Aucun chemin de fleurs ne conduit à la gloire (There is no path of flowers leading to glory)
- La Fontaine
The beheaded entity crumbled, blue flames consuming body and skull.
Rosfir sniffed the dead horse, a blue flame slipping up her nostril. She snorted, jumping back as the steed disintegrated like its rider.
Link dropped his sword and shield then threw his helm off. Spitting out a mouthful of blood, he ran over to Zelda and knelt. Arm under her back, he helped her sit up, stroking her hair from her bloodied face.
The queen groaned, slowly struggling to keep her eyes open. "Ughh... Haven't felt this knocked up since my honeymoon..." She coughed hard, wiping blood off her forehead. Once she caught her breath, she smiled at Link. "Thank you, Link."
"Yeah, I'm doing OK, too," Majora commented, sitting up, her robe quite blued.
Horns and facial spikes wiggling, she looked over, twiddling her fingers together. "But I think I need some cuddles to feel better."
Link and Zelda stood without looking at Majora, turning to the Stalfos, who lied on his back. The undead knight breathed slowly and heavily, blue flames sometimes flickering through his helmet breathe holes and eye slits.
Kibou hovered above the Stalfos. "I don't think he has much time left..."
Link quietly gasped, running forth. Link put his hand on his side, observing his former attacker. "You are no regular Stalfos. Why did you try to kill me?"
Alencon gargled. "To finish...what my Order started... Prevent all this madness...seeping into our world after yours is consumed."
Zelda sighed. "And what did our lives have to do with it?"
"Both of you...play into the hands of Legion. You cannot escape fate. You're better off dead than...absorbed by him."
Link frowned. "He has no control over me."
Alencon coughed, blood and blue flames flowing out the openings of his greathelm. "He doesn't need control... Only time. Anyone living...any who have a soul...is doomed." The Stalfos coughed blood out his helm. "Regrettably, I failed to...destroy that terrible fate."
Link exhaled, head lowering. He knelt. "We are not meant to destroy what we cannot control."
"That is no solace...for all those who have perished." Alencon's body flaked, blue fire flicking out.
Link put his hand on Alencon's shoulder. "Healing is not about bringing back what we have lost. It is about moving on...leaving something behind that helps others persevere."
Solemn, Zelda passed something to Link, something that Alencon would have eventually given to Luna after he had fully realized unforeseen consequences.
"You have not failed fate. I promise you that." Gently swaying, Link closed his eyes, slowly inhaling as he brought up the mouthpiece...
...And the Ocarina of Time lulled the Song of Healing.
The Wolfos' ears pricked as Link played the song wholly, repeating slowly. They gently howled along, the combined eurhythmy polyphonic.
Kibou looked around as the music echoed amid darkness. "That sounds like Saria's Song...but backwards?" He reared as bright light shone.
The Stalfos knight slowly exhaled, no longer bleeding.
Alencon found himself standing amid dreamy farmland, a windmill slowly spinning beyond a field of rippling wheat. He took his helm off, all movement slow-motion and blurry. He resembled Link but without elven ears.
The Hospitaller turned. Through the blurry air, a proud warhorse reared, a squire calming the steed down. A woman pleasantly walked to the scene, a girl following while carrying a pie.
The squire, woman and girl looked at the knight, smiling attentively, the girl eagerly raising her pie and grinning.
Alencon dropped his helm, walking towards his family...
Luna blankly stared where Alencon once was. A metal mask resembling the front of a greathelm lay on its side. It rolled onto its back, blood drops painted down the eye slits and breathe holes. Within the eye sights was only blackness, lifeless and soulless, yet emanating with undeath.
Link was bowing, Zelda's head also low, Deku Tree leaning, even the Wolfos' noses to the ground...
Kibou leaned to Luna's ear. "Well, go on, Luna..."
The albino hesitated but lowered her head.
After the silence, Link picked up the mask, raising it and smiling. "Never thought I'd get another magical mask..."
