Chapter 3: Awakening

Link became gradually aware of a soft sound, like gently rushing water. His right arm was tingling fiercely, almost to the point of pain. Weakly his face twitched in a grimace as his senses continued to return to him; he realized he was lying on uncomfortably solid earth, dried leaves and small sticks poking into his bare back. He dragged his heavy eyelids open and found the earthen roof of a cave above him, formed from the massive roots of a great tree winding gracefully around him.

But with his growing cognizance came the memories. That terrible mummified corpse, radiating malevolence, who somehow knew who he and Zelda were. His arm on fire, searing agony carving deep into his flesh, penetrating into his very bloodstream, leaving his skin and muscle melted together, charred gray and black and dripping blood. And then Zelda's scream – the sight of her falling, falling, out of his reach into darkness. His eyes grew wide and unseeing, a gaping pit of horror welling up within him as his pulse quickened painfully.

"Zelda!" he exclaimed, his voice rough and hoarse, and he fought to sit up. At once his blood flared painfully within him, stealing his breath, and he went limp at once, groaning from the pain. Inhaling deeply, he tried again, his limbs – especially his right arm – burning at the movement. It was as if his blood had been replaced with magma, corroding him from the inside out. Gritting his teeth together he managed to twist to one side and push himself to his knees, his body trembling from pain and exertion. He closed his eyes tightly, fighting to breathe through the crippling pain and regain control of himself.

Goddesses above, that thing packs a punch!

Slowly he eased his eyes open, looking around the strange tree-like cave. "Zelda?" he called out again, a growing ache rising in his soul separate from the poison in his blood. There was no response – she wasn't there. He shivered, his sweat cooling across his skin, and bowed his head. Again the sight of her reaching out to him in desperation, vanishing into darkness, replayed in his mind.

She fell. She disappeared into darkness.

There had been that flash of light – he didn't know what to make of it. He hoped it meant she had been saved, somehow. But there was a grim, brittle feeling deep in his soul – he felt a growing certainty that she was already gone, far beyond his reach.

She fell, he thought again, closing his eyes tightly. But… so did I. Didn't I?

He strained his memory back, trying to remember. It was difficult to remember anything but the pain of that corpse's magic devouring his arm and Zelda's fall. He had jumped after her – did he know for certain that he'd had anything to land on afterwards? But then how am I here? And she's… not.

Suddenly the physical pain across his body eased and his right arm flashed a bright, pure green. He recoiled with a gasp, staring at it in alarm. In his turmoil he had failed to see what had become of his arm after its destruction at the hands of the corpse's magic.

It looked radically different – it looked, he realized with fresh horror welling in his gut, like the disembodied arm that had been holding down the corpse. Golden bands – they looked more coppery now, in the natural light drifting through the cave – wrapped around his hand and forearm, with rings around each of his fingers. His fingers ended in sharp, claw-like nails; his hand itself shone a fierce, bright green, almost bluish, that darkened as it traveled up above his elbow and spiraled into geometric designs across his shoulder and part of his chest and side.

He stared at it uneasily; it looked like no injury he had ever sustained or seen inflicted upon anyone else. Experimentally he flexed his fingers, wincing at the almost numb sensation of his clawed fingertips brushing against his palm – it didn't even feel like his anymore.

"Ah, Link," a kind masculine voice echoed through the room, and he surged to his feet in alarm, staggering as his vision swam with the bitter flare of pain across his body. "Finally, you wake. I've heard a great deal about you from Zelda."

His heart surged. Zelda? She – she's okay! "Where is she?" he asked desperately, his voice a hoarse rasp in his throat.

"Your wounds were severe," the unseen man continued, not answering his question. "I am relieved to see you escape death."

Link frowned. So some time has passed, then.

"Your arm, however, was beyond saving," the man went on regretfully. "I had to replace it, lest the injury endanger you further."

Link studied the arm, fighting rising panic and nausea as the green glow within it faded to a much darker color, a dark gray with a greenish tint. Around his bicep, however, it was closer to the charred, mottled gray color his flesh had been after the corpse's attack. "Replace it?" he echoed faintly, feeling queasy. It's not my arm. No wonder it feels so… off. "Who… whose arm did you replace it with?"

There wasn't an answer. He frowned, looking around the little cave. "Where's Zelda?" he tried again, without success. He sighed deeply, closing his eyes wearily for a moment.

