and rode over.
"That was fantastic," Betta complimented once him and Link were behind the shop, Epona parked in front. Link had let out Samba on Betta's request. "I saw the smoke rising from the forest, and I knew you'd done it. Blown them and their bombs sky-high, huh?"
Link smiled broadly and nodded. "Yep," he confirmed. "Samba and I took care of 'em all."
"Did you see a large moblin run out of the forest a bit ago?" Samba wondered.
Betta shook his head. "Nope. Nobody's said anything about them all day," he replied. "And they never will again!" He patted each of their shoulders in turn. "Good job, Link, Samba! We'll be fine now, thanks to you two! You have my deepest gratitude!"
Link and Samba smiled sheepishly for a moment. Suddenly, Link paled. "Uh..."
Samba, then Betta followed his gaze. Right behind them was Bardin. The old shopkeep was standing there, blinking as he looked at Samba. "Uh..." Samba copied.
Bardin sighed, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, but we're out of meat," he apologized to Samba. Samba raised his eyeridges, and Bardin chuckled, walking over. "What, you forget that I knew that some lizalfos were good after what Betta told me about his friend Ko?" he asked, crossing his arms.
Link and Samba breathed sighs of relief. "I thought you were gonna freak or something," Link said shakily. "Well, Grandpa, this is my friend, Samba," he introduced. "Samba, my grandfather, Bardin."
Samba bowed a bit. "How do you do, Bardin?" he greeted, smiling. He held out his paw.
Bardin smiled and took it. "Doing well, at least if you're going to buy something," he replied, and he laughed. "So, you two got a place to rest for tonight?" asked the old man. "I mean, there's an awful lot of stories to catch up on..."
Link shook his head. "Sorry," he smiled, "but we should get—" He stopped when his grandfather gave him The Look. "—uh, I mean, yeah, you're right, there is," he agreed nervously, grinning.
Bardin smiled and nodded. "Good! And until then, why don't you help out around here?" he suggested. "Give ol' Betta some rest." He waggled a finger, winking. "And Betta told me how those Rings work—I know you can keep going even after all that."
Link sighed, hanging his arms. "Yes, Grandpa," he groaned. He beckoned to Samba. "C'mon, Samba, you're gonna have to hide for a while..."
Samba sighed, nodding. "Right, right..."
He had just raised his paw when Bardin grabbed it. "Ohhhh, no, you don't," he snickered. "You're not gonna just let your friend do ALL the work. What skills you got?"
Samba blinked, incredulous. "But...I'm a lizalfos," he protested quietly. "People'll be scared of me and panic..."
"Not if Betta's by you," Bardin pointed out. "Besides, I bet you could learn a thing or two talkin' with a master swordsman like Betta. So? What can ya do, kid?"
Samba looked at Link with his eyes, pleading. Link held up his hands, shaking his head. "Since when have you been able to stop your parent?" he asked.
He looked at Betta. The swordsman chuckled. "Better than sitting and doing nothing, right?" he asked.
Samba sighed in defeat. "You guys have a river or pond around here?" he asked.
So the rest of the day was spent working, much to the duo's dismay. Link, changing back into his work clothes, helped with the shop, while Betta went around with Samba, who went to a small river running by the village. The river, Samba noticed, came from Korken Woods, and he remembered how, from description, there was water in the Forest of Peril, and wondered if this were the same water. He saw that the river ran through a small cave that ended up in a deep pond enclosed by trees and high shores. "That must be how Link knows how to swim," he guessed, pointing at it as him and Betta reached it.
"Yeah, the water goes back out in an underground opening and ends up going to the Great Bay," Betta nodded.
Samba bit his lip as he saw Mari, one of the villagers, gasping at the sight of him. "I wish I could go out underground right now," he murmured.
Betta followed his gaze and smiled, waving at Mari. She hesitated, then turned back, walking home briskly. "Don't worry, these guys'll be alright with you soon enough," he assured Samba. "That's the real reason Bardin wanted you to do some work."
"Oh?" Samba asked, looking at the river again. There appeared to be some fish. He got out his fishing rod.
"Yeah." Betta watched Samba cast his lure into the river and sit. He sat next to him. "I told Bardin about you guys, your village, shortly before Link left. Told him how I'm friends with Ko. He told me to say hi, by the way."
"Heh," Samba smiled a little. "You tell him about our little adventure today?"
"Not yet," Betta shook his head. "I will later."
Samba and Betta sat in silence a moment.
"Since when have you been able to stop your parent?"
Samba watched the water run by, reflecting him brokenly, as he recalled those words Link said a few minutes ago. 'Never,' he replied in his mind. 'And oh, I wish I could...'
. . .
Ybir raised her eyeridges in slight surprise. "What do you want to talk about behind his back?" she asked in a bit of disappointed shock.
"Mom?" Ybir looked at Vardi. Vardi looked at Samba, who was looking down at Lullaby with a sad frown. "He means him."
Ybir's features slowly softened, melting into one that looked like Samba's when he came up with his new pet's name. "...Oh..."