"You had more?" Zelda asked.
Link nodded. "Used to." He put the Knight's Mask into his inventory. "The Deku Mask I returned to the Deku Butler."
The Great Deku Tree lifted his visage. "Deku Mask?" he whispered to himself.
"The Goron's Mask I handed to the Elder. The Zora's Mask I gifted to Lulu. After defeating Majora, I'm not sure what happened to the fierce mask... I had lots of masks and items in Termina. Gave them away to those I felt needed them most, or left them as part of graves. Masks of life reminds us of their transience."
The Great Deku Tree groaned.
"Hm? Something wrong?" Link asked.
"The darkness of this world...hurts me quite badly. Yet, I can feel the suffering of the children."
Link frowned, wondering where to go in this strange, dark world.
Zelda was uncomfortable. "Can you still form a portal back to Kokiri Forest?"
"Yes, of course. AGHH!" The Deku Tree wilted, leaves turning grey.
Kibou rang aloud. "What's wrong!?"
Luna gritted her teeth. "Him... He's coming."
"This darkness pervades my roots...painfully so. I'm afraid I won't have much time left."
Zelda gasped, covering her mouth. "We will find the children and return them to you so you can warp them home!"
"No!" The Great Deku Tree groaned. He writhed, growling, branches swaying, dying leaves fluttering. "I refuse to sit idly by!"
Bellowing, the guardian's roots ripped out of the shadowy ground, Link gasping, Wolfos jumping back.
"Great Deku Tree!?" Kibou cried.
Largest roots raised and torn ends slithering, the uprooted Deku Tree scuttled, great weight crushing the dead trees in his wake. "Link, this time...we fight together!"
Link sheathed his sword, slung his shield over, put his helmet on, and ran after the Deku Tree, Zelda following with her bow.
Luna breathed. "I don't think this ever happened..." She, too, darted forth, Kibou following. Luna went on Kuriver's back. He and the other Wolfos leapt upon the Great Deku Tree, catching a ride while sniffing the air. They barked, pointing their noses to the left.
"I sense where my children are, too! Link, get yourself and Zelda up here! Great evil awaits us, and we'll need to fight hard!"
Link wrapped an arm around Zelda then Hookshotted to a large branch, the two crouching to stabilize themselves.
The glowing clouds swirled, lightning cracking the skies as wind picked up, dead trees shaking all around. The skies flashes, an arc zigzagging down...
"Hang on tight!" the Deku Tree warned, passengers doing just that as he swung his uppermost branches. "HYYYAAGHHH!" He smashed the incoming lightning bolt aside, where it struck the ground and ignited some dead trees.
More lightning bolts crashed into the deadlands nearby, starting more fires that kept growing, smoke billowing.
The Deku Tree scuttled with more gusto. "Ha! It'll take more than that to sop me!"
Lightning flickered the skies, briefly illuminating a tiered, sinister black tower off in the distance, which Link found a bit familiar...
Luna looked around. Is someone missing?
The great hull of dying wood heaved forth, creaking body and lightning bolts echoing throughout the lifeless forest.
Luna wrapped her arms tightly around Kuriver's neck as he held onto the branch with paws and teeth.
"Hanging on!?" Kibou asked aloud, flying along. Luna nodded.
Many pairs of large, glowing eyes flickered amid the dead trees, whizzing to and fro towards the giant tree.
"Link! Poes!" Zelda stated, nocking a Light Arrow. It launched forth, illuminating the forest upon impact, Poe burning away, others spinning and becoming invisible.
Link withdrew his Longshot, picking off incoming Poes once they got close enough while Zelda sniped those farther away, though the Poes swarmed relentlessly, more and more going invisible.
Zelda watched as her Light Arrow went through where a few Poes should have been, though nothing happened.
"You gotta wait until they reappear!" Link stated.
Zelda grunted, holding her next Light Arrow back. She looked up, thunder growling, lightning crackling afar...
