Chapter 28

Of course, Kakariko is the village of the Sheikah tribe!

As a race they were tall and slim, however, no one could miss the lean muscle packed into those arms and legs. Their tight clothes emphasized this fact, the Shadow of the Royal Family were not to be taken lightly. Some of the females had painted the same tearful eye from the Gossip Stones on their foreheads. The males preferred a more subtle tribal print below the lower eyelid.

"What peril have you brought to our doorstep?" one of the Sheikah demanded.

"I had no choice, Robbie," she replied tartly. "We take responsibility for our own."

Robbie had white hair that stood on end as if in permanent electric shock. A pair of enormous goggles with one of the lenses looking left and the other to the right, which reminded me of some demented chameleon.

The male Sheikah stared at Bongo Bongo in disbelief. "Did those desert barbarians, do this to him?"

"No, the latest Gerudo King. So this Happy Mask Salesman tells me." Impa jabbed a thumb in my direction.

He glanced over and I smiled awkwardly. "Hmm, no doubt the thief wants that. After all the trouble we took to get it back from the Gerudo, he can whistle."

Unsurprisingly, they spoke in riddles. Should word of their secrets reach the ears of treasure hunters they would be overrun. Even I wasn't immune to the intrigue of hidden Sheikah treasure.

"Never mind the past. We need to deal with him, now." Impa made a collection of hand signs. The villagers nodded and dispersed. "Ronri, wait over there." She pointed to a quaint, little well. The creak of the windmill's sails eerily wound like clockwork behind it.

Guru Guru's home, I reminded myself.

"When the shadow beast comes bind him with all your strength."

I hurried over and stood beneath the sloping tiled roof. Giving the rope a tug, the wooden bucket rattled. "Why here?"

"I have my reasons," she replied.

"Care to share?"

"Have you never heard curiosity killed the Mask Salesman?"

"I may not be a Sheikah," I said, rolling up the sleeves of my ruined purple shirt, "but I'm very good at keeping secrets. We all have them you know."

Impa gave a wry smile. "I bet you do. Fine, where this well stands there used to be a house. His house. Strong seals require blood, hair or skin. In his current form, there is nothing left of the man. We have no choice but to perform it here."

Great flashes of light came from the graveyard and then the path to Death Mountain.

"Good hunting," Impa said, before dashing away.

A chilly breeze stroked the goose pimples on my arms. I squeezed the magi-clay which oddly brought relief to my jumpy nerves.

When Bongo Bongo materialised at the top of the watch tower, however, my breath hitched. I crouched low and clung to the rugged stones. They dug into the side of my leg as the trousers were moth eaten thin. He's too high up, I realised. Come closer, come closer…

But the monstrous hands stayed stock still. A gigantic red eye appeared; the suggestion of its sickly yellow iris darted like a cornered wild animal. Despite my powers, I fought to control my shaky breath. Beneath the ground, I felt a surge of uneasy energy. I know the Sheikah built a well to erase Bongo Bongo's existence, but there is definitely something else down there…

Movement. Hand over hand the shadow beast descended. I crawled around the well, hunched over my toes. I just wanted this whole nasty business to be over. My coiling vines of black and gold snaked down the cobblestone steps. Licking dry lips, I waited and waited…

Now!

My magic pounced, but only caught one hand. Bongo Bongo gave a cry that made the nearby wooden crates smash apart. His other hand tore at the strands of magi-clay. Sudden pain made me feel quite faint, for the shadow beast may as well have been tearing at my own flesh.

"I can't hold on much longer," I slurred.

Sheikah flew from the rooftops and hidden corners. Encircling the enemy, they carved symbols into the air with swords. Bongo Bongo punched one into the watch tower. Another immediately claimed the space. There would be no stopping the ritual.

"Hear me." Impa stepped forward conjuring a different spell of pulsing blue runes. "You will never darken this land of Hyrule again." Bongo Bongo pounded the ground in anger with his free fist. "You have dragged our name through the mud. A thief. A traitor to our race. Conspiring to save your own skin. Unforgivable."

"Get on with it," Robbie snapped. "This is hardly the time for chapter and verse."

As if in agreement, the rogue hand lunged at Impa.

No! With a futile effort, I whipped further ribbons of magi-clay to try and catch it. They fell short.

The enormous hand drew back, preparing to slap its captor into next week. Impa didn't flinch. She continued to recite the spell. Words charged over words. The body caught the full brunt of the attack and ploughed into one of the houses north east of the well.

My mouth gaped open. The impact so destructive that the roof and walls immediately collapsed on top. I thought the Goddesses protect their faithful… How could she, the Royal Family's General be unworthy?

At once, Bongo Bongo's hand snapped away from my grip. Along with his ghastly eye, the hand floated to be reunited with its twin. I scrambled for the strands, but it wasn't that my magic was broken, more like something stronger had taken over.

A chaos of blue runes, gold and black strands and red symbols criss-crossed each another. They formed rings, rippling out from the well. A sight I had never seen nor saw since. The power of the Shadow is truly remarkable.

At their end, the rings sparkled before slamming back into Bongo Bongo. A pitiful wail echoed as his aura was sucked down to the bottom of the well.

His final resting place.