Samba moved his tail and gently stroked Lullaby's pelt. "...It's...It's been..." he murmured. He shook his head. "I don't even remember how many years it's been..."
Ybir sighed and rested a paw on Samba's knee. "Sweetie, I've told you not to worry about him," she said quietly. "He's on an important journey."
Samba scowled at her. "For years?" he asked, a little heat in his tone. "For over eight years? He wasn't even around to see my little sister hatch!"
Vardi frowned. "I'm okay with not seeing my dad," she said in a small voice. "I've got Mom and you."
Samba sighed and smiled down at her, eyeridges knit. "I know, Vardi," he acknowledged, "but that's just the point..." He sighed and looked back down at Lullaby. "He's been failing as a father...leaving me to do the same job for you."
Vardi looked down. "I'm sorry," she apologized quietly.
Samba looked up quickly, smiling and shaking his head. "Nonono, it's not your fault," he insisted. "It's his. I just wanna know..." He looked at his mother square in the eye. "...No more lies. What was so important that he abandoned his family?"
Ybir snarled and slammed a paw on the table. "Your father did not abandon us!" she half-roared. Vardi cringed. "There is not a single shred of cowardice in that man's body! And don't you tell me otherwise," she added, pointing at him with a Kubrik stare. "I've known him for longer than you've been alive."
Samba's heart raced as his mother yelled at him, but he narrowed his gaze and looked at her full-on. "Why did he go?" he demanded. "If it wasn't cowardice, then what was it? Don't tell me 'it's something important' again, either."
Ybir huffed a moment, glaring at her son. Samba glared right back. Vardi watched, half hiding under the table, as the two held a tense staring contest. At last, Ybir sighed and sat back, closing her eyes. "You won't like the truth," she warned.
"But it's better than a lie, isn't it?" fought back Samba.
Ybir nodded. After a moment, she looked up again, making eye contact with Samba. "I don't know," she finally answered.
Samba blinked. "What?" he asked. "Don't know what?"
"What his journey is for," she said. She looked out the window. "I asked and asked, but...he just said that it would be good for all of us. That he needed to do it. That we shouldn't worry..." She sighed deeply.
Samba looked with her. "Is he...dead, you think?" he asked quietly.
Ybir shook her head. "No. I'd know it, otherwise...I swear I would." She put a paw to her chest as she said this.
Samba scoffed. "So he's still out there," he said. "Whatever's keeping him had better be good..." He clenched a fist.
"If he's still in Hyrule, you guys might find him," pointed out Vardi after a moment of awkward silence.
Samba smiled at her. "Thanks...We just might," he agreed quietly.
"And there's your partner," Ybir said. She looked at Samba and raised her eyeridges. Samba grunted in surprise when she dabbed a cloth around his eyes. "You were right. He didn't need to hear all this..."
Samba gave a small smile. "Thanks..."
. . .
A tug on his pole brought Samba out of his memories. He growled and stood, pulling in the fish. In a few more seconds, he was holding up a trout. "Huh...These don't come around Jgk'hry," he murmured, placing it in his fish bag.
"You okay?" Betta asked. He frowned. "You looked pretty pensive there..."
"Yeah," Samba smiled. "I'm fine. Just...thinking, is all. Lots to think about these days."
"Heh...I'll bet." Betta beckoned. "C'mon, let's get to another spot..."
. . .
The evening was spent talking to Bardin, recollecting their tale to him and Betta around the dinner table while they ate some fresh venison and vegetables. "Wow," Bardin laughed at the end of it, sitting back in his chair and crossing his arms. "That's quite a story."
"And it's only going to get longer," Betta added, chuckling. "I mean, you guys need to get these Tools of Nations, huh? Doncha guys got, like, a lot left to go?"
Link and Samba nodded. "Yeah, and it's going to take a while," Link agreed, a little wry about the prospect.
"And we still haven't a clue where Zelda is," Samba growled. He and Link were, like at Darcia's the night before, dressed down to be more comfortable. The lizalfos chomped some meat and chewed it, pouting. "We don't know where to go, next, either."
"Yeah, now that the crisis here has been solved," Link frowned.
"Then why not ask around folks who might know more about tales like this?" suggested Bardin. "Maybe Ko's gotten some more research done." He looked at Betta. "Hey, you got that Gossip Stone, right, Gimpy?"
Betta frowned. "Hey! I'm not THAT disabled!" he protested. "It's just my forearm that's hurt...But yeah..." He brought out a Gossip Stone pendant, the stone looking like Ko's, and held it in his palm. He focused for a moment, then the stone glowed light blue. "Ko? Can you hear me?" he asked it.
A moment later, the stone glowed brighter. "Yes?" Ko's voice replied, sounding somewhat distant, echoing a little. "I'm in the middle of supper—not like it's very much, but still..."
Betta snickered. "Sorry, but I've got Link and Samba here with me right now," he explained.
"Really? !" Ko exclaimed. "I can pause supper for them! Good evening, you two!"
