Summary: Ten years have passed since the Triforce Team defeated the Hell Lord Apocalypse Modeus on the fields of Zedusria. Link has never returned, and not even a body of his child has turned up. The remaining two children, Samson and Gogetta, have grown into powerful young warriors. Despite it being the Chrsitmas season, and Jet having all of his friends and family surround him, certain things have been bothering him. What has become of Link? Why is his heart so heavy? And why does he keep having flashbacks to seemingly unimportant events, as if he is trying to remember something? All of his questions may be answered on one fateful day, when the alarm sounds for the first time in ten years.....
Categories: Fan Fiction Characters: Zelda, Link (OoT & MM), Impa
Genres: None
Warnings: None
Challenges: None
Series: None
Chapters: 30 Completed: Yes
Word count: 72673 Read: 383281
Published: Dec 23, 2004 Updated: Apr 27, 2005
1. The Gathering by BOEG
2. Old Friends, Older Enemies by BOEG
3. The Tools of Nature by BOEG
4. A Melee of Fire by BOEG
5. Battle On The Burning Hill by BOEG
6. The Lord of Fire is Unleashed by BOEG
7. Out of the Flame and Smoke Comes a Warrior.... by BOEG
8. The Great Flame That Engulfs by BOEG
9. Cold Waters and Fierce Flames by BOEG
10. The Crypt of the High Priest by BOEG
11. The Scroll and it's Guard by BOEG
12. The Elemental Apocalypse by BOEG
13. Part II: A Fallen Kingdom and a Rising Army by BOEG
14. The Meeting at the Golden Realm by BOEG
15. Waiting For the Earth to Reveal the Shadow by BOEG
16. Another Lost to the Cause by BOEG
17. Into The West We March by BOEG
18. A Battle of Epic Proportions by BOEG
19. A Different Kind of Duel by BOEG
20. An Interupption of the Most Unexpected Sort by BOEG
21. The Gates Are Opened by BOEG
22. Ma'Reemba The Lord of Shadows by BOEG
23. The Death of a King and the Birth of a Man by BOEG
24. Part III: The Long Deserved Return Home by BOEG
25. Akullodorf the King by BOEG
26. A Taste of the Power I Wield by BOEG
27. Truths Revealed Through the Flame and Foes Exposed Through the Shadows by BOEG
28. The Battle For Revenge Begins by BOEG
29. The Gamble by BOEG
30. The Next Generation by BOEG
The Legend of Zelda
The Next Generation
Prologue
“I dunno….I just hate the way things are going right now,” the man mused.
“Why’s that?” the other one present asked, shrouded in cloth of black.
“Nothing is as it once was,” the man answered.
“Nothing was as it is meant to be,” the shrouded man said, the shadow of his hood covering all but his pale mouth.
“How can you be so sure? I mean…life is fine now…but deep down there’s just this deep rooted pain, and it follows me wherever I go,” the man asked.
“What is this pain?” the hooded man asked.
“I was….betrayed,” he answered.
“How were you betrayed?” he asked, stroking his chin.
“Someone….who mattered….someone who meant everything….went behind my back and joined with an ally I trusted. They were lovers. He took what I had,” the man answered.
“Does this….person still care for you?” the robed man asked.
“Yes….with all of her heart,” the man answered.
“Then why do you continue to have these…feelings?” the man asked.
“Because….I fear it will happen again,” the man answered.
“Do you wish to forgive them?” the man asked.
“Yes…I think of nothing else,” the man answered.
“The first step to forgiving them….is to forgive yourself,” the robed man said quietly, standing. He left the room without another word. The man thought for a moment, then sat straight in his chair. He wet his index finger and thumb on his left hand slightly, and put out the burning candles. How could he forgive himself? After all it wasn’t him that- no….it was. Everything was his fault. A tear fell. Then another. And another.
“Tonight….I wish to let go of this…..”
Chapter One: The Gathering
He stumbled into the master’s chamber of the first level of Hell. He threw his cracked black helmet to the ground. It made a loud noise in the silence of the room. The Dark Knight fell to his knees in front of his weakened master Apocalypse Modeus. Nearly all of the chamber had collapsed on the Hell Lord, and the grievous wounds he suffered in the battle against the Triforce Team on Zedusria were still gushing black rivers, and his life still faded at a near constant level.
“Yes….my lord?” the Dark Knight asked.
“Drink my blood servant….become my true general now,” Apocalypse Modeus said in a weak but menacing growl.
“Yes my lord,” the Dark Knight complied, dipping his hands in one of the numerous puddles of black liquid littering the chamber. The blood spilled down his chin, burning away his weak mortal flesh. He cried out in agony as the last traces of humanity disappeared from his spirit and body. His eyes glowed unnaturally, and he felt a superior strength now.
“Now…while we wait….do my bidding….find them and kill them in the most effective way possible,” Apocalypse Modeus ordered.
“Yes my lord,” the Dark Knight bowed, placing the black helmet back on his changed face.
The man was about six feet tall. Exact height, he did not know. It had been awhile since he felt the need to really look. He wore standard orange and blue saiya-jin combat boots, tied tightly. Sky blue pants and a shirt and sash of the same color adorned his body. A rough blonde beard had begun to grow in on his face. His blue eyes were still as fierce as ever, though brightened by the addition of kin to the house.
He was thirty now, but if asked, he would say the events that made him into the person he was today seemed to have occurred just yesterday. How did he look at himself? He looked at himself simply really. A poke’mon master in the small peaceful town of Pallet. He owned a gym in the Black league, and was the leader of the Skull gym. Was being the operative word. The league had retired long ago after the surge of young poke’mon trainers in the area decreased. What else was he? A Digidestined. He wielded a Digivice, and had had numerous adventures in a world that didn’t truly exist in the physical plane. But he wasn’t alone in that endeavor.