Bongo Bongo had been sealed. At least he was for seventeen years. Impressive, considering the majority of the Sheikah clan died in the Civil War. But then, that's another sad story…

"Are you still with us? For Farore's sake, speak, Mask Salesman."

I felt my reluctant body being dragged to standing. No more, I thought. No more, please. I need a lie down.

My right arm looped around a bony shoulder. A man with a thin beard grinned back at me.

"No need to worry about this one, General. He's always been a bit of a wuss," his familiar voice sneered. "Had his wallet stolen within five minutes of stepping into Castle Town. I mean, can you believe that?"

Stole my wallet? My brain swam through a foggy memory. Chasing someone through the market square and running from a brood of cuccos. "Guru-Guru?"

"You remembered! Wasn't sure yer would, thought the wacky wachow might have fried yer brain." I blinked at him. He didn't wear a green scarf anymore; chubbier in the face with no dark circles under his eyes. Guru-Guru continued, "So, the whole magic thing worked out? Gotta say, wouldn't get on the wrong side of you now."

"Would you mind if we sat down? All the wachow takes it out of me."

He snorted. "I suppose you can come back to my place. What with helping to save the village and all."

I wanted nothing more. Since being sent for by King Hyrule, my senses had been battered by one thing after another. It was a strange feeling, like my courage meter in life was being drained faster than I could replace it.

As we trudged towards the windmill, I could see some Sheikah sifting through the mess of crumbled bricks and dust. With a jolt, I recalled why the house further up the hill had fallen down. "The Song of Healing, maybe I could help," I said.

Impa shook her head. "It's too late."

"No wait, I could try –"

"Robbie's neck snapped in two," she barked. Her words echoed through the village. The Sheikah paused. Impa's voice grew softer. "There's nothing more you can do. The worst of us took the best of us. It is the will of the Goddesses."

"It isn't right," I bit out.

"It may seem that way," Impa conceded. "We give our lives in service to the Royal Family. Every Sheikah accepts this, for that is the way of Shadow folk." She bowed slightly. "After the burials, I will present your mask as promised. Now rest."

"But-"

"Okane, leave it." We were practically nose to nose. "I'm not hauling your stubborn ass home because you've passed out again. You get me?"

"Alright, you don't have to shout," I grumbled.

Inside, I admired the door – a tessellation of purple, green and yellow stained glass. Ropes hung from the thick wooden beams. The creaking and cranking of turning machinery loud to my ears.

Guru-Guru removed his boots and flung them underneath a bench. He hopped barefoot onto a rotating platform that carried him to the other side of the mill. Upon tapping my foot against the floor, they met with stone slabs. Surely, they would be cold? I thought, but this didn't appear to bother him in the least. He reached the bookcase, pulled out a blue box and rummaged through the contents.

I kept away from the central spinning platform and hugged the edges of the water mill. The grey brick walls had been painted, rather crudely, with orange paint draped like a hanging curtain. Three small circles completed the pattern at the top of each peak. A collection of wicker baskets and overstuffed sacks were strewn about the place. I headed towards a barrel and two crates that seemed to be the only suggestion of table and chairs.

He shook a little glass bottle of red potion. "Right, get some of this down yer. It'll stop the dizzy spells."

The bitter taste made me cough. Granny's medicines were effective, but hardly appetizing. I tried to distract myself by studying the large diagram of the windmill. The labels made reference to scoop wheels, brake ropes, shafts and winches.

"Do you really understand how all this works?" I asked.

Guru-Guru crossed his arms. "Course I do, Robbie made it his personal mission. Taught me everything, right down to replacing broken parts and fixing the sails. Long as no one tries to mess with it, the well will last a long time. I'll make sure of it too," he added, "now the old coot is gone."

"I'm sorry," I said. "Was he a good friend?"

Guru-Guru shrugged. "Took me under his wing. It wasn't great when Akisin just dropped us like that. I'd sure like to ring her neck."

"Erm, yes, I've been worried about her too." I toyed with the bottle until placing it down. "Actually, I heard some news from Elrora."

"Elrora?"

"Oh, Chieftess of the Watarara." As his eyebrows rose, I gave a dismissive wave. "Bird tribe, dragon fight, long story… Anyway, she did say that Akisin is alive. Not sure where, but she pops up now and again."

"Right." Guru-Guru picked up a small music box from the shelf. As he turned the handle, the man hummed quietly to himself. We stayed like this until the tinkling tune played out. His lips curled into a smile that put me on edge. "I'm gonna write a song about this windmill. I like the way it keeps going round and round and round."

"I see. Well, if it makes you happy."

"What about you, Okane? Any plans?"

"Well, if King Hyrule has finished condemning me, we were due to visit Kokiri Forest. Although, I might make a brief detour to see the Gorons first."

My friend huffed out a breath. "I'm not even going to ask about the King. But Death Mountain? That isn't an easy trek."

"I know, but I'd like to pick up a stone from them. Maybe a small ruby."

"What the chuff do you need that for? Hylians don't eat rocks."

My face blushed. "No, no, I'm going to make a ring."

If the whole sorry plight of Bongo Bongo had taught me anything, it was to appreciate what I had in life. So far, I had been 'lucky' in my misadventures. But thinking about the future was terrifying. I had to grasp happiness whilst I had the chance.

Before fate could intervene.