Chapter 6: "Preparations"

What happened? Was my first thought upon awakening. I cracked open my eyes, and immediately regretted doing so. The piercing sun's rays assaulted my vision, sending waves of pain to my head. I groaned and rolled over onto my side.

"Hey, are you awake? Terra?", a masculine voice asked. Link? What happened? Where did you go?

"Just kick her," a shrill voice impatiently mumbled. I snapped my eyes open. I recognized that voice, that is the voice from my dream!

"Finally, she's awake. I was starting to think she died,"

I turned my head to glare at the offender, before it hit me. It wasn't a dream, what had happened was real. I really was turned into a hawk, and I fought alongside a wolf and this imp-like creature.

But now, it seemed, I was back to normal – as a human. I looked around, taking in my surroundings. This is one of the areas we had passed in my 'dream', a quaint little spring flanked by towering trees and a small waterfall. The setting sun casted a delightful glow to the area, lighting up the water with its rays. The pleasant aroma of wet grass was in the air.

My eyes wandered over to Link and I noticed his change of clothes. When did he find the time to change clothes? He was now garbed in a rough green tunic, the likes of which must have seen better days, as it was worn in several places.

He smiled at me, "Terra. I am glad you are awake,"

My head was still throbbing and I felt like I've been run over by a Goron, so I nodded, unable to do anything more.

"Midna, the imp creature, explained to me what had happened while you were unconscious, Terra," he paused and looked behind him, as if seeing something. I looked, there is nothing there.

I was about to ask him to continue, but was interrupted by a shrill voice, "What is so great about the world of light anyways?"

I jumped, startled. That voice! Link's shadow quivered and morphed into the imp-like creature.

"I much prefer the darkness of Twilight," it continued, "See you later!"

Link's shadow returned to his own. I was about to ask what happened, but was interrupted again by a strange drop of water in the spring.

We both attempted to look, but were blinded by the strange light that was being emitted by the spring. Almost as bright as the sun, an orb was faintly seen in the piercing brightness.

A light voice floated down to us from the orb, "I am Faron, and I am the protector of these woods,"

"In the land covered in Twilight, where people roam as spirits, both of you transformed into beasts,"

I gasped. Wait, what? So Link was the wolf-like creature?

"That was a sign," it paused, "a sign that the powers rest within you are awakening. And now you must act, for the land is draped in Twilight. To free it, you and your companion must travel to the four ends of Hyrule and defeat the shadows of the Monsters of the Hero's Past. Then, and only then, will the curtain of Twilight be lifted," it paused again, "Be wary, young heroes. The wind is shifting, and was once safe paths will no longer be..." In a dazzling display of light, the orb disappeared into thin air.

Well then. What just happened?

"Ah, that'll be Faron. The protector of these woods,"

Mayor Bo, a rather fat fellow, critically stared at Link with his brown eyes, "Link, the green tunic you wear once belonged to the ancient hero chosen by the goddesses. Wear it proudly and have courage," he took a breath before continuing, "These things happen for a reason, lad. I suspect this task was not given to you, or her," he gestured to me, "lightly,"

Link smiled nervously, "Thank you Mayor. I will consult Rusl on strategic planning," he looked at me, "Terra, you ready for this?"

I look into his eyes. He definitely isn't ready for this, I can tell by his eyes. Poor Link.

Mayor Bo shots us both an encouraging smile, and sauntered off.

"No, Link. No I am not," I replied, "But we really have no choice, do we?"

In fact, I don't feel ready either. Goddesses, I'm not going to kid myself anymore. I'm terrified. I don't want to do this.

"Terra? Link?"

Rusl. I had forgotten he was here. I turned around to face him.

"While you were absent, the Goddesses took two more people," a silence, "Life at the village from now on will be difficult, but we will heal like always," a hesitation, "we are still unable to find Colin," I heard a gasp from Link – he mustn't have known - "We will send a runner to the Capital to ask for aid in these troubling times,"

I shook my head, "Rusl, that will be fruitless. It would take days for a runner to travel to the Capital on foot, and to the best of my knowledge the only steed in the village is Epona," at the mention of Epona, Link's eyes went dark, as if remembering a dark memory.

Rusl sighed, "Yes, Epona will only allow Link to ride her and -"

"and she's currently missing," Link filled in, the strain in his voice clearly evident. Something must have happened, I'll have to ask him about it later.

