Chapter 43
Link peeked around the corner and watched as the unknown object got closer. Argus, Brad and Charlie were beginning to feel uneasy. What if they got hurt facing the unknown enemy head on? Brad tapped Argus's shoulder.
"I don't know about you, but I don't think this is a good idea at all. What if we get hurt?"
Argus nodded slowly. He whispered to Brad as he watched.
"I'm beginning to feel the same way. Link is becoming too overconfident. He's going to either get himself or us hurt really bad. Charlie, can you teleport us out of harm's way?"
Charlie glanced around for a spot to teleport to. That's when he saw a ledge high up above the maze. It was perfect! He pointed up into the air.
"See that ledge? That's where we are going to teleport to."
Argus and Brad turned and looked at where Charlie was pointing. They both looked at each other and nodded in agreement. Argus patted Charlie lightly on the back.
"That will do nicely. I just hope Link cooperates."
Charlie nodded slowly.
"Just leave that to me."
He walked over to where Link was standing. He was so focused on the big object, he never payed any attention to what was going on around him. Charlie concentrated and formed a small ball of dark energy. Not big enough to harm Link. Just enough to knock him unconscious. He called out to Link.
"Link! Heads up!"
Link turned around just in time for the magic blast to hit him in the chest. He groaned and fell down to the ground in a heap. Charlie sighed.
"Sorry about that, Link. You'll thank me later."
Charlie lifted the unconscious Link to his feet. Argus and Brad crowded around him. Argus was worried.
"Charlie, is he going to be okay? You didn't hit him too hard did you?"
Charlie shook his head.
"No I didn't. I made my shadow ball very weak in power. When we teleport up there, he will likely regain consciousness."
Brad was feeling angry. He didn't like seeing his best friend blasted by somebody that was supposed to be his friend! He drew his scimitar and pointed it at Charlie.
"Why did you do that? Surly there was another way to get Link to listen. We could have just talked to him instead of knocking him out. You could have really hurt him!"
Charlie shrugged his shoulders.
"I guess you're right. Sorry, Brad. I guess I should've thought about that a little more. Can you put your weapon away now?"
Brad pointed his scimitar at Charlie.
"I got my eye on you. Next time you think about doing something like that, talk to us first!"
Charlie nodded.
"Okay I will. Now, we got to teleport up there. That thing is really close now!"
Charlie grabbed everyone by the arm and concentrated. A few seconds later, they disappeared and reappeared on the ledge. Brad walked over to Link and shook him gently.
"Link! Are you okay, pal?"
Link groaned and stood up slowly.
"What happened?"
He looked around and noticed he was high up on a ledge with Charlie, Brad and Argus. He looked down and he could see the three fairies flying around, likely looking for them. Link was confused.
"How did I get up here?"
Brad and Argus looked at Charlie. Suddenly, memories of what happened started to come back. He walked over and grabbed Charlie by his shirt.
"What's the big idea? Why did you shoot me with magic? What did I ever do to you?"
Charlie held up his hands pleadingly.
"I'm sorry, Link. I didn't think you would listen to reason. We all wanted to get out of harm's way. Brad didn't agree with my actions either."
Link glared at him.
"Next time you want me to do something, just tell me what it is. Don't knock me out."
Brad nodded in agreement.
"That's exactly what I told him. Next time, just try and talk things out instead of shooting someone. I know it didn't hurt you, Link, but it could've, right?"
Link nodded.
"Yes. But I'm willing to forgive you, Charlie. Let's get the fairies' attention."
Link yelled down to the fairies.
"Navi, Izzy, Valerie, We're up here!"
Navi heard the call and looked up and saw Link waving his arms. She turned around and flew over to Valerie and Izzy and pointed upwards.
"Everybody is up there! Charlie must've teleported them out of harm's way."
They nodded and flew up to where Link and the others were standing. They all had their eyes on the scene below. The object was now in front of where they previously stood. It now stopped and the dust began to clear. Everyone gasped in shock. The unknown object was actually two big gorons! Argus gasped in surprise.
"I know those two! It's Drexxel and Aurdain. They must have escaped! If I know those two, they used their brute strength to break out of the jail. Hey Drexxel! Aurdain! Look up. It's me, your chief!"