She's… she's alive. She didn't die – she's here somewhere. I just have to find her. The thought filled him with an uncomfortable mix of hope and dread – he longed to see her again, and reveled in his second chance at life – was it his third by now? – yet his chest felt constricted with worry and a growing certainty that he would mess this up again, that he still wouldn't be enough, or at the very least that after yet another failure she would no longer trust him.

His gaze caught on a familiar cobalt hilt across the cave, and he swallowed thickly, walking – or rather, limping – up to it.

The Master Sword – a cracked, brittle shell of its former glory, stuck between a couple of roots. The hilt was spattered in dried blood from his right hand, he realized. Biting his lip, he carefully tugged it free, gazing at the black, mottled tip. It looked as if most of the blade had somehow rotted away – as if part of it was still rotten and decaying. It seemed a fitting reflection of his own current state, he thought glumly. He closed his eyes, bowing his head.

"I'm sorry," he murmured. His chest felt empty at the sight of his magnificent blade reduced to such a miserable state, and he cringed inwardly at the thought of returning it to the Great Deku Tree as it was.

I… I broke the Master Sword. How is that even possible? Is it a statement of my own weakness, or that corpse's power?

He let out a short breath. It doesn't really matter. The truth remains that I wasn't strong enough to defeat it. But… I survived, and Zelda's here somewhere – we can… figure this out.

He swallowed and took a shaky step forward, wincing at the pain in his limbs. He hoped that, the more he moved around, perhaps the pain would fade, as with any overworked muscles.

It seemed as he wandered through the cave that the opposite was true. The faster his heart was pounding, the worse the pain, as if the problem truly was within his very blood. He came to a wide, open room and crumpled to his hands and knees in the soft sediment on the floor, his chest heaving desperately for breath as sweat dripped down his nose. His limbs shook violently from the sharp pain shooting through them with each beat of his heart through his body.

Was – was this what that man was talking about, when he said he had to replace my arm before it put me in further danger? This – this horrible pain with even the smallest of movements?

Deciding to rest there for a moment, he looked around the large room. It had a similar clean, simple design to the Zonai architecture under the castle, and now in the gentle light filling the place from hidden nearby windows or holes in the walls or ceiling, he could see that it was made of smooth, pale stone. There were several massive gears in the room, some still intact on the wall, others fallen and discarded on the ground. In front of him was a ring formed of two stylized dragons of stone, and directly behind it, what appeared to be a closed door.

Link drew in a deep breath and pushed to his feet, biting back a groan. Stiffly he stumbled closer to the stone dragons, and as he neared, rings of green light appeared within them, circling the image of a massive right hand beneath a downward-gazing eye. The color matched the color his own new right hand had been glowing when the man first spoke to him. Uncertainly he reached out, lining up his hand with the one before him made of light. At once the light scattered, strands racing away through the air before vanishing into nothing.

A deep, resonating gong rang out twice somewhere in the distance, and Link jumped slightly in surprise. Then with a shower of dust the gears began to move, and in front of him the door parted. It felt as if this building, whatever its purpose, was coming back to life after a long period asleep.

Link made his way up a small flight of stairs to the door beyond, which led to a winding hall continuing deeper into the structure. Deep pools of water had collected between fragments of the path, broken up from age, and he groaned softly – walking was bad enough, but swimming?

He narrowed his eyes and grit his teeth. I've dealt with pain, he thought grimly. I can deal with this, too.

He waded into the pool and struck out for the other side once it got too deep for him to stand, and at once his muscles seized in agony and his head plunged under the surface of the water before he had time to draw so much as a panicked breath. His chest burning in a sudden rise of panic he forced his limbs to move, fighting a battle against his own body, his strokes sloppy and uneven and barely enough to keep his mouth above the water until at last his knees scraped against stone and he allowed himself to collapse on the other side, curled in on himself, fighting for breath.

This – this is impossible! How can I go on like this? I can't move!

His thoughts turned to the treasure hunters that had gotten sick from the Gloom under Hyrule Castle. They had been lying still, greatly weakened and in pain. "It's as if their very life force has been damaged," someone had said.

Is that what this is? That Gloom-sickness? My – my life force was damaged?

He grimaced, his cheek pressed against stone, his sodden body limp and shuddering. None of them had – injuries – like mine, though, he remembered. They had seemed physically intact, whereas his arm had been all but destroyed. He shivered violently, remembering the nightmarish sight of his arm dripping with his own blood from cracks beneath the charred surface of his melted skin and muscle.

