Chapter 18: Twilit Nymph Woodra

Once the golden key was placed into the lock of the same color, the gold-colored chains around the door fell and the wooden door slid open. Link and Zelda stepped in first, but as soon as they did did the door shut itself. Professor Phosile tried to open it from the other side, but the door stayed shut.

"It's no use," Professor Phosile said. "The door won't budge."

"Can't you use the Infinity Gauntlet to make another entrance?" Link asked Zelda.

Zelda shook her head. "It doesn't work like that. Once I make a Puncture, it'll open to somewhere else and I can't control what that other place will be. Plus, the Punctures don't last very long so the gauntlet's pretty much useless in this scenario."

"What are you talking about?" Professor Phosile wondered.

Just as Zelda was about to answer, a loud rumbling noise was heard. A large plant seemed to sprout from the middle of the cold dark room Link and Zelda were in. It took on the form of a serpentine vine with several smaller vines interwoven, the upper-half of a woman who had wooden skin and a menacing face with several vines sprouting from her head that seemed to wiggle like serpents.

"Get out of the temple, Professor," Link said raising the Master Sword in the air which glowed with bright light. "We've got a monster to take care of."

Seeing the light, the serpentine monster shrieked and attacked Link by rushing toward him. He managed to avoid her arms, but found himself running around the circumference of the chamber as the monster chased him. While he did this, Zelda used the Kokiri Fan to produce hot air that set the monster on fire causing her to stop moving. Link then used this opportunity to slice through the vines that made up the monster's lower-half. The monster screamed as she toppled down with nothing to support her lower-half but then to Link's surprise, the vines grew back and wove themselves into a serpent-like tail.

With this, the monster chased Link around the room using her hands to crawl forward. Once again, Zelda used the Kokiri Fan to set the monster on fire causing her to be temporarily stunned. Link then used his Boomerang to cut off the monster's hands causing her to fall forward. As she fell onto to her stomach in a burning heap, Link noticed a small piece of metal that seemed to be merged to the monster's lower-back. Quickly, Link ran around the monster and leaped onto her back with ease. He plunged the Master Sword into the metal, causing the monster to scream and turn over as her hands regenerated.

So Link and Zelda followed this strategy a couple more times before the monster rotted from the inside and toppled over in a pile of dead wood and vines. A circle of light appeared in the center of the dark room, illuminating two things that lay in the monster's remains. One was a little girl who looked exactly like Sylvan only her dress was a darker shade of green. The other was a metallic object that resembled a neck-brace with patterns carved into it that glowed.

As Zelda walked over to the girl and the object, the closed door opened revealing Professor Phosile and Tera.

"I thought I told you to leave," Link said irritably.

"We would never leave you, son," Professor Phosile responded.

"What happened in here?" Tera asked, looking at the remains of the monster.

"This monster suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and then after Zelda and I defeated it these things were left behind," Link explained.

"This has to be the Fused Shadow fragment," Zelda said picking the metal object up. Then she noticed the girl. "And the girl must be Sylvia, Sylvan's sister."

"Don't touch the fragment!" Professor Phosile exclaimed. "You know what it does to living things, right?"

"Yes, but since the Twilight Realm had no effect on me when I was in the Twili District I figure that the Fused Shadow fragments won't affect me either," Zelda said nonchalantly as she approached the circle of light. "Now let's go."

"That seems risky," Link said as he picked up the unconscious Sylvia. "I mean you not being affected by the Twilight Realm could've been just a fluke."

"Link's right," Professor Phosile said. "There are many things about the Twilight Realm that we don't understand, including the Fused Shadow, so we shouldn't take risks and assume you'll be fine just because you happen to not succumb to the Twilight Realm's influence."

"How do you feel, dear?" Tera said to Zelda.

"Fine," Zelda said and stepped into the circle of light.

She immediately vanished, causing everyone to follow. The circle of light grew brighter for a brief moment, then they found themselves outside the Owlan Temple. Sylvan was sleeping against a tree nearby and the Ancient Grove seemed a little brighter than before.

"Should we wake her?" asked Link who was still carrying Sylvia.

"No, let's let her sleep," Zelda said. "But go ahead and place Sylvia next to her."

"So we're leaving?" Professor Phosile asked seeing Zelda aiming her Talon Clasp onto an upper branch. "We can't leave without Sylvan. She's our guide."

"True, but I observed the directions she took so I have a pretty good sense of how to get back to the village," Zelda said once the line was secure. "Besides, there's no danger here anymore and she's capable of getting herself out."

"If you say so," Professor Phosile said reluctantly as Zelda reeled in the line causing her to be lifted onto the branch below the one where the talons grabbed onto.

###

Back at the village, the last cable-car was filling up as the sun had gone down.

"I'll be back," Link said heading off into the forest. "There's someone I have to talk to."

Zelda and the Professor shrugged while Tera seemed baffled.

In the grove where the bugs were rampant, Link found a piece of paper in the grass. After unfolding it, Link read a message that was written in black link with a butterfly seal at the top:

Dear Grasshopper,

By the time you read this, I will have left the Kokiri District. Look for my castle in the Hylian District if you have found any of the Golden Bugs and bring them to me there. Hope your search is going well and I'll see you soon!

Yours truly,

Princess Agnes

Link folded the paper into his shirt-pocket and left to rejoin with Zelda and the others.

"Did you find the person?" Zelda asked as the cable-car doors closed.

In response, Link shook his head.

"That's too bad," Professor Phosile remarked. Then he turned to Zelda. "So, seeing that you were able to help me reach the Owlan Temple and retrieve the Fused Shadow fragment without damaging it, I believe you are worthy to become my assistant for this trip."

"Really?" Zelda exclaimed excitedly. "I'm so honored! Can Link come too?"

"Of course," Tera said. "He can be our bodyguard, though we'll have to wait on paying you till after we've found all the fragments."

"Oh, I don't need money," Link said.

"Nonsense, we insist!" Professor Phosile replied. "It's only fair since you risked your life for us, and it would be good to have someone on hand in case the Fused Shadow fragment does corrupt Zelda at some point."

"I can assure you that won't happen, Professor," Zelda said instinctively patting her satchel which contained the Fused Shadow fragment.

"How do you know?" Professor Phosile said nervously.

"It's just a strong feeling I have, is all," Zelda replied. "But not because I'm confident. I know I won't be corrupted by the Fused Shadow fragment, but I can't explain why."

While Link gave Zelda a baffled stare, Professor Phosile rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"So where are we going next?" Zelda said, changing the subject.

"To the Gorko Temple in the Goron District," Professor Phosile responded. "Hopefully, we'll have better luck there and not have any trouble retrieving the Fused Shadow fragment there."

To be continued…