Hey guys! School is started, I have my device, everything is good! So, expect a chapter at least every month.
I recommend Counting by 7's. (Not a math book).
Ch.8.
Link's eyes flickered dully, and he pulled his arms back, sitting up straight and propping himself against the headboard, ignoring the immense pain in his ribs for the moment. He looked around, and found that he was in the room he had been staying in at the Rito tribe town hall.
He reeled through the memory of the night before-or however long ago it was when the village was attacked.
The village was raided by Moblins…and the Rito came close to winning the skirmish, but a Moblin… He frowned, as the end of the memory faded out; he struggled to put an ending on…what the hell happened? He thought angrily, nostrils flaring.
He tapped his finger against his leg and remained in thought, when the door to his room opened, revealing Impa and Sheik.
"Hey!" He said to them, and they chuckled lightly as they entered, both greeting him as well.
Impa closed the door behind her, and propped her back against it, still standing, while Sheik took the chair next to Link's bed.
"So I assume you have questions for us?"
"Yes…" Link said, "firstly, what in Hylia's name happened to me?"
Impa and Sheik exchanged worried glances, and looked back at him.
"You don't remember anything?" Sheik said, softly.
"Well, I remember that the village was attacked, and we were winning, but something happened, but I don't remember what it was…"
"A Moblin managed to capture the Rito leader, and attacked you, he easily defeated you, "finishing" you off with a stab from his broadsword," Impa stated, and Link pulled his blanket from his bare chest, revealing toned muscles that made Sheik shiver slightly, several bruises, and a bandaged wound sitting on his left side.
"Whoa," he simply stated, "how deep did the blade go?"
"It didn't get through, that wound is from when we were carrying you into safety, well, "safety" Sheik said, making finger quotes, "a fire was spreading quickly through the village, and while it was doused almost immediately, and the damage to the village wasn't too bad, the building we had brought you into collapsed, it was right near the wall, and had caught fire quickly."
"So how did I get this?" He asked again.
"Oh, well, I took your armor off to inspect the wound, and the building collapsed, a splinter of wood impaled you through your side."
"All the way through?"
"No, just, two-three inches, I pulled it quickly, and managed to bandage you up, but I can't do anything about your broken rib."
He lifted his eyebrow in curiosity. That answered the question of why his ribs hurt, but only raised more questions.
"Did the Moblin's blade even make it through my armor?" He asked.
"No," Impa replied.
"So, it just bruised me?"
"Yeah, the Blade wasn't too strong, it shattered on impact."
"So I'm fine?" He asked, "Just a puncture in my side? Nothing too big, I guess."
"Actually," Sheik said, "You aren't fine."
Link looked at her curiously, "What's wrong?"
"I can't heal you Link," she said, biting her lip.
"What?"
"When the Moblin stabbed you, the Quake Bracelet sent a jolt through your body and disrupted your heart beat, you don't feel it, but your body won't be performing as well as it should."
"Oh," he said, simply, "well, hang on; you didn't say why you couldn't heal me, seriously, what wrong?"
"I'm getting to that," she said, "my magic is rough, and as I'm still mastering the "healing branch", you could say, of healing. No sorceress-even Cia, has mastered this craft, nor has any sorcerer. The only beings that could heal you, would the Great Fairies of Eldin, Farore, or Lanayru. The Triforce of Courage could also heal you."
"Hm, simple, we just need to find the Fairy in Farore, we are only a few kilometers from there anyway."
"Not that simple, Link," Impa said, "The Fairies haven't been seen since the Second Hero's journey, which was hundreds upon hundreds of years ago."
"True," he said, grinding his teeth."
"So what are we going to do then? He asked, and Sheik sighed.
"Well, unless we find the Fairies, which is most likely not going to happen, we need the Triforce of Courage."
"I'm the only person who can get us into the Temple though…" He said, "what are we gonna do?"
"You are going to have to take it easy, and if the Rito decide to send us as aid on the mission to free the Rito elder, you are going to stay," Sheik said.
"Two things," Link said, irritably, "First, I'm definitely going with you, no arguments, and secondly, have they already decided to go?"