The horde of unseen Poes neared, hurling their lanterns at the Great Deku Tree, purple flames growing around his trunk yet his advance unhindered.
"Great Deku Tree!" Kibou cried, zigzagging around the building flames.
"ERRRAAAGHHH! Fire will not stop me!" He shielded his branches over his passengers—several lightning bolts crashed from the dark heavens, bombarding the Great Deku Tree, a few of his upper branches breaking off and smoldering.
Zelda, Luna and the Wolfos hung on, though Link gasped, losing balance and falling.
"Link!" Zelda yelled.
He thudded against the ground. Link sat up—a dozen whirling lanterns spiraled at him, clinking against his helmet and mail. Link withdrew his sword, unleashing a Spin Attack, injuring a few Poes though the rest remained invisible.
A woman's scream echoed, yet unlike the cries of the silhouettes.
Link spun around, seeing huge silhouettes running amidst the trees. He frowned, flickering Poe flames illuminating the silhouette's immense arms as they clawed the dead trees. They wore simple wooden masks depicting empty eye sockets and circular mouths. The maskers were dried-up yet muscular corpses and ran quite quickly, their movements spastic. Some used their arms as gorillas did, and even those that crawled were still twice Link's height!
The distant woman's scream reverberated again, followed by the silhouettes' monotone moans and piercing shrieks echoing throughout the lifeless forest. The shadowy figures neared Link, clawing trees as they went.
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
A robed woman ran up the path like a complete fool, arms falling, long hair flopping, a horde of immense, twitchy figures chasing after her. Behind her, the growing forest fire spread, crackling flames spitting cinders.
Link frowned. "What did you get yourself into now, Majora..."
A Light Arrow arched over Link, striking one of the figures, which moaned heavily, falling over.
"They were bad enough man-sized and walking slowly...here they're over ten feet tall and can run."
A few shadowy figures crawled, growling deeply. Link felt their breath drift across his face—unsheathing his sword, he beheaded one, then thrust his blade into the mask mouth, splitting the wood. The third monster leaned into Link and shrieked, his greatest fear freezing his body.
The monster muffled through its mask, Link's spine tingle and skin crawling...
Something wrapped around the monster's neck—crack!
The monster flumped over, Majora's hair receding back to her scalp.
She crossed her arms, grinning. "I saved you?"
Link frowned. "Only because ReDead cries don't affect other monsters." He briskly took his leave, Majora wondering what she had done wrong.
Moans and cries echoed louder as the horde approached.
I can't let them stun me... Link withdrew his ocarina, fluting the Sun's Song.
Majora gasped as multiple silhouettes loomed over her. They lunged, snarling—and froze mid-air, seemingly painted with a milky substance. She raised her head, unsure of what happened. She looked at Link. "You...saved me?"
Link put his ocarina away. "It was unintended." He noticed lanterns.
The Poes approached, perhaps immune to the Sun's Song due to their lanterns? Some attacked Majora, smacking her with their lanterns.
"Hey! Stop that!" Majora grabbed the lanterns with her hair and threw it back, a few Poes rearing and burning up into skeletons then fading away, their fiery spirits hovering happily.
Link threw a Deku Nut to make the other Poes spin into invisibility, buying a few seconds. "Come on!" Space created, Link Longshotted the Deku Tree, pulled over the growing smoke and landing next to Zelda.
"What were those moans?" Zelda asked.
"Giant ReDeads who move quickly," he replied.
"That's concerning. They always seem to pop up when you don't want them to."
"Like while fleeing Hyrule Castle as it collapses."
Thunder rumbled overhead.
The Deku Tree swung his upper branches over, hitting a few lightning bolts and losing more branches, his crew rather exposed.
Kibou rang with desperation. "Deku Tree! You can't risk losing you limbs!"
"I protect my children with my life, no matter the cost! Link, my son, if I fail, you must continue on without me!"
Link's ears twitched. The Great Deku Tree is younger than me, yet still considers me a son?