Link and Samba chuckled and greeted him back. "We're kinda stuck, Ko," Link said. "We just took care of the moblin threat here, but without the princess, we dunno where to go next."
"You have any idea where the other Tools of Nations are?" Samba asked.
Ko hummed in thought. "Not yet, but I think I can find out what the matching materials are, at least," he replied. "I'll look into it tonight. You're all the way at the other end of Hyrule, right? I should have it figured out by the time you get here."
"Great! We'll head back to Jgk'hry tomorrow morning," planned Link, clapping his hands. "We've got a horse, now, so things should go a lot quicker. I'm getting tired of going back and forth between the ends of Hyrule, though..." he added in an undertone.
"Well, suck it up," Bardin ordered curtly, crossing his arms. "You've gotta do this, so you've gotta take it like a man."
"Oh, is that Bardin?" Ko asked.
"Yep, Link's grandfather and the best salesman in Hyrule," Bardin confirmed, nodding with a proud smile. "Thanks for helping my grandson, by the way."
"No problem! Thank you for raising him so well!" Ko replied. "He and Samba make good partners, despite their species." Link and Samba laughed sheepishly and looked at each other. "Oh, and I just thought of something, boys," Ko added, drawing attention back to the stone. "Why not ask some of the Leviathans about their thoughts on the locations of the next Tools of Nations?"
"Maybe." Link held his chin. "They might not be able to help as much as we'd like, but it's better than nothing."
"Alright. Is that all, then?" Ko asked. "If I'm going to get some research done, I'd better finish my food quickly."
"Yeah, we'll letcha go, Ko," Betta smiled. "Thanks a lot for the help."
"Not a problem! See you later, Samba, Link!" Ko said. The stone lost some of its glow again.
"Welp," Betta said, grasping the stone, extinguishing its glow, and putting it away, "it's been a long day for all of us; let's finish up dinner and get to bed."
. . .
The world was blurry, surreal. Samba peeked from behind a door at two taller figures arguing. One was slender, another sturdy. Their features were fuzzy, too far to make out well. They spoke in Hylian.
"Why?" asked the slender one. "What about your child—your children?"
"I know," the sturdy one said, shaking its head. "But...I have to do this..."
They argued for a few moments, Samba unable to register their words as his eyes swam with tears and he covered his ears. When he looked up again, they were holding each other. "I promise to you, I'll be back," swore the sturdy figure. "Please take care of them for me while I'm gone. I'm sorry."
"I will," the slender one nodded gently. "And...just...don't break that promise."
"You know as much as I...It's my duty..." the sturdy one replied. It turned and left out the door, the slender one reaching after but staying put.
The slender one sank to its knees slowly and clasped its hands.
The days passed outside quickly. The figure stayed there, waiting at the front door. Weeks passed. The figure slowly held its face as weeks turned to months.
"Why..." whispered Samba, closing his eyes.
. . .
Samba yawned and stretched as he woke up, feeling rejuvenated. He sat up and looked around. Sofa, small table, fireplace, chair, bookcase, glass window, wood everywhere. He looked out the window. Another late spring day. The lizalfos sighed. "I don't know," he answered with mouth, not voice.
"Samba?" Samba looked and saw Bardin pausing by the doorway. He frowned at him. "Are you alright? You look a bit...down."
Samba sighed and shook his head. "Just a sad dream," he replied. He stood and stretched. "Is Link up yet?"
"Yes, he's making a light breakfast for you two," Bardin nodded, thumbing over his shoulder. He walked over and patted Samba's scaly shoulder, smiling. "I've gotta get to the shop and open up, so this is my good-bye to you for now, Blues," he said. "And don't worry—I'm sure the village knows that you're harmless now after yesterday. You don't have to hide anymore when you're here."
"Thanks," Samba smiled back. "It was nice meeting you, Bardin."
Bardin chuckled and patted his shoulder again, then turned. "See ya, Blues," he called over his shoulder as he moved out the door.
Samba frowned and crossed his arms when he left. "Seriously, is my color that distinctive?" he grumbled.
After eating some eggs that Link made, the duo left (Link locking the door behind him). As Samba walked alongside Link and Epona, the other villagers gave them unsure looks. As they passed by Mari and her two boys, the children ran over to the lizalfos, their mother following, calling, "Yan, Cor!" admonishingly.
"Are you friends with Link, Mr. Monster?" asked Cor.
"You look really cool, Mr. Monster!" praised Yan.
"Yeah, and thanks," Samba replied, smiling nervously, stopping to talk. Link paused Epona and chuckled at the two boys.
Mari came over and held her children to her protectively, looking at Samba in the eyes, wary. "I saw you with Betta the other day," she said quietly. "But that doesn't mean I completely trust you." She looked over at Link. "You'll keep an eye on...him, right, Link?" she asked.
Link bit his lip and blushed at Samba, who was narrowing his eyes. "Uh..."
"Madam," Samba said, and Mari looked at him again. Samba gave her a steady gaze. "I assure you, I have absolutely no intentions of harming your children. In fact, I have a little sister around their age. I know how you'd feel if they were hurt. Trust me." He bowed his head. "Please."