Zelda, he reminded himself. I have to find her. No matter the cost.

Wincing, he pushed back to his feet, leaning heavily against the side of the hall. Sliding his feet over stone he tediously made his way down the tunnel, stopping frequently when the pain threatened to choke him into unconsciousness, coming at last to a room with a wide pool of water and a small chest near a doorway seeping golden light from outside. Fortunately there was a path around the pool; practically hugging the wall, Link sidled carefully around until he reached the chest. Inside he found a tattered robe that once may have been white, with a green cloth to go over it. There were sandals and a baldric as well, made of leather that creaked ominously with age.

Already his feet were scraped and bleeding in some places from his slow, clumsy walk from the tree-root cave he'd awakened in. He pulled the sandals on as well as the robe, which curiously left his right side and arm bare. Probably for the best, he thought, hissing as when he tied the Master Sword in place part of the baldric brushed against the new skin of his right arm – it seemed incredibly sensitive to touch.

Link got back to his feet and headed for the doorway, eager to feel sunlight on his skin. There was blue sky visible in the distance – it looked to be a beautiful, clear day, wherever this was. He kept going only to freeze when he realized that sky was the only thing he could see. His heart in his throat he continued, more slowly now, and felt his stomach drop to his toes at the sight of a vast sea of clouds stretching out far below this building. Floating above the clouds like islands on the sea were yet more structures, varying widely in shape and size. His heart hammered violently in his chest and he sank weakly to his knees, staring out in horror and awe at the vast firmament.

I'm… in the… sky?

His mind spun dizzyingly as he recalled what Zelda had said about the Zonai's origins. So this is all definitely Zonai – the building I was in, the dragon ring, even these clothes – how is this here? Where am I?

He turned his gaze downward in a panic, desperately scanning the clouds for some sign of familiar topography. They were rather successful in shielding his view – he could see mountains in the distance, but there were mountains everywhere. A volcano of red stone – that could be Death Mountain, he thought eagerly, but his hopes plummeted further as he realized that it seemed to be erupting with the black and crimson magic he'd seen the corpse use. A deep chill gripped his limbs at the implications.

If that is Death Mountain… that means that, whatever that corpse-thing is, it's… awake now. It's… doing things to Hyrule.

He rubbed an aching hand wearily down his face, sighing deeply. How long has passed since… my arm? Where's Zelda? Does she have a plan? What's going on in Hyrule? Are the Gorons safe – did they evacuate the mountain in time? What about Tarrey Town – is it far enough away that it's safe? Hudson, Rhondson, Mattison?

He drew in a deep, steadying breath, trying to find calm. I have to do something – figure this out somehow. Which means I need to get down there.

Link pushed back to his feet, inching closer to the edge of the building. There was a much bigger sky island down below him, spattered here and there with pools of water. He studied it uneasily, glancing quickly around at his more immediate surroundings. There was no other way down but to jump, he thought, though his insides twisted with dread at the thought. He'd practiced with a paraglider once before, playing around with it fairly often for a while with the children of Rito Village. But he hadn't needed it for some time now as his travels with Zelda became more and more frequent – it couldn't hold the two of them together, after all.

And as I am now, I probably wouldn't even have the strength to hold on, he thought bitterly, turning his gaze back to the wide pool of water far, far below. He swallowed.

Jumping it is, then. Time to learn how to skydive.

He could almost hear Zelda's voice of protest – her warnings that this was incredibly stupid and reckless, that he didn't know what he was doing, that a fall even onto water from high enough up would feel just the same as falling onto solid stone – and he jumped off the edge.

He couldn't hold back a scream as he fell, wind rushing and raging all around him. His guts seemed to have abandoned his body, staying behind at the edge of the building he had jumped off of. For several terrifying moments the world spun around him, a confusing smear of white and gold. Fighting against the force of the air he stretched out his arms and legs, a frantic memory of Zelda's observations on flying squirrels flitting through his mind, and miraculously it stabilized his descent; no longer was he tumbling helplessly but rather diving steadily downward, the wind ripping tears from his eyes as he fell.