"Well, no, we just assume that they will, it will be decided at the meeting the Rito are having tonight."
"They need to; really, they can't just abandon the elder, why do they even want him? A ransom, maybe?"
"Also going to be disclosed to us at the meeting."
"So how hard can I push myself?"
"I'm not entirely sure, but I wouldn't go too hard, any sprinting or heavy lifting, I would say no to, unless your life or others are on the line."
"I have a feeling that's going to happen…" he said.
"Most likely, but let's try to make sure it doesn't, now, you need to get some more sleep before the meeting tonight, so, rest up, and we'll be back in a few hours."
"Mmk," he said, and pulled his blanket up to his neck as the two women left the room.
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Link Stepped into the apothecary, and found Lana, in a similar outfit she was wearing three weeks before, when he was stabbed. Instead of blue, it was a white and purple skirt and top.
She was knelt over a book at her counter, her hair pulled up in a ponytail, with a few strands dangling down.
"Hey, I'm back," he said, quietly, and she lifted her head, and smiled;
"Lieutenant!" She said, and rushed around the counter to meet him, "What brings you here? Another thief?"
"No, you told me to come back in three weeks, so you could take a look at my wound, sooo, I'm here."
"Oh yeah!" She said, giggling lightly as she remembered.
"It isn't too bad, but I do probably need to have it checked by you," he said, and removed his tunic, revealing his strong, toned chest, but, what was important to Lana at the moment; his shoulder.
"I'm glad you came back," she said, as she inspected his shoulder, "the wound is full of pus."
Link wrinkled his nose at the thought of the disgusting stuff, and turned his head as she squeezed his shoulder, and wiped it away, repeating this until no pus came out.
"Good news is, not much blood came out," she said, as she applied the bandage.
"Yay?" He said, with a meek smile on his face.
She smiled at him brightly, and stood up, and went to her back room to put her kit away. She walked back into the main area as Link stood up, pulling his tunic back over his head. He ruffled his straw colored hair with his hand, and smiled at her, again.
She held out a small package of herb toward him, "These are to prevent any infections, and if anything goes wrong, come back here as soon as you can."
"Will do," he said charmingly as he took the packet.
She pulled the stool back to its spot as he walked out the door, and he turned quickly, and without hesitation, remembering the words Arnold had spoken to him a few weeks before, asked her a question;
"Lana?" she stood, and turned toward him.
"Yes Link?"
"Do you want to get dinner with me tomorrow night?"
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"Link?" Sheik said, "Link. Link!"
His eyes snapped open, and he sat upright, only to fall on his back.
"Is the meeting soon?" He asked, and she nodded, throwing his tunic at him as she did so.
"Yes, so get dressed, and meet me in the lobby." She walked out the door, and Link sighed, swinging his legs over the side of the bed, and stood up, though it took him a few tries to do that.
He stretched his arms, and pulled his tunic on. He grabbed his weapons, and he walked through the open door, closing it behind him.
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Link and Sheik sat down, side by side, around the circular table in the meeting hall. Impa was sitting on the adjacent side of the table, and had her arms folded, her eyes flickering dully as she waited for the meeting to start. A Rito clad in armor stood behind his chair, and Link recognized him as the Rito that let them into the village. Girotiho was sitting on Sheik's right, and four other Rito, which Link assumed were council members, sat around the table, and only one seat was empty…The Chief's seat.
Girotiho cleared his throat, and all eyes turned toward him.
"As we all know, the Chief has been captured by the Moblins, and we have few alternatives to respond to this situation."
"The answer is 'aight obvious," the guard said, "We need to send a task force to rescue the Chief, the Moblins aren't going to 'and him over, and I 'ont stand for abandonin' the Chief."
"Hito, sit down," Girotiho said, "No one is saying that we should abandon the Chief, and we need to take a vote before we do anything rash."
"So, a vote?" One of the council members asked.
"Well, yes," Girotiho answered, "Those for sending an attack force to rescue the chief?"
All members of the meeting raised their hands, including Girotiho.
"That settles it then, but now, who should we send on this mission?" Girotiho asked.