Mari blinked at this.
"Mama?" Yan asked, looking up at her. She looked down at them.
"I think we can trust Mr. Monster," Cor said. "He said he's friends with Link, and Link doesn't make friends with bad people."
"Yeah!" Yan agreed, nodding and clenching his fists. "He's not friends with that mean kid Barker on the other side of town!"
Mari gave a little laugh, smiling. "That's right," she said. She looked up at Samba apologetically. "I'm...I'm sorry, uh..."
"Samba," he supplied, smiling gently. "And that's alright, I understand." He looked down at the boys, who beamed up at him. "I wouldn't want anything to happen to my children if I—" He paused, blinking. "I mean...to my sister, either."
Mari chuckled. "Is your sister like a daughter to you, then?" she asked, bemused. "That can happen with siblings a lot younger than you. My big sister was like a mother to me, after all."
"Heh..." Samba looked up at the sky. "I guess so..."
They said their good-byes, then Samba resumed walking with Link. "Sorry about that," apologized Link, face reddish. "Mari is a little protective of her kids."
"Is she an only mother?" asked Samba. Link nodded, and Samba sighed, looking at his feet as he walked. "I know how she feels, then, I guess..."
Link watched him with a frown. "Are you okay?"
Samba shook his head. "I'm fine," he said, smiling at Link. "Just...was an interesting experience, is all."
Others who they passed by were a bit better: "So, I hear ya helped Link fight off them moblins! Thanks! Anythin' that hates them troublemakers is a friend o' mine!" "I saw you with Betta—so I guess you're okay? Uh...Nice to meet you, I guess..." "You're kinda like the zoras—weird-looking but nice inside. I-I mean, no offense!" "Ha-ha! You've got really big feet! ...Huh? Sure, I wanna play, but what's 'kickball'?" "Wow, you can talk? I didn't know lizalfos even COULD talk...What? You guys have your own language? Wow!" "You don't think humans look weird because they don't have tails, do you? No? Phew...Oh, that's just how some lizards reacted in a story I like..." "Y...You've got...pretty scales...And nice eyes...Eep! No, I'm not—I'm...I'm just trying to compliment you! Y'know, uh, be friendly!" "Nice hat."
"There are a lot more people here than I'd thought there'd be," commented Samba as they exited Kochyrae and began to run a little. "I mean, there are less houses than in Jgk'hry..."
"Big families," Link replied wryly. "Lots of friends. We're going to build more houses, soon."
"What does your village do?" wondered Samba. "Ours relies on fishing and trading our potions with the gorons to be self-sufficient...though we don't need to worry much about money since we barely need to trade...'cept we kinda have to trade for all our wood..."
Link raised an eyebrow. 'Hmmm...' He lowered it again and smiled. "Well, we're actually kinda tied closely to our sister village, which gets way more money than we do, thanks to Ybayba Ranch. They make money off of the ranch and smaller ranches and farms, but we get our money by supplying most of the kingdom with wood."
"Really? I didn't see many stumps in the Korken Woods," muttered Samba.
"That's 'cause we do it elsewhere, and we always replant when we cut," Link explained. "And the woods are so huge, and the trees there regrow so amazingly fast, we're not in danger of harming their ecosystem as much as other places. Meanwhile, the ranch supplies us with all the fertilizer we could ask for. In return, we also provide a lot of small foods, y'know, nuts and berries. Dorder and most of us manage little veggie patches by our houses, but a lot of us spend time going around the forest, gathering the food from there. We also supply a lot of great herbs. Dunno if you noticed, but there's a ton of lemongrass around here, for example."
"So that's why there weren't many biting bugs around," Samba chuckled. "Even though other places are getting some now that we're approaching summer."
"So yeah—we rely on the greenery to sustain us and Hyrule," Link said. He grinned and thumbed himself. "And me and Grandpa are the ones people come to from all over to buy a lot of it!"
"But you're still just a small village," Samba pointed out, smirking. "So you all don't get that much money."
"Yeah, well..." Link shrugged, chuckling. "We don't need to live all fancy-like. Just as long as we have enough to keep us alive and happy."
Soon after getting to Hyrule Field, Link started and pulled Epona to a halt. "What is it?" Samba asked, skidding and trotting back when he overshot.
"The Leviathans," Link replied, dismounting Epona. "We should talk to them about the Tools."
"Oh! Yeah, probably," Samba nodded.
( )
Link and Samba returned to Here the same way as before. "Who should we ask first?" Samba asked.
"Let's try Ruedekul," he answered.
When they reached Ruedekul's area, they found him weeding, of all things. "Ah, good...morning, is it, for you two?" he greeted, getting up and brushing his hands off before holding them behind his back. "How may I be of service to you?"
"Do you know anything about the locations of the other Tools of Nations?" Link asked.
"The other Tools of Nations..." mumbled Ruedekul, rubbing where his chin would be. "...I apologize," he said after a moment, bowing a bit, "but I have no idea where they might be. However, I shall try and use my power over wood to communicate with Hyrule's plant life to see if that could help. I will alert you if I find anything."
