Ocarina
Part 3
by
N Team House, Megaland (Early Afternoon)-
"What's that, Simon?" Kevin pointed to the package that Simon was carrying when he walked in.
"The new mirror I bought," the smile on Simon's face might have been wider than Earth's Grand Canyon. He ripped open the package and pulled out the mirror, emediately admiring himself in it.
"But..." Kid Icarus said, "it looks exactly like your old mirror."
"Of course," Simon said, as if he was explaining why the Hylian sky was no longer blue to a little child. "Why mess with perfection?"
Kevin rolled his eyes. "Simon, you're unbelievable."
"It's about time you realize that, Captain N," Simon completely misinturpreted Kevin's remark.
Kevin and Kid glanced at each other "Simon Belmont, legend in his own mind," Kevin whispered under his breath.
"What was that?" Simon asked.
"Nothing."
Simon shrugged. "Is her loveliness back from Hyrule yet?"
Kevin frowned. "No, and I wish she were. Frankly, I'm starting to get really worried."
North Castle, Hyrule (Shortly After Midnight)-
"Let me get this straight," Link said. "You want me to believe I was at Hyrule Castle... a castle that doesn't exist anymore... mind you... when both royal family and Triforce were there? Not only that, but you're telling me that I met you before and followed you around without even knowing who you were? I don't suppose you're also going to tell me I 'accidentally' ran into Princess Zelda, are you?"
The blue haired woman briefly glanced at the Triforce behind Link before speaking. "I do not tell you, I show you to learn."
Hyrule Castle, Hyrule (Late Evening)-
The blue haired woman leaned over the 8 year old. "Play this melody."
Link was staring at a large stone door. He turned to face the woman, but she was no longer there. He spun around several times, but he failed to locat her in the room. He did wonder where she went, but concidering everything that had been happening to him recently... he wasn't disturbed by her disappearance. He lifted Saria's ocarina to his lips, and played the first thing that came to his mind... the melody the woman had left in his head.
In responce, the door slowly creaked open, showing the inside. It was a heavily draped room with two empty pillars... and Jayce sitting between them- battered, bruised, and crying.
"Jayce!" Link called out.
Jayce's head came up. "'Ink!" He got up and dashed to Link's side, hugging on as tightly as his 4 year old arms would let him.
Normally Link would have corrected Jayce in pronouncing his name, but understandibly, that was currently the farthest thing from Link's mind. "What happened?"
Jayce let go, only enough to look at Link. "That bad man came here and took one of the g'owing things. A gir' ran in and grabbed the other and ran out. Then the bad man turned into a monster and ran after her. He put a bomb down and shut me in here to be deaded."
"A bomb?" Link asked.
Several guards and the old man he had met earlier that night ran into the room. "There you are," the old man said.
Link turned to face him. "There's a bomb!"
"Where?" asked one guard.
"There's no time," the old man said. "We've gotta evacuate the entire castle!" He nodded to several of the guards, who took heel and ran off down different corridors. The old man took Link and Jayce's hands, "C'mon!"
The three ran down the hallway, suddenly being stopped by a cloaked figure. "And where are you going?" the figure asked.
"It's the monster!" exclaimed Jayce. "The bad man!"
"Dragmire," the old man mummbled, evidently knowing the man. "Don't stop us!"
The figure backhanded the old man. His attention turned to Link and Jayce. "As for you two..."
"Not even!" Link screamed. He rushed forward, Kokiri Sword thrust out. The figure drove a dagger into Link's shoulder before batting him across the room...
It was only then the figure looked down and saw the Kokiri Sword was sticking out of his own chest. "Curse you! I will be watching you!" Something flashed red in the figure's hand. The thing in his hand dimmed, and so did the figure...and the Kokiri Sword as well... until there was nothing there.
The old man wasted no time looking at where the figure had vanished. He got up and gathered both Link and Jayce in his arms, and took off down the corridor.
Hyrule (Late Evening)-
The shockwave from the blast was felt through most parts of the kingdom of Hyrule. The dust and smoke spread out over half of the land, remaining for several months thereafter. Even though he had gained the Triforce of Power... Ganon had suffered two defeats. The first defeat- not being able to gain the Triforce of Wisdom due to the actions of Princess Zelda. The second defeat- recieving a sword in the chest by a little kid who didn't have the slightest clue about sword fighting.
