Extra Chapter- The Tale of the Harvester

After the events of Ocarina of Time...

Link wandered the streets of Castle Town, still contemplating his decision to come here. It was just… he really wanted to go find Navi and see all of his Kokiri friends again. He'd tried going back there so many times over the years, but the forest kept him out. He was lucky he did not get lost in the forever-changing Lost Woods. He came back to Castle Town when heard of a person that could possibly guide him through the woods.

At first he thought it was just a ridiculous rumor. No one could navigate the woods without a fairy, therefore only the Kokiri could-although even they sometimes became lost and turned into Skull Kids. He just could not imagine someone else being able to get through the Lost Woods. But, right now, he was truly desperate to find a way back. He would risk being disappointed on the slim chance he could return.

That's at least what he thought before he got back to town and asked people about the rumor. Every person that had any idea of who he was talking about got a disgusted look on their face before asking Link why he was looking for the guy. He had asked a few of the knights, their reaction much worse. Some of them just yelled at him for distracting them from their work. Others stuttered and found an excuse to leave –like "Was that a pickpocket? Thief, get back here!" and proceeding to run away. It was the last one he spoke to that actually gave him a location, along with some… bizarre information.

"He's a knight still because we haven't found an actual reason to give him the boot. Started acting very strange a few years ago, and now he's… it'll just be easier if you saw yourself. We've been keeping him out of sight, just because he looks like death. Scares most folks. He's in the guardhouse. Door to the left when you're leaving through the main gate. I'll just warn you again, he is very odd and watch yourself. He hasn't done anything…yet." That was all the knight had to say on the matter before walking away muttering about how they need to do something about him.

After that, Link gradually backtracked to the main gate, unsure if he wanted to talk to this guy anymore. It was too late to reconsider now, though. He was standing right outside the door. A rather familiar door, when he thought about it. If things hadn't changed since he was a kid, then the door lead to a long, rectangular room filled with pots and crates. He'd been there before. He remembered… smashing everything looking for rupees. He sighed, thinking how odd a kid he'd been, and slightly guilty. He ruined a bunch of pottery, but no one had tried to stop him if he remembered right.

He shook his head, deciding it didn't matter anymore. Hesitantly, he turned the knob, slowly opening the door. He stepped in, finding it rather dark, a single lantern lighting the crate filled room. Link walked to the other side of the room, towards the lantern, and a figure leaning against the wall that he had at first missed.

When he was close to the person, they turned around. Link froze in place, staring. The man had a light set of guard armor on, but neglected to wear the helmet and gloves. That revealed how sickly looking this man appeared to be. His eyes were sunken in and had incredibly dark bags under them. Every bone in his face was visible under his pallid, taut skin. His hands seemed to be bone and skin, not much else. The man looked like he shouldn't be standing, or maybe even alive. Link thought the other knight saying this man looked like death had been an exaggeration, but it was actually an accurate comparison. The only thing that appeared to be healthy were his emerald eyes, but even those had some sort of unnatural glimmer to them.

"It's not often I have visitors," he said as he stepped away from the wall. Link noticed a bottle in the man's other hand, the lid shut tight to keep some sort of purple mixture in. "To what honor do I owe a visit from the great hero?"

"I…" Link swallowed hard, regretting his decision to come here. There was just something familiarly creepy about the man now that he had heard his voice. "I heard that you might be able to lead someone through the Lost Woods."

"Oh?" The man laughed a few times as he turned the lid of the bottle. "I am capable of that, yes. But why would the hero want to go to the woods? Lose something dear to you, did you?"

"What do you mean?" Link asked sharply. He hadn't told anybody that he was looking for anything. Just that he wanted to go to the woods. "Who are you?" That vague sense he knew the man had yet to leave.

"My name is Gomess," he answered. He opened the bottle and downed the strange purple, almost mist-like substance. "We have met before, when you were but a child waving a wooden sword about, fairy trailing behind you. I even allowed you to smash apart the stuff here because I was bored."

