A/N: *IMPORTANT NOTE* I said this before in Ch. 2, but just to make sure that everyone understands:

**Cody lives on a version of Earth where the Legend of Zelda series does not exist.**

In other words, he knows nothing of Link, Zelda, the sages, etc…

Remember to keep this in mind as you read the story.

*UPDATE*: Fixed some grammatical mistakes and certain strange word choices. Sorry about that.

Chapter 4: A Rude Awakening

Cody:

Am I dead?

I briefly considered the possibility, but discarded it. Though the temperature was much more comfortable than the volcano, the hard floor I was laying on was way too uncomfortable for me to be dead.

I remembered being dropped into a volcano, but I did not get very close to the lava before what appeared to be a giant owl came out of nowhere and rescued me. I had passed out shortly after I was caught. I guess I was brought here…

Wherever here is. I cracked my eye open and immediately noticed that the lighting was much softer than the harsh orange of the volcano. Blue was predominant, but the floor I was lying on seemed to be gold, though from my angle I could see some white as well.

"Cody…"

I could barely hear it, how silently it was whispered…

"Cody…"

Louder this time. I got into a sitting position and looked around. From this position I could see that the symbol I was sitting on was three gold triangles set together to form one larger triangle with an empty triangle in the middle. The platform was surrounded by water, and there were what looked like round platforms of various colors around the triangle.

"Cody. Behind you…"

I scrambled to my feet and spun around. Of course, in my current state, moving that fast had the effect of causing me to fall back down. Standing there on the yellow platform was an older man. He was balding and had a white mustache. He wore intricate orange robes and I noticed the same symbol that I was standing on was on his belt. But the thing I really noticed was that his ears were pointed.

"Oh, that's just great!"

"I beg your pardon?"

"I guess I'm still dreaming!"

"Dreaming?" the old man said wryly.

"Yep."

I turned and looked around. There looked like there were other platforms kind of like the one I'm standing on, but they did not have the triangle or the circles on them, just this one. They also looked like they had beams of light passing directly through them. Oh yeah, there also did not appear to be any floor or ceiling. No way is this place real.

"I can't believe that I dreamed all this up though," I said out loud.

The old man sighed, "Isn't it customary to pinch oneself when one is dreaming."

So is this my subconscious calling me an idiot? And why is my subconscious an old man in the first place? I shrugged and, just to humor him (myself?), I gave my arm a pinch.

Ow! Ok, that kind of hurt. I looked up and saw that the old man was still there. I pinched myself again, but the old man just would not go away.

"Are you going to do that all day," he said, sounding a little annoyed.

"That depends, how much time till midnight?"

He ignored me, "My name is Rauru. I am the Sage of Light."

"Uh-huh," am I in a video game or something?

"You were brought here by the great owl spirit, Kaepora Gaebora."

Oh! So it was not just a giant owl, it was a giant owl spirit! And I am being told this by an elf. I pinched myself again.

"Could you quit that please? I promise you that you are certainly not dreaming."

"So says the elf in the room with the impossible architecture."

"I am not an elf, boy. I am a Hylian."

"Sure thing Legolas."

I could tell that Rauru was fast losing patience with me, but I could not bring myself to care.

"You don't understand. The land of Hyrule is in danger by the very man who tried…"

"No! You don't understand!" I interrupted him, "I don't care what's happening I just want to wake up and go home."

I splashed into the water and got right next to Rauru, pointing my finger into his chest, "Now listen up you old fart. I want out of here and I want," poke, "it," poke, "right," poke, "NOW!"

"ENOUGH!"

There was a flash of light, and I found myself back on the triangle on my back. There was an intense pressure keeping me pinned. I could not even breathe…

The pressure was gone as quickly as it came. I laid there for a minute, trying to catch my breath. When I could finally breathe properly, I said, "Ok, I admit it. It probably isn't a dream."

Rauru at least had the good grace to look ashamed, "I'm very sorry, young Cody. I'm usually much more calm and collected under any circumstances."

He looked at me, and then smirked, "I guess you have a gift."

So I have the ability to make even the most well-mannered person so angry that they become violent? So does that mean that I am antisocial? Not sure if I want to take it as a compliment.

"Let me explain. The reason you are here, is because you were chosen."

"Chosen? Chosen by what?"

"I would say destiny chose you, but I don't think you would believe me," Rauru said, "Let's just say that magic more ancient and powerful than anything you could possibly imagine has marked you for a purpose of great importance."

Jeez, what a mouthful.

"You were chosen…" he continued, "chosen to be the Hero of Dimensions."

The robed man on the volcano had called me that, just before he tried sending me to a fiery death. I'm not sure I like the thought of being the Hero of Dimensions. What does being the Hero of Dimensions even mean?

"But why! What for!"

"I can't really answer that. It would take decades to even come close to scratching the surface. But as for the here and now, this great land of Hyrule is in trouble."

"Wait," I stopped him before he could continue, "Can't you see me? I'm no great athlete. I can't save this place. I can't save Hylia, Hyrule, or whatever this place is called."

"You may not see it now," Rauru told me, surprisingly gentle, "but the day will come when you will."

"I'll have to take your word for it," I said skeptically.

"That's okay for now. First off, however, you need to obtain the power to fight."