The pool of water was quickly rising up closer and closer beneath him, and he realized with a jolt that belly-flops were painful at the best of times. But diving into water was something he knew how to do quite well, thanks to early years spent at Zora's Domain. He stretched his arms out in front of him and pinned his legs together, turning his fall into a graceful dive. His hands pierced the water like an arrow and the rest of him followed suit, the roar of wind replaced by the rushing of water all around him. He felt his feet brush against the bottom of the pool and kicked off with as much force as he could muster, fighting against the returning pain as he struck out for the surface.

His head breached the water and he sucked down a deep breath, his mind whirling and heart pounding violently. He couldn't keep back a grin as he glanced up to the top of the building so far above him. That… was actually fun!

And he hadn't actually had to move all that much – it didn't hurt him the way that walking and swimming did now, a fact that quickly returned to the front of his mind as he swam towards the nearest shore of the lake, grimacing against the acid in his blood. When he dragged himself out onto the smooth stone of an ancient road he went limp, breathing hard, closing his eyes as the sun gently warmed his body. The sunlight felt… astonishingly good, easing the aches throughout his body over the course of several minutes as he lay still until he couldn't feel the pain at all anymore.

It returned the instant he got back to his feet, but even that momentary respite from the near-constant pain had been rejuvenating in a way he hadn't known he desperately needed. He walked with a little more ease as he continued down the ancient stone path awash in sunlight, searching for his next way down.

Everything about this strange place seemed to revolve around the concept of light. All of the plant life from grass to shrubs to the leaves of the thick trees and even the moss climbing up their trunks were various shades of gold and yellow, and the tree trunks themselves were a very pale wood. The Zonai buildings were, as he had noted before, made from light-colored stone, but somehow not so bright that it was blinding to look at with the sun shining. In sharp contrast, the flowers and mushrooms were mostly deep shades of blue, and the natural stone forming the base of the island dark and slate-like.

It was breathtakingly beautiful, a place of great tranquility and peace, with wind rustling gently through grass and leaves and the light warble of birdsong. And yet it also felt lonely and mournful. These ancient buildings had seen a great age pass away; the trees had grown to maturity from saplings, released their own seed, and died of age without, it seemed, another living soul to see them. There was a sense of deep sadness about the place; Link didn't know if it was real, or if he was merely projecting his own feelings regarding his fresh failures below the castle, and the sense of isolation he felt now, far above his homeland, far from everyone he loved, without another living being in sight.

He found as he wandered a strange object made from vibrant, bluish-green stone near the edge of his current island. He approached it hesitantly – it looked a bit like a helmet, albeit one that was much too large for him. Intrigued, he reached out, and a light sprang to life at its center. It began all at once to rattle and quiver, dust breaking free from between the stone plates across its surface, and Link stepped back uneasily, watching as it unfolded into some sort of creature with a dragon-like appearance, a long, arched neck stemming from a rather rotund body. It had two arms with hands ending in long claws that it held endearingly close to its body, reminiscent of a rabbit standing up on its hind paws. It tilted its head from side to side, appearing to inspect him curiously, and then spoke in a kind voice comprised of high-pitched vibrations.

"Link, I have waited for you," it said, leaning back a little.

Link's eyebrows shot up to his hairline. "You – you know who I am?" he asked in shock. The last time someone I didn't know called me by name, it didn't end so well. He took half a step away from the construct; even though it seemed nonthreatening, he didn't want to find himself bitten by complacency.

"Princess Zelda left something for you in my care," the creature explained, and Link felt his heart give a great leap.

She – she was here! Maybe we did both end up in that tree-cave, then.

There was a low grating of stone against stone and the construct's chest slid forward, revealing a shallow cavity in which rested a familiar slate-shaped device in a box. Link felt a lump in his throat, taking it carefully in his hands. "The Purah Pad," he murmured, and its eye flicked open with a soft whirr.

"That is correct," the creature said approvingly, closing its chest-drawer. "I am told it is an invaluable tool that will provide you with direction."

Link hummed softly, turning it over and powering it on. He flipped through the camera feature, a lump in his throat as he caught sight of the three pictures Zelda had taken during their ill-begotten journey. Well… sorry, Purah. We didn't get any pictures of the Gloom itself. But Zelda's research team should get a kick out of this.

Quite a few of their journeys over the past five years had been to archaeological sites, where Zelda joined forces with a group of researchers from across the kingdom – the Hyrulean Survey Team, they called themselves.