"Thank you," Link nodded. He hesitated before asking, "Er, why were you weeding earlier?"
"Oh, well, you don't want weeds around your home, do you?" Ruedekul chuckled. "Besides, they absorb all the nutrients I need. Nasty things."
Next, they checked in with Krungratrg. They found him on an enormous raft out in the ocean. Link frowned that he'd have to get wet and tried to swim over, Samba hiding. However, Link found that the ocean was a lot harder to navigate than other water, and when a large wave hit him, he was tossed under the water, blacking out. When he came to, he was lying on the shore, washed up. He had lost a heart. "Okay, that wasn't such a good idea," he coughed, getting up. "How did I not drown?"
"When you blacked out, I felt a power in the Rings," Samba explained, popping out. "A light engulfed you and brought you back to shore, I could see...It was odd."
"How long was I out?" Link asked, tossing Samba.
"I dunno, but I think only a couple minutes. Krung's still out there," he pointed over the waves.
"How do we get to him?" Link wondered. They watched him stand and grunt, pulling his tail, before a huge fish came up onto the deck with him. He laughed, grabbed it, broke its neck, and set it in his lap before resuming his fishing.
"Maybe we should just ask later," Samba shrugged. "C'mon, Anjoltvrya might know. She should be inside."
They found the mountain lioness in the little cavern she had claimed. Already, metal fences had gone up around the walls, a metal-framed bed with grass and leaves as a mattress sat in a corner, and she was busily working on an iron skillet at an anvil, using her wrench as a hammer. Though the metal wasn't glowing red-hot, she was shaping it as easily as if it were. She looked up when Samba approached and smiled. "Oh! Hi, guys!" she greeted.
Samba chuckled as he looked around. "Wow, you've been a busy kitty," he noticed.
"Yeah," Anjoltvrya laughed, putting a paw on her hip. "It keeps me occupied. Remember, every day for you is four for us." She grinned, and Samba blushed a little. "What's up?"
"We're trying to find the next Tool of Nations," Link said. "You know where we might find one?"
Anjoltvrya sighed and shook her head. "Nope, sorry," she apologized. "I'm only able to sense metal ore in Hyrule, and there isn't much spread around everywhere. I can tell the Gorons are alright, though, or at least the foundry is. They're already rebuilding it."
"Hm..." Link nodded, smiling. "Thank you, though."
"You're welcome," Anjoltvrya smiled sheepishly. "How's the quest going?"
"Alright. We just saved my village from moblins, and we have a horse now," Link smiled.
"Ah. Well, you should get back, then." She blushed. "But...come back sometime, alright?"
Samba smiled broadly. "Yeah, we will," he promised.
( )
Continuing on, they passed through Ybayba Enapu on the way, and decided to check in with Darcia at the ranch. She stood outside, watching the horses as they roamed around the enclosure. "Oh, hey guys!" she greeted, smiling. "Epona looks happier than before. She must be glad to finally have found a good partner!"
"Yeah, she helped us save my village yesterday," Link said, patting her neck. The horse neighed quietly.
"You guys doing alright?" Samba asked Darcia, floating from his Ring (he didn't want to bother with coming out just for a few minutes while in a town they can't be seen in). "How's your dad?"
"Papa's fine," she replied. "Just back to his usual hard-working, loving self. Jovas is back with his relatives up in Castle Town. Where you guys off to now on your quest to save Hyrule?" she asked.
"Back to my hometown of Jgk'hry," Samba answered. "We're gonna ask Ko about where to go next."
"Okay," nodded Darcia. She grinned. "Hey, by the way, you guys, if you think you can spare a night, the circus is coming to town!" she alerted. "They'll be set up in a day or two just up the road from Ybayba. Papa says we can go see them!"
Link grinned back. "Really? I haven't seen them since I was a kid!" he laughed. "I remember they're small but they have a lot of acts. They even have a fr—" He stopped, looking at Samba. "Uh...creature show," he decided to say instead.
Samba tilted himself, but said nothing.
"Well, whatever you decide," Darcia shrugged. "Good luck, y'all!"
"Thanks, you too, Darcia!" Link bade, riding off.
They reached Castle Town by sunset, and managed to ride through the other side before the gates were closed. "How're you doing, Epona?" Link asked after letting Samba out again.
Epona just snorted. She felt great—she had been running all day without getting tired or sore, and she was loving it. She leapt over a rock in the way enthusiastically, braying.
Link laughed and held on. "Hah! Guess you're still fine, huh?" he smiled.
"Never knew horses had that much stamina," Samba remarked.
Link shook his head. "Nah—I think it's the Rings at work yet again," he replied. "I recently thought about it a bit, and after thinking about how much Darcia's talked about being very careful with horses, I realized that Epona must be being helped by the Rings. Which is great, because now we can get places way quicker!"
"Yeah!" Samba grinned as he hop-ran along. "At this rate, we'll reach my home by sunrise!"