The Wolfos leaned over, trying to pat out some flames, though struggled to keep balance. They sometimes jumped around to avoid smoke, they, Luna, Link and Zelda coughing as the fumes increased.
Majora ran after the Deku Tree, though the flames by now nearly reached the passengers. "Hey! I can't just climb through fire—" ReDeads trampled her.
Dozens of ReDeads leapt upon the Deku Tree's flaming hull, bursting into flames themselves, screeching yet climbing as Zelda shot Light Arrows, Link swiped his blade, and the Wolfos pawed. Whenever ReDead cries stunned the living, they patiently waited to recover, only to attack with greater vigor.
Lightning struck the ground and nearby trees, the forest fire spreading behind further and rapidly growing.
"Hang on! Almost there!" the Deku Tree yelled as the Poes threw more lanterns upon him, cracking glass erupting into heavier flames.
Zelda extended her arm, Light magic swirling. It beamed upon the Deku Tree, extinguishing some flames and restoring some of his bark.
Meanwhile, the horde of Poes arose, lanterns swinging around and around, unseen wielders incapable of being harmed.
Link gritted his teeth. He threw a Deku Nut, hitting a lantern and cracking it open, flames spilling out, though the Poes grew in number anyways, floating around the Deku Tree, throwing lanterns whenever they could. Link Hookshotted a thrown lantern, Zelda shot one with an arrow, and Wolfos sometimes pawed lanterns away, though many shattered against the Deku Tree nonetheless.
Luna wiped her sweaty brow, coughing as heat flowed through her body. She looked at the black stronghold down the forest and sighed. I didn't want this to happen, but...this better work...
Smashing lanterns pulled Luna from her thoughts.
Kibou flew down, zigzagging amid the Poes to distract them as much as he could, though achieved little, sometimes catching a thrown lantern and tossing it away.
The Great Deku Tree moved faster. With an oaken roar, he charged the black stronghold, smoke and flames billowing off his back. Mighty hull ablaze, he crashed into the first tier, breaking through masonry.
Link, Zelda, Luna and the Wolfos were flung down the destroyed ceiling, everyone landing on their feet in a hallway as Deku branches flamed overhead, raining smoldering bits of bark.
The Great Deku Tree groaned, flames crackling as they consumed his bark and leaves.
Kibou's wings wilted. "Great Deku Tree..."
Monotone moans echoed in unison from outside, Link feeling his heart stop.
After a few seconds, Link shook his head, noticing Zelda and Luna gasp, the Wolfos snorting and wondering what happened.
"They're getting more aggressive," Zelda remarked.
The Great Deku Tree heaved himself up. "Not if I can help it! I will deal with these oversized zombies!" He turned, swinging his blazing branches, swatting aside a dozen giant ReDeads as they leapt. "Their cries won't affect me! I shall deal with them!" He whipped his roots across the legs of another dozen giant ReDeads, cracking their knees. As the Great Deku Tree lumbered away, his voice echoed: "Link, Zelda...save the children!"
The Hero of Time nodded. "I promise."
Link and Zelda looked down the hallway, which twisted, eventually becoming upside-down and leading to other distorted hallways.
Zelda blinked once, twice. "Well, this seems complicated."
"Over here!" Luna beckoned from a nearby room seemingly on the wall, the Wolfos darting to her room. "I know the way through all of them! Hurry! We don't have much time!"
"How do you know where to go?" Kibou asked.
"Just come on," Luna grumbled.
She led everyone through a series of strange hallways intersecting other hallways and passages. Despite distortion of reality and gravity, sometimes ceilings and walls falling only to realign, Luna took everyone to the next tier. They ran along the battlements, overlooking the ablaze Great Deku Tree as he fought off a horde of giant ReDeads, roots whipping around their necks and hurling them into trees.
Zelda shot Light Arrows whenever she could, sniping the zombies to help however she could.
Immense claws curled from the other side of the battlements, ReDead heads appearing, their masked mouths opening and closing rapidly, teeth clicking loudly. Zelda gasped from how large the ReDeads were, their long arms sliding over as they pulled themselves over, sharply inhaling...