Link stared at this Gomess for a second. He did not really remember that knight well. At least while he was a child, well, in the past, no, the… The time traveling ocarina never failed to mix him up. Link remembered the knight after Ganondorf had taken over. He had been warped into some strange creature that paid Link to collect Poes for him. That had been Gomess for sure.

When he saw Gomess retrieve another bottle, his eyes widened. He had captured Poe souls in bottles and they looked the same as what Gomess was drinking now. As Gomess finished off another bottle, Link stared in horror. One time –in a fit of brilliance- he had drank one of the Poes he had caught. It had been repulsive, vile, the epitome of disgusting, and made him feel sicker than any other time in his life. And here was Gomess, downing the things like they were bottles of Lon Lon Milk.

"Why are you drinking those?" he gasped.

"Hm? You… know what these are?" Gomess' head tilted to the side. "That is a very odd thing for you to know."

"I… ah…" Link did not want to try and explain the whole time-travel mess, but he was out of believable excuses. "Lucky guess. Just, why are you drinking Poe souls? That's…" disgusting, he finished in his head.

"I was studying them, you see." Gomess grinned, the subject obviously one of his favorites. "Fascinating little abominations born from human hatred. Poes are very intelligent when compared to other monsters, like Stalfos and ReDead, and also powerful, able to fade from sight, summon flames, possess the living, and many other tricks." He paused, taking a second to breathe after his enthused and unasked explanation of Poes. "I had a few live samples in bottles. Out of curiosity I decided to see what would happen if ingested." Gomess chuckled a few times before picking up his knight helmet, and holding it in front of himself like a mirror. "While it looks the opposite, I have never felt stronger."

Link stood there wordlessly. Gomess was clearly insane. He looked sicker than victims of a plague. The Poes couldn't possibly be helping him if his body seemed to be rotting away.

"Are you ready to leave me to my madness, little hero?" Gomess asked after a moment of deafening silence. "Or do you still intend to ask my assistance? Because of my Poe drinking habit, it is an easy matter for me to navigate the woods. I could lead you through to that village of immortal children."

"I…" Link stood there, staring at Gomess, torn between saying no and yes. He believed him to a degree. Link had seen Poes wandering the forest before and it wasn't impossible that Gomess could do the same. He didn't trust him though. Not one bit. He could still remember that creature wishing for more destruction during Ganondorf's rule. He really wanted to go find Navi and see the Kokiri, but be lead there by a Poe-drinking knight on death's doorstep? He would probably regret this. "Yes, I would like a guide through the forest. Do you want money or…?"

"Oh, no. I have no need for currency anymore. There are Poes in the forest. Catch me a few while we are there. That it is a more suitable payment," Gomess said as he dropped the helmet onto the floor and kicked away. He went over to a crate lined with bottles and dropped a few into a bag. "You do wish to leave as soon as possible, yes little hero?"

"I suppose so." Link sighed, wiping a hand over his face. A chance was chance, even if that meant traveling around with this strange knight.

A/N- And that is my little Gomess backstory. He's the Poe Hunter from Ocarina. That knight and the Poe Hunter showed some interest in Poes, as well as not minding a bit of destruction and not appreciating boredom. You can drink Poes in Ocarina and that can either heal you or hurt you, so I figured maybe Gomess tried one and it gave him strength. Eating a bunch of spirits of hatred eventually destroyed his body, and he became a Poe himself. The Harvester (mentioned by Death Sword) is his title, for obvious soul-gathering reasons. Funny enough, I accidentally used the correct timeline for this story. Originally I was going to use this in a prequel to Among Humans and Monsters as a part of the Death Sword's past, but then I thought up Wish Upon a Blackstar. Well, enough rambling I suppose.

Thank you all for reading this and Among Humans and Monsters!

-AwkwardBlackCat