"I don't think she can quite handle the mountain, though," Link surmised. "We'll park her nearby. Though she'll probably run on her own."
"We've got her song for that," Samba pointed out.
"Right." They rode on, defeating enemies here and there, through the night. By twilight, they had reached Death Mountain. Indeed, Epona didn't want to go up the mountain. "Probably intimidating," Link muttered. He got off her. "Alright, you be a good girl and don't get into any trouble, okay, Epona?" he asked.
Epona shook her head, snorting.
Link had Samba lead, and the two made their way up the mountain path. Midway up, Link grabbed Samba. "Wait—that rock looks suspicious," he squinted, pointing at a boulder sitting in the middle of the ground. "Lemme try something..."
A moment later, they were exploring a small grotto he discovered under the rock after bombing it. A small chest inside contained a purple rupee, and on the back wall was a gold skulltula. The medal this time was made of bronze and depicted a shovel. "Odd medals, these," Link commented, putting it away. "Wonder why these Skulltula Tokens have them..."
They reached Jgk'hry by around midmorning. The guards greeted them gruffly, and Link noticed that the lizalfos walking about were a little less friendly than before: "What? A human?...Oh, it's you." "Why are you running around with that human, Samba? We've all gotta pitch in to fish up your quota each day!" "Stop talking to me! I've got important things to do! ...What things? THINGS!" "What are YOU looking at, human?" "Meep! Keep that sword away from me! I remember how much it burned the last time!" "I've always thought you guys look weird without tails. I mean, everything else has a tail! Except gorons, because rocks with tails sounds silly." "Nice hat. *snrk*"
Samba sighed and rolled his eyes. "Yep, back to normal," he grumbled, and Link chuckled. They made it to Ko's and knocked on his door. "It's us, Ko!" Samba replied when the scholar requested a name.
"Samba!" Ko opened the door, smiling. "And Link! Come in, come in!" They came in and sat down at the table. Ko smiled and brought his book up, putting on his reading glasses. This book appeared different. "Alright, I've done a bit more research, like I said. I had to dig out another book, but it was worth it." He opened the book to a bookmark and pointed at a drawing of an old torn tapestry. "This tapestry depicted the Tools of Nations and their respective Material, it's assumed, but now, it's only got a few Materials and text that confirms the subject matter."
"I only see three of them," Link noted. "Musta been hurt pretty bad."
"Probably in a raid of some sort," Ko shrugged. "Now, see here, this one is definitely metal, which you already have." He pointed at a red-bordered icon of a sword. He pointed to an orange-bordered icon of a tunic. "This is probably cloth. I'd look for somewhere that fabric is very common..."
Link frowned, crossing his arms, Samba doing the same. "Where would that be, though?" he muttered.
"Now, the thing that puzzles me is this," Ko said, pointing to another one, far from the others. It was a rock icon bordered with indigo. "I thought you already defeated the Leviathan of Stone," Ko frowned. "So why would they put stone here?"
"Maybe we should ask the Leviathans," suggested Samba. "I dunno if I'll get a straight answer out of Krungratrg, though..."
"Well, that's all I could find, sorry," Ko apologized, smiling sheepishly. "If I'd've known it would've been that little, I would've just told you to wait at Kochyrae..."
"Nah, we needed to go, anyway," Samba said, shrugging. "Can't stay around in one place for too long. Otherwise your grandpa would make you work." Link guffawed.
"Well, you might wanna talk to the chief, too," Ko suggested. "He's wise, after all."
They did so. Kargaro was still in bed, but he looked better. "I'll be out of here any day now, they say," he reported happily. "Afterwards, I'll likely be around my home across the lake. You can walk around the village to it or ask for a boat ferry, but that costs money."
Samba nodded. "Alright. Now, Chief, we just wanted to know if you knew where else we should go," he said.
"Hmmm..." Kargaro rubbed his chin, frowning. "...You know, for the past few weeks, I have been sensing a sleeping, but growing, hatred wandering around Hyrule, stopping a few days at a time in certain areas," he finally replied. "Sometimes it stops at the foot of the mountain. I think it also stops around Castle Town...but it is very faint by then." He nodded. "I'll keep searching for other sources of hatred."
"You said that you sensed hatred in non-hylians," Samba stated, crossing his arms and frowning a little. "We had to take care of two humans the other day who had been infected by those crystals..."
Kargaro stroked his chin. "I see...Now that I think about it, that wandering hatred appeared to come from a human..." he murmured. "Perhaps I was too weak to detect humans when I said that before." He chuckled, smiling wryly at Link. "After all, humans are very mysterious, unpredictable creatures."
Link gave a little laugh, smirking. "You can say that again..." He crossed his arms and tilted his head. "Speaking of humans, have you heard anything about Zelda?"
"No, except that she's still missing, according to some gorons one of our merchants spoke with the other day," he shrugged. "I'll tell the guards to let her in and not harm her if she happens to arrive here, though, and I'll alert you as soon as possible."
"Thank you," Samba smiled, nodding.