Both gorons looked up and waved at Argus.
"Hi, boss! You came here to rescue us, did you?"
Argus slapped his forehead.
"Of course I came here to rescue you, knuckleheads! Where is the rest of our tribe being held?"
Aurdain pointed behind himself.
"Back that way. We rolled here in case we were attacked."
Argus nodded slowly.
"I see. Charlie, can you take us down there?"
Charlie smiled.
"No problem. Hang on, everybody!"
Charlie closed his eyes and concentrated. Within minutes, they were down on the ground in front of the two muscle- bound gorons. Argus patted Aurdain on the back.
"I'm glad you found us. Can you lead us to the prison?"
He nodded and smiled.
"Of course. Follow me."
He turned around and he started to walk back the way he and Drexxel came from. Everyone else followed, intent on rescuing the gorons before it was too late.
Saska was in her tent working on the spell for Ganondorf. She was making excellent progress, and she was nearly complete. It had not taken her as long as she thought it would. Jaska was watching her eagerly.
"Is it almost finished, sister?"
Saska nodded.
"Just about. Just got one last incantation to finish...There!"
She held out her hand and it began to glow black. Within seconds, she had a black ball of dark energy formed. She grinned at her sister.
"It's complete. Watch this, jaska."
She threw the ball of energy on the floor. Suddenly, a big black blob formed on the floor. It was spitting out sparks and glowing a dark green. Jaska jumped back in surprise.
"Sister! What the heck is that?"
Saska grinned.
"This is raw dark power. It can be molded into anything, like a weapon for instance. Or even a shadow being."
She walked up to it and put her hands in front of it. She closed her eyes and concentrated. The blob started to move about, twisting and bending in shape. Within seconds, it formed the shape of a huge sword in front of Jaska's eyes. It was completely black. Jaska sighed.
"That sword looks very impressive, but it's still a black blob of dark power."
Saska smiled.
"Not for long. Watch this. If I cast the same spell at this blob, watch what happens to it."
She concentrated and formed a ball of raw dark energy. She threw it at the formed sword. It glowed bright green. Jaska shielded her eyes. When she uncovered them, she gasped in shock. It wasn't a blob anymore. A huge sword was lying on the ground. She was unable to tell that it was made from dark energy. She looked at her sister in awe.
"That's amazing! No wonder Ganondorf was so interested in having this spell."
Saska nodded.
"Yes, and now we have the honor of bringing it to him completed seven hours early."
They walked out of their tent and walked towards the pyramid. Suddenly, they spotted a figure walking towards them. When it got closer, they bowed. It was Ganondorf! He looked down at the twin gerudo sisters.
"Get up, you two. How's the spell coming along? I couldn't sleep. It must be because I'm so excited to try it out."
Saska bowed to him.
"It's finished, my king. See for yourself. I made this sword with the spell to test it out."
Jaska held up a huge sword and handed it to Ganondorf. He examined it closely. The blade shined in the moonlight. He couldn't tell at all that it was made with the spell. He grinned happily.
"Excellent work. You have truly outdone yourself this time I trust it can make more than just weapons?"
Saska nodded.
"Shadow Molding can create virtually anything. You can keep that sword if you want."
Ganondorf smiled. He took the sword and strapped it on his back.
"Thank you for the sword, Saska. Now, can you give me the spell?"
She nodded and closed her eyes and concentrated. She formed a ball of dark energy and tossed it at Ganondorf. He grunted as it made an impact with his body. Suddenly, a black ring of dark energy surrounded him. Then it quickly disappeared. Saska nodded.
"There you are sir. You should now have the spell."
Ganondorf grinned evilly.
"Excellent! I have big plans. I think I will work on my first plan right here. So, I can create shadow beings as well?"
Saska nodded.
"Yes, you can. The best part about that is that you don't need a host's body. You can create a new minion made entirely out of dark energy."
Ganondorf rubbed his hands together in delight. He finally had a way to get revenge on that whelp Vaati and that traitor Dark Link! He held out his hand and concentrated. Within seconds, a black ball of dark energy formed. He tossed it at the ground and a black blob appeared. He walked up to it and held his hand in front of it. The blob began to shift and twist. Within moments, it began to form a body. Suddenly, it collapsed back into a blob. He cursed in anger.