"I say that we send everything we have," Hito said.
"No," Link said, shaking his head, "What if the Moblins attack again? Who will defend the village?"
"You three defended it 'ine last time, so I say that you can do it again."
"First off, we had help from your soldiers, and we are going with you."
"Most certainly not, we 'ant accept outsiders into our army, and 'owell you get there? You don't have wings to fly."
"We can walk," Sheik said.
"No, no, you would slow us down too much."
"Why do you even need to fly?" Link asked.
"The Goron caverns lay between us and the Moblins."
"So?"
"The Rito and the Goron's have never been at good terms with each other," Impa said, and Girotiho nodded;
"The Goron's would never let a whole force of armed Rito into their Caverns, we are already at war with the Moblin's, we don't need the Goron's against us too."
"Then we can walk through the caverns, and you can fly over and await us on the other side."
"It isn't a bad idea," Girotiho said, "It would give your soldiers time to rest after the long flight."
"It could work," Hito said.
"So it's settled?" Link asked, and Hito nodded.
"I'll let you come along, but I'll send you packing if you cause us any trouble."
"Alright, when will you leave?" One of the council members asked.
"Tomorrow morning?" Hito said, and Link, Impa, and Sheik nodded.
"It's settled then," Girotiho said, "I'd get packing if I were you guys!"
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Link straightened the black scarf on his neck, and let it hang over the buttons of his dark gray tunic. He smiled into his mirror and nodded in approval at his appearance; he had let his straw hair remain tousled, but made sure his scarf and tunic were perfect. He was wearing his leather boots, which went well with his tunic, the muddy brown melding together with the darks created a mystifying look about him. His tousled hair, though, gave him a friendly appearance.
"Fantastic," Link said to himself, and walked out his door, blowing out the candle on his coffee table on his way, which, using a handy spell, caused all the other lights to distinguish, leaving the house dark.
Link walked through the streets with ease, he hadn't bothered to bring his knife, the only weapon he was permitted to carry, it have him a dangerous and unfriendly look, which spoiled the mood his hair set.
He found the small café he and Lana had agreed on; "Piper's piping hot pastries". It was Arnolds other bakery, which served as a café too. His Sister enjoyed the cooking aspect of the culinary arts more than baking, so she partnered with him and opened a café, which served pastries sent over freshly baked from Arnolds bakery, that way, she could focus her cooks on beverages and lunches. They both enjoyed the work, and loved to see Link when he came in to eat at one of the two places.
He walked into the café, a small bell tinkling above his head. He saw Lana sitting in a booth to his left, and walked over to her. She had turned her head at the sound of the bell, and smiled as she saw Link coming in. He took this as a good thing; it showed that she warmly anticipated his arrival.
"Hi," Lana said warmly, "Lieutenant." She added the lieutenant hurriedly, and Link smiled. "Don't call me Lieutenant, please, it's Link."
She smiled, and He sat down, holding his two fingers up to the counter, and a waitress hurried over to their table, with two sets of silverware in hand.
"Hello," she said cheerily, "Do you two know what you will be having?"
Link looked over to Lana, and they both nodded.
"Two cups hot cocoa, light on cream," the two said, and laughed at their identicalness.
"Very well," the waitress said, laughing as she walked away.
"So what's your story?" Link asked after a couple of seconds.
"My…life story?" Lana asked and he nodded. She sat for a second, and started; "I grew up in Kakiriko village, south of Castletown, you know of it?" Link nodded.
"So I spent most of my time with my mother at her apothecary, and I was very talented with the trait, so when I was of age, I moved to Castletown and bought a building that was being advertised at Kakiriko. My mother considered buying it, but decided against it when I told her my plans."
"She gave me a healthy supply of herbs and such things to help me start out while I was figuring it out for my own, and trying to find a supplier. My mother grew her own things, and I followed suit, but I rely on other businesses occasionally for some things."