He found the map feature as well – much to his surprise, his current region was already fully mapped out. The Great Sky Island, it was called. Good job, Zelda – thanks for doing that, he thought, the lump tightening in his throat as he noticed a beacon on the map that seemed to correlate with a massive temple-like structure on the sky island directly below. You helped me know where to go.

"I received it from Princess Zelda," the construct explained. "I have now passed it on to you. My records indicate that Princess Zelda is waiting at the location marked on its map. My message has been delivered."

Its voice had an odd cadence to it, and certainly it had a strange way of talking, but he felt much better after hearing what it had to say. Some of the tension eased around his heart. I know where she is now, he thought, feeling warm. She's here, and she's safe, just like that invisible man implied.

"What is this place?" he asked, fastening the Purah Pad to his belt. Why did she have me brought here of all places, with no one around?

"We stand in the Garden of Time," the construct answered pleasantly. It swiveled around and gestured to the large, regal structure in the distance. "The Temple of Time is visible from here."

Link's heart lurched. Temple of Time? Isn't that… the ruined temple on the Great Plateau? "I-interesting," he stammered, caught off guard by the discrepancy. So the Zonai had their own Temple of Time?

"It was used in the distant past," the construct said, and Link shook his head slowly. How far is the 'far distant' past? I didn't think there was another Temple of Time. "Many rites and ceremonies of the kingdom were held there. But no more. Now it is a lonely place. No one visits." Somehow the construct's voice managed to relay a forlorn tone, and Link couldn't help but feel similarly.

A lonely place, indeed. It seems as though I'm the only person who's been here in… Goddesses only know how long. Other than Zelda, of course. He managed a small smile, as the construct gestured to another stone dragon ring with green magic and the image of a hand in the center, urging him onward. Knowing her, she would've been fascinated by these things. Maybe she helped them feel less lonely while she was waiting for me to wake up.

The dragon ring created a stone bridge leading to the next island over, which gave Link access to another pool of water on the island below – the same island as the so-called Temple of Time. He jumped off of the island, forming the skydiving-position much faster this time than he had originally. He fell only a short distance, it seemed, before angling his arms and body to dive into the pond. Swimming wasn't quite as much of an ordeal now. Although he worried how his body would respond when he had to fight, it seemed that his time in the sun was counteracting the magic in his blood, if only a little bit.

But the sun was beginning to sink towards the western horizon by the time Link reached the Temple, and by then he felt exhausted, his stomach growling loudly with desire for food. He'd managed to travel at a decent pace thanks to the ongoing sunlight but still found himself needing to rest frequently, basking in the light like a lizard.

The doors to the Temple of Time were massive, reaching far above his head. There were seven indentations in the door, arranged around the eye-motif he'd seen now on multiple Zonai structures, and at the base of the door was a golden ring around another glowing green hand icon. Feeling fairly confident by now about what to do with that, Link reached out, lining up his hand with the glowing green magic.

A harsh, sudden sting erupted on his palm and he snapped his hand back with a pained yelp as a massive red X erupted across the door, the gentle green replaced by red Zonai characters. He studied his hand in surprise, first assessing for damage – fortunately there didn't seem to be anything wrong with his hand other than the evil magic already coursing through him. It was glowing again, that soothing, gentle green that seemed to lessen the pain.

"That door will only open to those with sufficient power," a familiar male voice came from behind him.

Link turned around quickly, his eyes snapping wide and his breath catching in his throat at the sight of the bewildering creature before him.

He was incredibly tall, at least as tall as a Gerudo, with skin the same gray, blue-tinged color as Link's arm when it wasn't glowing. He wore an elaborate chest piece of green Zonai stone and dark cloth, and a similarly ornate waistband connected to a regal white skirt, and nothing else. His face resembled a deer or a goat, and he had incredibly long ears and eyelashes, and a long white mane of hair trailing down his back, glowing gold at the tips – also similar to the manes of Farosh, Dinraal, and Naydra. In fact, Link realized as he stared at the being, there was much about him that seemed dragonlike.

"I'm sorry – I did not intend to startle you," the being said. "It was I who spoke to you earlier. That arm originally belonged to me."

Link felt a sudden chill, glancing at his right arm and then at the arm of the being before him. He noticed now the ethereal greenish glow enveloping the being, and his slight transparency – he was a ghost, a spirit, no longer living. Link swallowed uneasily. "Who… are you?" he asked warily.

"I am Rauru," the being said, dipping his head lightly. "Forgive me for appearing to you in this manner. Unfortunately, I no longer have a physical form."