Healer's House, Hyrule (Morning)-
Link was sitting on a bench, his tunic was off and his shoulder heavily wrapped in bandages. The crest on the back of his hand had vanished over the night. The old man had taken him there the previous night, and come in that morning to let Link know that because of him, no one in the castle had died. "I've also arranged for some soldiers to take you home to Calatia," the old man said.
Jayce had also been bandaged. "Oh, I can't wait to go home!"
Link suddenly found that he didn't share Jayce's enthusiasm to return to Calatia. Returning home meant returning to normalacy... something Link realized that he didn't want anymore.
Arn & Medila's House, Calatia (One Month Later- Late Afternoon)-
That was something Arn Chance realized too. "He's going to be so useless now," Arn said, after Link had withdrawn to his room once the soldier that brought him and his brother home had left.
"Why?" asked Jayce. "Didn't 'Ink get enough adventure?"
Arn looked at his youngest son. "The term is called 'first blood'... You'll understand when you get older..."
North Castle, Hyrule (PreDawn)-
"First blood?" the woman with the blue hair asked.
"It means," Link explained, "that once you have a taste of something, you can never get enough."
"I see," the woman said. "Humans have strange metaphors."
Arn & Medila's House, Calatia (Afternoon- May 9, 1985)-
It was Link's 11th birthday, and the party was over. His friends had gone home, and he had sneaked off into the attic. Shortly after his 9th birthday, he had discovered the sword kept in the attic. He had to sneak up into the attic to practice because his father was always punishing him when he day dreamed of adventure.
On this day, he hadn't been careful enough. Arn followed Link, then watched him as Link pretended to slay imaginary monsters. "...and that and that and that! And this one's for killing my uncle!"
Arn had to do a double take. Did he just hear his oldest son right? He certainly was informed about his brother's death when the soldiers returned his sons home... but he had no idea Link might have ambitions of finding the person who killed Acts. Suddenly- Link's play acting didn't seem so foolish anymore.
He opened the door completely, but didn't make a sound. Link continued killing imaginary monsters until he whirled to face the door... "Oh! Uh... I'm sorry, father..." Link haistly put down the sword. "I didn't mean to..."
Arn reached down and picked up the sword. "You sneak away, wasting your time in play fights, you obviously have been lying about what you do with your spare time, you don't help around the ranch, and all you have to say is sorry?" He watched Link's head drop in shame. "This is what you want to do with the rest of your life? Hack and chop enemies like a butcher?"
"Well... I..."
Arn walked to Link's side and placed the sword in Link's hand. "The least you can do is hold the sword properly." He closed Link's hand around the hilt so that it was loose in Link's hand. Link looked up at his father in confusion. "Happy Birthday, Link," he said.
Link smiled.
"Show me how you swing the sword," Arn told his son. Link demonstrated. "Much too butcher-like," Arn said. "This is how you do it..."
North Castle, Hyrule (PreDawn)-
"You're smiling like an idiot," the woman said.
"Sorry," Link was still smiling.
N Team House, Megaland (Early Evening)-
Knock. Knock.
"Who's there?" Kevin's voice raised to be heard through the door.
"Avon calling," Mike called through from the other side.
"Angels and ministers of grace, defend us," Kevin mumbled- quoting more from Star Trek than he was from Hamlet. "Come in, Mike."
Mike strode in. "Hey, wanna watch a silent movie with the rest of us?"
Kevin stared at Mike for a bit. "A silent movie? I didn't know you were into that kind of stuff."
"I'm not," Mike admitted. "Stacey thinks they're 'dum diddly doddle cool'... and I lost a bet to her. So she wants to watch 'The Thief from Bagmom' and I get to suffer... er I mean... watch it too."
Beep Beep...
Kevin and Mike turned to face the beeping intercom. Mike was closer, and answered the intercom, "Lounge Room. If it isn't relaxing, it's crap."
"We're getting a mega distress call from somewhere in Hyrule," said the voice through the intercom... couldn't be anyone else but Mega Man.
"That's not very specific," Kevin said.
"Sorry," Mega Man said. "Can't tell where it's coming from, and there's no message... but the call is still coming in."
"Might be Lana," Kevin said. "I'm going to Hyrule."
"Hey," Mike said. "Any chance to miss a silent movie... count me in." He followed Kevin out of the room.