"Besides," I pointed out, "I very much doubt it would ruffle the Counsel's feathers if they found out a village boy has gone missing. So we cannot expect help from the Capital, I suspect they have more important things to worry about than a missing 'peasant boy'," I said with disgust in my voice, "We are on our own,"

There is silence for a few minutes, and I began to worry I had said something wrong.

Rusl pulled out a map, "Regarding your quest, I believe I know the answer to the riddle," he looked at me before continuing, "The 'four ends of Hyrule' is referencing the four main provinces of the region," he points at the map with each province's location, "Ordona, Faron, Eldin, and Lanaryu,"

He points to the province furthest to the west, "I suggest you travel to Eldin first, it is the closest and you may find assistance from the village there," I nod in agreement, "To get to Eldin, you must travel through Faron Woods, which is here," he pointed, "and through the northern field of the Faron province,"

"Is there anything you can spare for the journey, Rusl?" Link asked. In response, Rusl smiled and nodded, "Yes, that would be helpful, wouldn't it? Wait here, I will provide you with a rucksack with some essentials," before I could ask what those 'essentials' were, he jogged away. But I have a good guess of what they could be: food, water, some sort of shelter. And hopefully a whole lot of courage, because Goddesses know I'm going to need it.

I yawned, feeling a little tired, and sat down on the grass. The smell of death was still hanging in the air – this quaint little village will never be the same because of the horrors it saw a short while ago. I breathed deeply – trying to breath through my mouth – and laid back on the grass, mentally preparing myself for the journey. Sure, I was taught the basics of combat by Rusl, but I am still not fully confident in my abilities. I guess I will have to learn on my feet.

I decided I like being a hawk – I could fly, which I had always wanted to do. Although, at this point, I was unsure what Midna's motives are – why would she help Link and I with nothing to gain?

I heard footsteps come up from behind me, "Terra, its time to leave. Are you ready to go?"

Link.

I opened my eyes, get up, and faced him. The rucksack, which is alarmingly small for two people, was strapped to his back. His sword was on his right hip, nestled in its sheath. Huh. I didn't know Link was left handed, that's a good thing to know if we're surrounded by enemies.

"Yes, Link. I'm ready to go," I pointed, "What's in the bag?"
"Oh, just some essentials, like Rusl said," I make a face, and he smirked, "Just some goat jerky, goat milk, pumpkin seeds, and goat hides for waterproof blankets," he paused, "Oh, and Rusl gave me the map too,"

"I have my bow and a quiver full of arrows,"

"Of course, nobody can separate you and your bow!" he smirked again, although this time I noticed it wavered. Probably because he's nervous.

In unison, we walked out of the village, unsure if we were ever to return. Goddess preserve us.

"Right, Link? Can I see that map again? I think we're lost,"

We had been wandering through the forest for a couple of hours now, and I had consulted the map several times to ensure we didn't stray from the right path.

"We are not lost! Rusl said to turn left when we reached the tree,"

I sighed, "Link, this is a forest. There are trees everywhere,"

"Yes, but he said this tree is special," he paused, "He said we'll know it when we see it,"

"Link? I think we're going in circles,"

"I was right about the tree, wasn't I?"

I had to agree with him there. We had found the tree a little over an hour ago, if I had to wager on the time. The tree was indeed special – it looked as though it once had a face. Hah, imagine that – trees that could talk!

We were currently taking a rest, munching on some of the goat jerky, sitting on one of the many fallen tree trunks in the forest.

After taking a sip from the nearby stream, I asked,"So, Link?"

"Is this about the map again?" he joked, "Because I can assure you Rusl knows where he's taking us,"

I smiled at him, "No, Link. I was just wondering," I hesitated, "What happened with Epona? What happened to her?"

He sighed and closed this eyes, "When we were travelling to the Capital to deliver that sword, I was ambushed by some boboklins. One of them was riding a giant," he paused, "Well, it looked like a boar. A giant boar," he took a shaky breath, "Epona was spooked – I was thrown off and Epona ran off. The boboklins followed her,"

I shot him a sympathetic smile, "I'm sure she outran them, Link. That horse is surprisingly fast for a draft horse,"

"I hope so too,"

A/N: Please REVIEW...reviews are my reminders to write the next chapter!