Link winced. "Is that… because you gave me your arm?" he asked uncertainly, glancing at the limb – it was still glowing.

Rauru seemed to smile. "The truth is more complicated than that," he said. "You saw my arm binding the corpse, did you not? That arm retained its physical form, though the rest of me… has not."

"Then how did you… how did it…" he glanced down at his borrowed arm, unsure how to put his question into words.

"How did I replace your arm with mine?" Rauru clarified, and Link nodded. "Well, it's a certain magical ability that we Zonai developed, called Fuse. It takes properties of one thing, and joins it intimately with another. Your arm, as I said before, was irreparably damaged, and though I have no body, I retain some of my magic. I Fused what remained of my arm to yours, and the result is what you have now."

"And what's the point of that?" Link asked, feeling frustration building within him from the toll of this day. "Whatever that corpse did to me, it's not gone. I can barely move without excruciating pain, which I'm assuming is a result of its attack. What's the point of trying to save my arm if I can't use it – or the rest of my body – in any meaningful way?"

"In combat, you mean?" Rauru asked patiently. "Zelda told me that you were an excellent warrior. And, certainly, we will need you to use those skills to defeat the evil underground." He stroked his glowing beard thoughtfully. "I had hoped that the powers in my arm would be enough to keep the corruption inside of you at bay entirely. It seems I was wrong."

"Can… can you take me to Zelda?" Link asked, unable to keep the longing from his voice. "She has light magic. Light seems to help, from what I've noticed – even just sunlight."

"Unfortunately, I cannot," Rauru sighed. "You seek her within the Temple of Time, and the seal on the door will not permit you to enter with so much of that corruption weakening your body."

Link frowned. "Why would you lock the door on her?" he asked testily. "She knew I would be coming, with the marker she left on the map – and there's nothing up here; she's in no danger of being attacked!"

"I wasn't the one who activated the seal," Rauru said, maintaining his calm, patient demeanor so successfully that Link felt a little guilty for snapping at him. "I'm sure she has her reasons for leading you to the Temple of the Time; we will find a way for you to enter. I would ask that you continue to trust her, and I will do the same."

Link bit his lip, remembering her words shortly before they encountered the corpse. "Something disastrous will happen if we don't continue," she had said. "Please – trust me."

He inhaled deeply, pinching the bridge of his nose. Something disastrous happened anyway, Zelda, he thought, his chest tight. But… of course I trust you. I love you.

"Your insight about light is the key, I think," Rauru mused, bringing Link back out of his thoughts. "Yes… it makes sense that light would counteract this power. If you entered a place filled with sacred light, then I think you could purge some of the darkness from your body." He met Link's gaze, sorrow in his deep blue eyes. "I do not think the effect would be permanent. From what I saw during my attempt to heal you, the corruption is in your very blood, and there is no way to drain it out completely. Over time, it will regenerate, and possibly even grow stronger."

Link grimaced, looking down at his body. It was terrifying to think that beneath his skin a monster raged, a demon, turning his own flesh and blood against him. "Will it… kill me?" he asked, unable to keep fear from his voice.

"It almost did so already," Rauru told him gravely. "The corruption had taken your arm entirely, and it was spreading. The marks across your chest now show its trajectory – it was trying to reach your heart. It was at that point, when I realized its ultimate goal, that I decided to Fuse your arm with mine. But you still feel the corruption…" He sighed sympathetically. "I am truly sorry, Link. It is a heavy burden for you to bear."

"What do I do, then?" Link asked. "I – I'm not just going to wait here to die. I don't know what's going on down there, but I – I have to do something. Once I find Zelda, we can figure out a plan. But I must be able to fight, and I can't do that like this. You mentioned sacred light, but I've been in the sun all day, and even though it helped, I still don't…"

"Sacred light is different from sunlight," Rauru said cryptically. He pointed out across the Great Sky Island, to several tapered rock-like structures with tendrils of green magic rising up from above them. "Long ago, I built these shrines to house light magic that would bind away evil. They are here in the sky, but there are many on the land below, as well. Think of them as seeds, with roots that stretch deep into the earth to strengthen them, drawing from the sun's light like any plant, and purifying it into something more. Spend time basking in the light from these shrines, and I think it will help you much more than just the sun itself."

Link sighed deeply, glancing back at the door to the Temple of Time regretfully. "How much time should I spend?" he asked uneasily.