"In the meantime, try finding strange happenings or troubles like at the foundry," Kargaro suggested, smiling. "If you want my opinion, you should try and ask a few nomads. The only ones I know of, however, is the traveling circus. They see many things on their travels, though, and might be able to help point you the right way."
Link and Samba looked at each other. "Darcia said they'd be coming by Ybayba soon, didn't she?" asked Samba.
"Looks like we're going to the circus, after all," Link chuckled. They thanked Kargaro and stopped by Samba's house to visit.
"I don't know where there's any trouble," Ybir said, shaking her head, after they asked. "If you want strange happenings, however, just go to the circus. I think they're settling south right now."
"That's what Kargaro suggested," Link chuckled. "I think this is a sign from the goddesses."
Ybir laughed. "I guess so!" She looked at Samba, and her face fell. "Sweetie?"
Samba, who had been looking at Vardi playing with Lullaby, eyelids drooped a little and mouth expressionless, snapped his head up. "Reh? No, I'm fine," he said quickly. He bopped his head. "Gotta get my head back in the game, is all. It's been a long week or however long it's been."
"Alright," Ybir said softly, giving her son a soft hug. "I just worry about you. And don't worry about us—Lullaby's keeping us plenty company." She giggled. "I'd forgotten how much brighter the house feels with a Pols Voice around!"
Link and Samba stepped outside once more. Link stretched. "Alright, we done here?" he wondered. "Wait, no—we should stop by Goron City and buy some bombs!"
"Yeah," Samba nodded. They began to go out the nearby exit when they almost literally ran into Drejsk.
"Whoa, careful, guys!" the lardy lizard laughed. "Where you off to in such a hurry?"
"Goron City, to buy bombs," Samba answered. "What are you doing?"
"Helping rebuild the platform in the lake," he answered. "I was just going wack for more buh—gratchin' tongue, back for more wood." He grumbled, crossing his arms. "But it's so expensive! I wish it were cheaper..."
Link frowned in thought. 'Hmmmmmmmmm...Maybe I...' He shook his head. 'No, what good would that do? They're so far apart...'
"Where's Thyu?" wondered Samba.
"On duty at the armory. Why?" Drejsk tilted his head.
"The armory?" Link asked, raising his eyebrows.
"Yeah—It's in the Empty Cavern, apparently" Samba explained. "Heck...you know...I think, I..." He got out the map to the dungeon, then raised his eyeridges. "Wait! I didn't just miss a chest, Link, I missed a whole door!" he exclaimed. "I must not have noticed it before...I swore that wall was just a bunch of...stalagmites..." He slapped his snout. "Which are probably gone now..."
"What is it?" Link peeked. "It looks like a small room..."
"That's the armory," Samba said, pointing. "It's got two entrances—one normal tunnel entrance, one that's always been locked tight that leads into the Empty Cavern." He shrugged. "The tunnel's a little bit of a climb, but a lot safer than jumping over the river to get there...and there's that possibly bombable part in there to get to that chest, too..."
"Then let's go," Link said.
"Thanks, Drejsk!" Samba waved before trotting off. He led Link up to a ledge, which both could climb up, then through a tunnel flanked by torches. "Hang onto my paw, it's dark in here," he said once they entered. He used his night vision to guide them through the ascending, sometimes turning tunnel. Soon, they reached light, and Samba let go of Link's hand. "The armory," Samba announced as they reached a heavy stone door, some of the Empty Cavern's mushrooms surrounding the walls. There was a sliding panel to peek through on it, a ring knocker below it. Samba used the knocker, and the panel opened, two beady eyes looking at him. "It's Samba, I wanna come through," he said.
"Right," a gruff voice replied, closing the slit. A second later, a deep clunk was heard and the door opened inward. A normal guard stood at the door. "Come in, and human, don't touch anything," he instructed sternly.
Link nodded and followed Samba inside. Torches lit the room in some parts, more mushrooms illuminating other parts. Swords, armor, axes, spears, shields, and bows and arrows lined the walls and sat in racks. "Wow," Link whispered.
"Never knew we had all this," Samba murmured. "I've never been here before..."
"Cool place, eh?" Thyu walked over, and they turned to him. He smirked. "I'm here to take inventory now that things have calmed down. What are you two doing here?"
"Just wanted to say hi and look around the cavern again," Samba replied.
"Ah. Hi, then." Thyu chuckled. "Well, be careful—there are still monsters around here."
"After what we've just been through?" Samba scoffed. "We could beat 'em in our sleep."
"Well, it's through that door," Thyu pointed at a door like the rest in the cavern. It was locked. "You'll need this." He gave them a small key and bade them luck.
Samba unlocked the door, then opened it. As he pulled the rock, throwing it up the hidden slope, Link got next to him, so both could run through at the same time. Again, Samba grabbed his tail before it was crushed. They were back in the big room with the large mushroom, standing in the pit. "This is surreal," Link said, following Samba as they climbed up the ladder to the room's usual entrance. "Exploring the dungeon you did to find your Ring."