"I had a twin sister growing up, but we didn't get along towards our coming of age; I haven't seen her since we were eighteen." Link sighed, and grimaced. "I never had any sort of childhood sweetheart at Kakiriko," And Link turned his head in astonishment. "My father, bless his resting soul, forbid me from courting until I was of age. Silly, but most fathers send their daughters off and have them courted prior to age, and as soon as they come of it, they marry. Not my father, though. I haven't had much time to court though. My apothecary is struggling, I need people to work for me, so I can have a day off."
Link took this in. "Wow," he said softly, and was about to launch into his tale when the waitress came, two cups of hot cocoa in hand.
"There you go," she said, "Are you eating tonight?" She asked, and they both nodded. They gave their orders, and chatted on for a while longer, sipping hot cocoa as they waited for their meal…
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The trio of heroes walked silently through the violent wind. The Rito warriors were leaving a day and a half after the trio, to give them time to walk, and, if the Rito were right, sort out any issues with the Gorons.
Link wasn't enjoying the wind, no one was, and to keep tufts of ripped up grass from going in his mouth, he wrapped his scarf around his neck, covering his face tightly. They had been walking for two days, and according to the Rito, they should be arriving at the Goron Caverns soon, hopefully before noon. They would leave the plains, and enter the mercifully still caves. It wasn't long after Link had thought this when a rock formation came into view.
"This is the entrance to the Goron Caverns!" Impa shouted, and followed through with a fit of coughing as she tried to cough out the grass that had entered her mouth.
They rushed to the entrance, and rested for a moment when they reached the mouth of the cave, the wind howling outside of the rock.
"We should go," Link said quickly, and they began walking. The cave descended about ten meters before it evened out, so they took care not to slip down the steep slope as they walked. The wind wasn't roaring behind them anymore, and the one sound they could hear was their feet coming down on the warm rock. They all lit a torch.
They walked for a hundred meters or so before the cave widened from its three meter width to a booming dome like cavern. There wasn't an exit out of the cavern, they found, after a few minutes of searching.
"What now?" Link asked, and Impa shrugged.
"I'm not sure, general," she said, and simply sat down, folded her legs, and started meditating. Link turned his head in confusion at her actions, and decided to take a break and eat while they figured something out.
Sheik and Link pulled a sandwich each out of their pouches, and ate them. As always, Sheik walked to the far side of the cavern to eat. Link sighed, and sat down, propping his back against the stone wall.
Link looked around the cavern, and something caught his eye after traipsing over it for a while. He stood, and walked over to it. The two women were oblivious to him, as both were now meditating. He looked closer at the object. It was a small sphere, pushed into an indent in the ground. He stepped on it, and nothing happened. He frowned, and stepped on it again, putting more weight this time. Still nothing. He then tried to jump on it. It shifted low this time, but not too much. He was onto something though. It took him a bit of time, but he eventually managed to get the sphere low enough. He heard a click, a low thump, and a bit of whirring, and the ground shook.
Impa and Sheik vaulted to their feet, and glared at Link. "What did you do?!" Impa demanded, and Link put his hands up defensively.
"I figured it out," he said, and seconds later, the rumbling grew louder, and the walls started to shake. Fragments of rock fell from the wall, and the parts of the wall began to shrink back, leaving meter high gaps, that were a meter and half deep. They looked at the gaps, and they spiraled up from the ground, wrapping all around the room, and disappeared into an exit in the ceiling.
"They must be for the Gorons to roll up," Impa said, and Link nodded in agreement. Sheik leaned over, and began to walk up the path. Link and Impa followed suit.
They found themselves in a large corridor when they reached the ceiling, and a big sphere rested in the wall to Link's right. He pushed it hard with his hand, and it sunk into its indent, and they path disappeared and the cavern returned to normal. They walked down the corridor for a few minutes, and reached a stone door. Link opened it roughly, and they found themselves in a huge cavern, ten times the size of the one they were in before. It has different levels, with the trio being on the top level. Gorons were milling about, some rolling. Torches lit the lower half of the cavern, while the top of cavern opened up to the sky, letting the afternoon light in. The wind must have howled far above them, but it was pleasant in this cavern. They started to walk down a path, not knowing where they were going, when two Gorons rolled up to them, and sprung up, pulling a defensive stance as they did.