"I don't know," Rauru answered frankly. "But the sun is going down, and inasmuch as light is helpful to you, I would wager that there's not much you could do at night, in the dark, regardless. Try sleeping in the shrine – that should be a good test of its effects."

Link nodded grimly, setting his gaze on the nearest shrine. I'm sorry, Zelda – you'll have to wait just one more day. First thing tomorrow, I'll find you.

"In the meantime," Rauru said, drifting alongside Link as he set out for the shrine. "Since we still have some daylight left, I'm curious to see if any of my Zonai magic passed to you through the arm. There are some things you might find useful."

Link raised an eyebrow. "I… don't particularly want to Fuse myself to anything else," he said, picturing his arm turned into a tree trunk.

Rauru chuckled. "Not like that," he assured Link. "But you're a warrior, yes? I was thinking more along the lines of Fusing things to your weapons to make them more powerful, or even Fusing things to sticks or handles to make new weapons. Gemstones have special elemental properties, and certain monster parts are quite resilient…"

Link grinned, at once picturing a sword made from a lynel horn. That idea actually has some merit. "How do I try it?"

Rauru instructed him to grab a stick and a rock, and with some tinkering, Link managed to use his hand's magic to combine them together into a fairly sturdy-looking hammer with wooden tendrils merging into stone and wrapping gracefully around it. Link slipped the hammer into his belt, feeling a pang of loneliness as he thought about showing Hudson. With an ability like this, I would be pretty useful to the company, he thought.

Rauru showed him an ability he called Ascend next – something that temporarily Fused him with solid surfaces, but permitted him to move upwards within them. The ability frightened Link to some extent – while submerged in stone, wood, or metal, he couldn't breathe. It required Link's constant concentration as well, maintaining the Fuse spell around himself to keep whatever substance he was Ascending through from actually Fusing with his body.

"Be careful with that one," Rauru warned. "Don't ever try Ascending through something too tall, that you won't be able to hold your breath through. There's always a chance that you'll encounter an air bubble or a cave on your way, but it's in no way guaranteed." He described a circular symbol with a ring around it, which meant that it was safe to Ascend. "Look for one of those, and you'll be fine. Most likely."

"Have people died from it?" Link asked uneasily, rubbing his sore sides after being compressed by stone. Rauru's wince was answer enough.

By then evening had fallen fully. Link had managed to scrounge up a few apples from some golden-leafed trees that Rauru assured him were safe to eat, but his stomach still ached with hunger, and as darkness fell, he could feel the 'corruption,' as Rauru called it, seeming to stir and awaken within him, until even while sitting completely still his blood sang with pain.

"Go on ahead into the shrine," Rauru advised, watching him with concern. "Try to get some rest; see if the sacred light helps. I'll find you again in the morning."

Link stumbled through the liquid veil framed with what appeared to be emerald flames into the shrine itself. The veil wrapped around his body, and at once the pain eased. When he emerged on the other side, he was surprised to find that the shrine was not particularly brightly lit. In fact, the walls were dark like the night sky, even scattered with distant stars, with green magic floating like an aurora around the edges. He couldn't tell what the source of light was, but it was gentle, calming; he realized then that this 'sacred light' wasn't actually in reference to luster or magnificence, but rather to a feeling of lightness, peace, purity – the very antithesis to the corruption in his blood.

Feeling at once confident in his and Rauru's plan, he lay down in the soft sediment forming the floor, feeling the pain in his body diminishing by the second as he basked in the soothing, peaceful atmosphere of the shrine. He closed his eyes and was asleep in moments.

His dream that night was strange. He dreamed he was in the sky with two figures, a regal Zonai man and a benevolent Hylian woman, their hands joined and reaching out as if to bestow something upon him. They were enveloped in warm, lively green light, the color of a lush, growing forest. A soft yet melancholy melody drifted through his ears, and a woman's voice came to him. "You have done well to reach this place… We offer this light that will cleanse you of evil."

From their joined hands emerged an orb of light brighter, purer than the sun itself; it engulfed him from head to toe, filling him with comforting warmth like a gentle embrace. When at last it faded, settling deep into his skin, into his very blood, he could see wisps of dark crimson magic rising up from him, leaving his body.

"May the Light of our blessing grant you the strength you seek," the woman continued, and then the two figures above him dissolved in spirit-green sparks into the clouds.