"How do you think I feel?" Samba chuckled, getting up onto the door platform. "I never wanted to see this place again after what I went through." Once Link was up there, he ran and jumped down to the main platform below, rolling on impact. Link did the same, then followed him through a door.
"That's an awfully big room," he muttered, looking behind him.
"What, you comment on that and not the mushroom?" Samba snickered. "I dunno why it's big, but hey." They stopped at the end of the tunnel where it broke into two paths. "Alright, here's that rubble pile," Samba said, pointing to the cave-in. "Wanna give it a shot?"
"Got about four bombs left—why not?" Link shrugged. Telling Samba to stand back, Link set a bomb on the pile, then stood away, both of them hiding behind their shields. When it exploded, rocks flew everywhere. They looked again and frowned. "There are still a lot of rocks," Link frowned.
"Then try it again, there's still a chest in there, and I doubt your hammer would work here," Samba said. "You blew an awful lot away, though!"
Link bit his lip, but tried again. This time, they made a small gap between rubble and ceiling. "One more oughtta do it!" Link said. He tried, and finally, the rubble pile blew completely away, leaving only a few rocks here and there, the rest pulverized into gravel.
Standing before them was a large stone chest.
Samba jumped, punching—the ceiling, he found, shaking his paw after he landed. "YAS—OW!" He trotted over and opened it.
"What is it?" Link asked as Samba pulled it out.
The lizalfos turned, grinning. "A Piece of Heart!" he crowed. "That makes it two so far. Three more and we'll have a new Heart Container to keep us from dying so quick!"
Link grinned back as they absorbed the gem. Suddenly, both jumped as a haunting tune came from their Rings. It was a variation of the Song of Penitence, and the gemstones flashed on and off. "I think they want us to call them," Link guessed.
They played the Song of Penitence. Soon, they heard a voice. "You've reached Krungratrg. Which means you're in the Empty Cavern or nearby. What's up?"
"Our Rings flashed," Samba reported. "Did you guys wanna speak with us?"
"Yeah, I did!" Krungratrg chuckled. "I sensed you guys in my old home, and that you just found the last treasure. Now that's scouring!"
"Wait, that's it?" Link asked, raising an eyebrow.
"That, and I was wondering what you were doing there," Krungratrg added. "Aren't you guys supposed to be, like, saving the world or something like that?"
"Speaking of, Ko found evidence that says there might be a Tool of Nations for stone," Samba remembered. "Any idea why?"
"Yeah, 'cuz there is one," Krungratrg replied. Link and Samba widened their eyes and looked at each other. Krungratrg laughed. "What, I thought Kitten told you guys the dealio? A Leviathan only forms when a Tool or Ring is obtained."
"So whatever the stone one is hasn't been found?" Samba interpreted.
"Or something. I've been wonderin' about that, meself, so I'll keep on talkin' to the rocks of Hyrule for ya. Rudes says he feels the same sorta thing, too. Anythin' you two wanna ask lil' ol' me?"
"Do you have any clue where the other Tools of Nations are?" Link asked.
"Nope, but I'll keep an eye out. Or ear. Or whatever organ feels the rocks of Hyrule." Krungratrg yawned. "Welp, it's getting' on towards sleepytime fer me. Feel free to call or see us anytime!" And with that, the conversation ended.
"That was interesting," Link remarked, putting his ocarina away.
"I wonder if this means we'll only have to fight five more Leviathans?" Samba wondered. "That'd be nice..."
. . .
omake
. . .
*Krungratrg and Anjoltvrya are in Krungratrg's cave, sitting around a fire. Anjoltvrya is using a metal grill over the fire to hold her skillet, in which is half of one of the two fish that Krungratrg caught a bit ago (not the same fish from the time the duo saw him).*
Anjoltvrya: *flips fish with a lengthened wrench* It's great to be able to make this stuff so easily.
Krungratrg: *frowns* Where are you getting so much metal? And how can you make so much stuff?
Anjoltvrya: Well, there's a lot of iron ore.
Krungratrg: *pauses, then holds up paw* …what?
Anjoltvrya: *raises eyebrow* I said there's a lot of iron ore.
Krungratrg: Or what?
Anjoltvrya: *blinks, then flips the fish right into Krungratrg's face, half-eying, while Krungratrg has a giggle fit*
. . .
Sorry for the delay for posting even this (and double-sorry it's not Re:PoT) so late. Summer's been really weird for me this year. I'm currently taking an internship with a composer my mother knows, Joe Fear, and subletting in St. Paul. I'm really behind on hours, too, so August is going to be me working up a storm. I'm currently working on the next chapter—I was going to do a really long chapter—but don't expect the next dungeon to start in it. Or any time really soon. Also, WHY DOESN'T FF DOT NET ALLOW ? AND ! TO BE TOGETHER ANYMORE? ! ! ? ! ? ? ! ? ! ! ? ! ? ? !
While you're waiting for me, I'm taking commissions to make more money! $5 for sketches, $8 for coloreds, $10 for short stories. PM me if you're interested! I need money! Badly!