"Darn it! I might need your help, Saska. I've never used this kind of magic before. You have more magic expertise than I do."
Saska nodded wisely.
"Okay. Let me see if I can help. You're trying to make a shadow being right?"
Ganondorf nodded as he looked at the black blob.
"It takes a lot of concentration and effort to make a shadow being. Let me help you form the body and then we'll go from there."
Saska walked up to the blob and held her hands in front of it. She closed her eyes and concentrated hard as her hands glowed dark black. The blob began to twist and form into the shape of a body. She grunted.
"The hard part...is making it keep this shape!"
Ganondorf put a hand on her shoulder.
"You can do it, Saska. You're the most skilled magic user I've got in my army. If anyone can do it, it's you."
Saska swelled with pride and attempted to concentrate harder. Suddenly, the dark energy stopped shifting and it remained in the shape of a tall skinny body. She opened her eyes and turned around and looked at Ganondorf.
"Thank you for the confidence boost, sir. That's just what I needed to finish. Now that part's done, we can concentrate on other details. Do you want this being to be a male or a female?"
Ganondorf scratched his chin.
"In honor of you helping me, I want it to be a female."
Saska smiled.
"Very well. Give me a moment to add the necessary items."
Saska worked on the body and molded it into a female figure. When she was done, Ganondorf gasped in awe. She was beautiful! She had long black hair and dark red eyes.. She had a tall slender figure. Ganondorf smiled.
"Well done. Is she complete?"
Saska shook her head.
"Not yet. She is merely an empty shell. She needs life. And dark power to go with that. That is where you come in. Focus your power inside her. I will give her life afterwards."
Ganondorf nodded. He concentrated as he channeled his own dark energy inside her. He really hoped this would work out better than the last two. After what seemed like an eternity, he stopped. He fell to his knees in exhaustion. Jaska ran over to him.
"Are you okay, sir?"
Ganondorf was breathing heavily. He looked up at her.
"Thanks. I'll be fine. Now it's your turn, Saska."
Saska looked over at him and nodded.
"Right. Time to give this creation life!"
She closed her eyes and focused. Suddenly, her hands started to glow white. She had a ball of white energy formed in her hands. With all the strength she could muster, she tossed it at the female created from the dark energy. She glowed bright white for one moment and then the glowing subsided. Suddenly, she emitted a faint moan. She opened her eyes.
"Who am I? And for that matter, what am I?"
Ganondorf grinned evilly. He walked up to her.
"You, my girl are a shadow being created by my most skilled spell caster. From now on, your name shall be Veran, Sorceress of Shadows!
He laughed evilly as she looked around in confusion. Saska walked up to Ganondorf. She was breathing heavily.
"I am happy for you, sir. Now, I need to lay down. Creating her took a lot of energy out of me!"
Veran looked around. She looked down at herself. Her skin was dull purple in color. She looked at Ganondorf.
"Who exactly are you?"
Ganondorf smiled.
"I am your master. You shall be a master with shadows."
Veran smiled.
"I'll do my best, master. How do I use my powers?"
Ganondorf paused. He shrugged.
"I have no idea. Try to see if you can do something with shadow."
Veran nodded and she closed her eyes and concentrated. Suddenly, she turned black and a couple minutes later, she reappeared, but she wasn't in her regular form! Jaska and Ganondorf gasped in shock. Veran looked at both in confusion.
"What wrong? Is there something on my face?"
They both shook their heads, still in shock.
"Then why are you both staring at me like that?"
Ganondorf cleared his throat.
"You look just like me."
Jaska held up a mirror. Veran looked into it and gasped in surprise.
"Wow! I didn't know I could do that!"
Ganondorf smiled. A plan was beginning to form in his head.
"Veran, I want you to concentrate on your voice. Try to make it sound like mine."
Veran listened to his voice and then concentrated. She turned black again and then back to Ganondorf again.
"How do I sound now?"
Ganondorf smiled.
"You sound just like me! Well done. Let's go to my castle. I have big plans for you!"