"What business do you have here, intruder?" One of them said, in a deep but friendly voice. "And how did you come through the secret passage?"
Impa stepped forward, and unraveled the scroll permitting passage, signed by Zelda. She read it, and the Gorons instantly bowed.
"Please forgive us General, we did not recognize you, welcome to the Goron caves, we will lead you to our chief." Link stepped back as they snapped up from their bow and began to walk, issuing them to follow, smiling hugely as they did. They seemed friendly enough, Link decided, and returned the smile.
They walked through the cavern, and arrived at the chief's room soon after. One of the Gorons put his hand on the door to the room, and pushed it up, locking it into place above their heads.
The chief-Koro-was sitting on his throne, and he immediately perked up at the sight of Link. Impa had the letter ready, but the Chief hopped off of his throne and ran to Link, sending tremors through the ground. He stopped a meter from Link and, to their surprise, bowed.
"You have returned!" The chief said, in an ecstatic voice.
"Um, what?" Link asked, and the chief turned to the wall, and pointed to the paintings that were caked on. One of the paintings depicted a teenager in a green tunic wielding a blue hilted sword fighting a demon-like figure. A Triforce hung above the two figures, and Link recognized it as a depiction of the chosen hero fighting Demise. He turned to the chief.
"You are the chosen hero…right?" The chief said, and Link nodded. The chief smiled, and turned to the two Goron's that had escorted them to the Chief.
"Escort the travelers to a spring," the chief said, "and have a feast prepared, we shall celebrate the return of the chosen hero!"
The two gorons turned, but Impa intervened, "Hang on, chief? We apologize, but we cannot stay long, we must depart within the hour, we are on a mission."
"Very well," he said, and turned to the two gorons, "never mind, go back to your post," and the two gorons shrugged, and walked away.
"So," the chief said, "If you don't mind, could you possibly tell me about this mission of yours? And have a seat," he waved to a set of cushioned chairs to the side of the room, which the trio promptly pulled out, while the chief sat in his throne.
Impa spoke up when they sat down; "We are travelling north to the Moblin fortress, the Rito chief has been captured, and the Rito tribe promised us compensation for our efforts."
The chief frowned. "The Rito will not keep their promise to you, but I will not heed your quest, chosen heroes. The Goron tribe is trustworthy, so to ensure you do get something out of this quest, I will reward you, but not out of pure charity."
The trio was all too confused.
"You see," the chief said, "The Moblins almost always leave us alone, but a fortnight ago, Biggoron, our blacksmith, went missing. He always sits in the middle of the cavern, forging or carving whatever he desires to, he is quite childish…but he gets things done, so when one morning, he just wasn't there, we were very confused, until a scout of ours reported that Biggoron was walking to the Moblin Fortress. The scout was careful not to be seen, but he heard Biggoron muttering about stealing his knife. So we checked his forge, and sure enough, the "knife" he was working on-which is a sword to you and me, as Biggoron is quite huge-was missing."
"And you think the Moblins took it?" Link asked, "And that they lured Biggoron back to their fortress?"
"Exactly," the chief said, a grimace on his face.
"So," Impa said, "What would we get in return for bringing Biggoron and his knife back?"
"Biggoron will decide that, I'm sure one of you needs a weapon, and he can forge a powerful one for you."
"We'll do what we can to bring him back, chief," Link said, a determined look on his face.
"Thank you, hero, what may I call you?"
"My name is Link."
"It's good to have you back, Link, we need a hero at this time, and the gods sent one. Now," He said, clapping his hands together, "You need to be going, if you wish to be departed by the end of the hour. So if there is any immediate assistance we can provide, let me know now."
"Just directions out of the cavern," Impa said, and the chief nodded. He clapped his hands together, and a Goron appeared in the doorway seconds later.
"Escort the heroes to the canyon exit, would you?" And the heroes followed the goron through the caverns winding paths until they arrived at a tunnel, which had the occasional torch lit on a wall.
"This path will lead you to the canyon. Good luck with your travels, heroes," and the goron bowed as the trio walked down the tunnel.