North Castle, Hyrule (Dawn)-
To Link's surprise, the woman started backing off. "Hey!" Link called to her. "Where are you going?" The woman didn't answer and backed out of the throne room's double doors. The lights suddenly went out. Link stood in the darkness, only broken by the soft glow from the Triforces. Red lights came on, bathing the room in deep crimson.
Link emediatly dashed to the doorway. The woman was gone, but that wasn't what was on his mind. Why the emergancy lights where on was his worry. But that question was quickly answered by the sent of smoke filling his nose.
"Now what?" Link asked of thin air.
Several sentries raced by. One paused long enough to answer Link. "East wing's on fire, Sir."
"East wing... my room!" Strictly speaking, his room wasn't the entire east wing, just a small section at the top of it. Link followed the sentries until he nearly ran into another group of sentries headed in the opposite dirrection. "Hey!"
"Sorry, Sir," the lead sentry appologized. "We were chasing an intruder."
"A fire and an intruder," Link mussed. "Did the intruder actually pass this way?"
"Uh... we don't know," the sentry confessed. "We lost the intruder a while back."
"Then it can't have been the woman I was talking to," Link said under his breath while turning down the hall. He faced the sentries again. "Stay here and seal off all the hallways to the throne room."
"Yes, Sir!" the sentries said in unison.
Link dashed off into the corridors. He stopped at an intersection, looking up and down each hall, bathed in red light. He almost missed it, but out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a flash of red hair. Link emediatly took off after, but whoever it was... was exceedingly quick. Whenever Link thought he had lost the person, he managed to see that red hair in the red light.
This is making no sence, Link thought to himself. Whoever it is, isn't headed for the throne room, the treasure rooms... or any other important rooms. Obviously got the skills of a thief... but not here for thieving... Is that person looking for someone?
Link forced himself to a complete stop. "This is getting no where. If I was a thief in a castle not interested in treasure... where would I look for someone?" That was a rediculous question since he didn't know how someone like that would think. "Link," he said to himself, "where would you not look for a thief?"
He has several answers, but only one was close. He turned a corner and busted through a door, landing near a kitchen cauldron. The red haired woman crouched beside it lept in surprise. She dashed over to the other side of the room, knocking over kitchen pots and pans. "Dies infaustus!" the woman exclaimed.
In three long strides, Link was across the room, and grabbing onto the woman's wrist and pulling her up. Suddenly, he found himself sommersaulting, landing on the floor hard where the woman had sent him tumbling. "That is definitly a pain I will remember for a while," Link muttered before getting back onto his feet.
The woman pulled out two massivly long scimitars and backed up slowly. Through the red glare, Link recognized the woman's features. "Gerudo!" Link spat. Sudden thirst for revenge welled up inside him. He unsheathed the Master Sword from it's scabbard on his belt.
The Gerudo lunged forward with her scimitars. Link rolled to the side, but one of the schimitars managed to catch on his brown undershirt. Without the usual green jerkin of heavier material, the undershirt was easily sliced. A line across his left shoulder started bleeding where it had met the Gerudo blade.
Not even noticing the cut, Link jumped up, slicing the support of a shelf dirrectly above the Gerudo. The shelf and its contents fell, smashing onto the floor, onto the Gerudo... and just about everywhere else.
Before the Gerudo could recover, Link grabbed her. He pulled her over, starring at her sea at sunset golden eyes with his own wet dragon wood leaf green... a glare filled with pure hate.
"Lusus Naturae?" the Gerudo woman questioned, barely a whisper. But then she shook her head, as if dismissing some notion. She brought her hand up, slamming it into Link's jaw. Link stumbled backwards just enough for the Gerudo to slip out of his grasp. She lept away and plunged around a corner.
At her speed, Link wouldn't have made it to the woman before she made it through the door. He caught sight of the woman's reflection on a highly polished plate hanging from the wall. Identical to a plate durring an amature magician's contest years ago... Link realized this plate could be used for the same purpose with the same result.
He aimed for the plate, throwing a bolt of energy from his sword, it ricocheted off the plate and landed squarely on the Gerudo's back. She tumbled backwards. Link dashed over, poising his sword above the woman's throat. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't give you your just due? Why should you live when my uncle has died?"
The woman blinked before saying, "That was a thousand to one shot. You really are Lusus Naturae, aren't you?"
Link blinked, absolutly confused.