The Wolfos pack tackled into the ReDeads, knocking them back. Link ran forth and drop-kicked another ReDead, knocking it off the wall.
Bellowing moans reverberated from below.
Link and Zelda looked over the walls. Although the Deku Tree fought many, a portion of the giant ReDeads passed him and were climbing the castle, moaning heavily through clattering teeth.
Down both sides of the wall, ReDeads hopped over. Snarling, the Wolfos leapt, burying their teeth in undead throats before paralyzing cries could wail.
"This way!" Luna ran into a gateway but gasped as immense spikes rose from the floor, blocking access.
Zelda raised her arms and grunted, Light magic swirling until the spikes descended. She looked back, the Wolfos gnawing limbs off while growling and barking excessively, drowning out the ReDead's cries. The beasts chewed up the ReDeads while knocking them off the walls.
Zelda aimed her bow over, shooting at ascending ReDeads while Link threw Deku Nuts, stunning others.
"Get back!" Link yelled.
"Why!?" Zelda yelled back, gasping as Link leapt down the walls!
Link landed atop a stunned ReDead, many more beginning their climb. Link swung his arm back, paused, then slammed his arm upon the ReDead's head—a vortex of flames swirled around him, expanding down the wall.
Link backflipped off the ReDead, landing atop the battlements as a wave of flaming ReDeads fell from Din's Fire.
Yet, more and more ReDeads took the place of their fallen brethren, leaping upon the walls and clawing up.
Link Frowned.
"You can't beat them all!" Luna warned. "We need to move! Now!"
"You heard the little lady!" Kibou exclaimed. "Let's go!"
More ReDeads appeared, the Wolfos mauling them like savage beasts, ripping apart tendons and bones alike.
Once Link and Zelda followed Luna, the spikes raised behind them.
"The Wolfos!?" Zelda exclaimed.
"They'll be alright!" Luna assured, running through the darkness.
"They seem a lot tougher than I remember!" Link commented.
"After fighting you thousands of times, I'm pretty sure they learned a few tricks!" Luna assured.
"And now they're helping us," Zelda added.
The second tier had a series of oddly-positioned switches and revolving columns with stone targets, which Link solved easily enough with the help of his Hookshot, Zelda shooting eye switches with normal arrows. Working together, Link found a small chest with a key inside. He opened a door, did another simple puzzle while swatting away Keeses, and the spikes of the next door slid away.
In the heroes went, the architectural puzzles progressively more complicated and sometimes including fiery traps and floating Rupees to collect.
Link, Zelda and Luna solved all problematic triggers without issue. An elevator appeared from the wall...
The third tier was much smaller than the second and just a large, open chamber. Obsidian tiles covered the flooring, while paintings of unmasked, fanged ReDeads devouring masked ReDeads lined the walls. The hungry ReDeads were painted to have blood in their veins, their mouths drooling with smeared redness.
"I don't like the looks of this..." Zelda admitted as they approached the center.
Link paused, hearing Kibou's fairy noise. He looked over his shoulder then turned around—two armored monsters stood behind him!
Zelda and Luna spun around.
The figures resembled Iron Knuckles though twice taller, one black one white, both wielding huge battleaxes. Their visors were shaped like ReDead masks, their armors having skeletal engravings. The armored zombies softly moaned, yet still sounded like towers of iron sobbing.
Link readied his sword and shield, Kibou flying behind Luna's head, who was quite unbothered.
Zelda nocked a Light Arrow. "It'll take more than two of you to stop us!"
The paintings along the walls fell off, revealing shadowy passages. From each revealed passageway, several maskless, fanged ReDeads crawled out, all perhaps fifteen feet long. Their blood-filled veins mapped their bodies with redness, while their mouths drooled as they opened and closed continuously, teeth clacking.
Zelda raised her eyebrows. "Shouldn't have said anything..."