With that, Rauru raised his arms to the sky (I could not tell if there was a ceiling or not after all), and a bright light appeared. It got so bright that I shielded my eyes…

The light faded, and I felt a strange weight on my forearms. I opened my eyes and saw something strange. I had bracers fastened over my jacket sleeves. These bracers looked to be made of steel. They had intricate patterns that seemed to flow all over the bracer. The triangular symbol was in the middle of the bracers, and in the middle of the symbols were rubies cut to fit into the symbols. In addition to the bracers, there was a satchel. It looked rather plain, but when I tried to take a closer look at it, it disappeared. I could not even feel the weight of it anymore.

Rauru saw me looking around trying to find the satchel, and chuckled, "Don't worry. If you have need of it, it will reappear."

"The bracers you now wear are known as the Bracers of Armum. They have been used by the many warriors that came before you. They're strong enough to block physical attacks by themselves, but they also have the ability to project a magical shield that is quite powerful."

Would have been handy to have these back at the volcano, I thought to myself, and does this mean that I'm not the first Hero of dimensions?

I examined the bracers, looking for some button or any indication of how to work them, but could not figure out how to make any shield come to life (I even tried pressing the rubies).

I looked questioningly at Rauru, "Any tips on how to use it?"

"When the time is right, you'll know."

How incredibly helpful…

"What about the bag. Can you at least tell me how to re-summon it?"

"You want to see it again do you?"

"Of course I do! Why the hell do you think I would… holy crap!" the bag had reappeared at my side. Oh, I think I get it now.

"The bag is called the Infinity Bag. Besides what you just found out, it can store anything of any size. Not to mention that it can store any amount."

Now I was intrigued. Not only could this bag hold anything, but it also did not have to be carried unless I wanted something? Now that is incredibly useful.

"There is one more thing. Check the bag."

My curiosity now completely piqued, I reached my hand into the bag, "Um… Rauru, I can't find anything in here."

My arm was up to my elbow in the bag and I still could not feel the bottom.

"Any item that is in the bag can be summoned. Since there is only one item now, you don't have to summon it by name. Remember to concentrate…"

I shrugged, and then stuck my hand into the bag again. I concentrated a little, and then something was in the palm of my hand. I pulled it out…

It was some sort of musical instrument, one I did not recognize. It was roughly egg shaped with a mouthpiece near the wider end of the oval. It was also green. Of course, it had some holes on the front that were no doubt used to play different notes.

"What you hold in your hand, is the Ocarina of Dimensions," Rauru informed me, "It will help you on your journey."

"How is a musical instrument going to help me?" I asked, looking at the green instrument doubtfully.

"You will find out, in time."

I am beginning to suspect that he does not actually know anything.

"Okay, but you should know that the only musical instrument I've ever played was the kazoo," then I added jokingly, "and I wasn't any good at that either."

Rauru looked at me funny, "What's a kazoo?"

Damn it, stupid jokes are all I have! Please do not take that away from me…

Rauru just shook his head, and another round flute (an ocarina?) appeared in his hand, "I shall teach you the Song of Dimensions. Pay close attention to the placement of my fingers. You can learn how to actually play your ocarina later."

I watched as he played. The melody was slow, but the tune reminded me of new beginnings (never thought I would think of a comparison like that). The song sounded strangely familiar, though I was certain that I had never heard it before today.

Even though Rauru had showed me, it still took me several tries before I got the song down. As soon as I played it right, I felt a surge of energy go through my body. It was brief but powerful. After it faded, I could feel the song in my head. It was just a hunch, but I had a feeling that if I tried to play the song again, that I would do so without messing up.

"That song has powerful magic with several uses. The only one you need to know about right now is that it can open several of the doors here in the Temple of Light."

"You want me to explore a temple!" I asked doubtfully. I could not see how exploring some random building was going to help me do… whatever it is I am supposed to do.

Rauru nodded, "Yes. There is one more thing that you need. But it is locked away deep in the temple."

"What is it?" then I quickly added, "And if you give me another cryptic answer, I might have to throw this ocarina at you."

"I actually was going to tell you," he said with a small smile, "You are looking for a powerful magical sword. This sword will grant you the power you need to save this land…"

"It is also the key to return you to your land."

"Let me get this straight," I said, "I get the sword, save the land, and I can go home?"

Rauru nodded, "That is the jist of it."

This sounds like the plot of most fantasy games…

I sighed, "So where do I go."

Almost as if it was waiting for my agreement to this bizarre quest, the platform started moving. It was so sudden that I fell down again. I was really getting tired of losing my balance like that.

"I will set you down in the hallway closest to the sword. You will have to travel down a few levels, but there are no side paths, just stairs between the corridors."

As we got closer to what I assumed was our destination, I realized that there was something bugging me about all this, and now seemed as good a time as any to ask Rauru about it…

"By the way," I started to ask, "How do you know my name?"

"It is not important right now."

Sigh.

As we went down, it seemed that a room almost materialized around us. As the platform set down in the wide corridor, I noticed that it was pretty much empty. It was also surprisingly well lit, considering that I could not see where any light was coming from. The corridor stretched on before us, and I could see a staircase at the end. I looked behind me to see a staircase that led up… and noticed that Rauru was gone.

I looked around, trying to see where a guy his size could have gone in such a hurry. Then I heard his voice echoing through the corridor, "You must hurry. There isn't much time…"

Feeling a deep sense of foreboding, I stepped off the platform and walked towards the end of the corridor.

A/N: The next chapter will continue Cody's story. I had originally meant for this chapter and the next to be one, but it was stretching on for longer than I intended (and I did not want to take anything out just to make it shorter), so I've split it.

Also, due to the fact that classes have started up again, I will probably take extra time between updates (I'll try not to take too long though).