But to really answer the question “Who am I?” he had to delve much deeper. Through an accident, he ran into a hero of Hyrule. A Hylian named Link. This was also the day he met the princess of Hyrule, Zelda, and the Prince of Darkness, Ganon. Things occurred, tragedies appeared, and a cataclysm brewed underneath the world. An old life faded, and in what seemed like a moment’s passing, he was the king of this world known as Hyrule, and the blood of a saiya-jin warrior flowed throughout his veins.
In the wake of this he had become a competent swordsman, an incredible warrior in the hand to hand arts, and a moderate fighter in the use of ki energy. He had gained countless partners, and a piece of the sacred Triforce, the relic of Hyrule, left behind when the planet was completed countless ages ago. The bearers of the Triforce pieces, Jet and Zelda, Link, and Shinota were all gifted with children ten years ago. Of these three children, one was lost, and because of that, Link left the team of fighters.
Soon afterward, a fight ensued on the fields of the planet Zedusria, a battle against the foul Hell Lord Apocalypse Modeus. They won the battle, though blood was shed and land was scorched. The man’s train of though was broken by a flicker of light. First flashing, then steady.
“Yoo hoo….hello? knock knock, anybody there?” Goku asked, playfully tapping Jet in the head.
“Wha….yeh….yeah…why are all the lights…..oh,” Jet said, feeling slightly stupid. Lately he had gone into deep thought at the drop of a hat, remembering things that had no bearing on anything at all. Worse yet was the fact that when he finally snapped back into reality, he seemed to know nothing of his surroundings or what was going on at all for that matter. The flashing, colorful lights made sense now. It was December. The tenth day of the month. The large tree they had cut down days ago was decorated and lit brightly, set in the middle of the expansive living room. He smiled.
“Whatcha been thinkin’ about these days?” Goku asked, sitting on the floor Indian style next to Jet. The house had full heating, and it was quite effective, but Dregan, a warrior who had joined the team recently, had taken a liking to lighting the fireplace. Dregan was an interesting warrior, who the team had found quite on accident, in a crypt. He was a soulless wanderer, a dead fighter left from the Crusades in Jerusalem. He wielded a sword and shield, but also had a skill to throw stolen spirits at opponents.
“Uhh….weird stuff, ya know? Like a time I went to the bathroom three years ago, or like, going to the store with Zelda….just…stupid stuff,” Jet answered.
“Why d’ya think you’re doin’ it? I mean, can’t ya just think of….uh…like….what you’re gonna do tomorrow, or an hour from now or something?” Goku asked.
“Tried,” Jet said, throwing his head back and sighing, then continuing to gaze at the bright fire.
“And it didn’t work?” Goku asked, raising his eyebrow slightly.
“Nope,” Jet said quietly.
“Hmm….” Goku mumbled to himself.
“I….really don’t like the time of year that much,” Jet said quietly.
“Why not?” Goku questioned.
“It’s just….I dunno really. It was cold when my parents died….real cold,” Jet answered quietly.
“Aw come on. Brighten up a bit, Scrooge,” Goku said, trying to cheer Jet up.
“Ch….humbug,” Jet said with a smirk, leaning forward in his chair, staring intently into the fire.
Gogetta and Samson walked into the living room, large smiles on their faces. They were of ten years of age both, and each resembled their fathers. Gogetta was shorter than Samson, sporting Jet’s bullcut and bright blonde hair. His eyes were a hazel color, and there was a red long sleeve shirt about his body, with the Hylian knights crest around his left arm. A heavier crimson shirt was over this, and under was a sash and pants of the same color. He wore the standard boots of saiya-jin soldiers, and when duty called, had a short sword sheathed at his side.
Samson’s hair was much wilder, untamed and black. He wore a sleeveless red shirt, with metal wristbands used for weight training. At the moment he was the more muscular of the two children, but it mattered not. They both had good hearts. Samson wore pants similar to Gogetta, but he wore buckled brown leather shoes, barely covering his ankles. Like Gogetta, he also had a sword. They had innocent looks on their faces, too much so. Jet knew they were up to something.
“Okay, what happened?” Jet asked, broken from his thoughts.
“N-nothing dad,” Gogetta fibbed, a smile on his face.
“Yeah….we didn’t break anything, really,” Samson said, face red.
“You dimwit!” Gogetta yelled, hitting Samson in the back of the head.
“Ow!” Samson yelled, hitting Gogetta.
“Okay, okay. Who broke it. And what did they break?” Jet asked.
“Uh….you know that lamp?” Gogetta began.
“The real pretty gold one?” Samson asked.
“Well uh….it was at the wrong place at the wrong time and uhh-,” Gogetta was cut off.
“I’ve heard enough,” Jet sighed.
“Don’t kill us,” Gogetta pleaded, falling to his knees dramatically.
“Clean up the mess. Neither of you are gonna die, but neither of you are gonna have dessert for a week either, and you’re not allowed in the training unit for a day,” Jet declared, his voice firm but caring.
“Yes dad,” Gogetta said, eyes on the ground.
“Heh….oh boy. I wish I had that kind of patience with Gohan and Goten back in the day,” Goku mused.
“Why didn’t you?” Jet asked.
“At the time I didn’t really have time to be much of a father…I was more of a drill instructor…Buu was running rampant and-,” Goku was cut off.
“Buu? As in….Majin Buu?” Jet asked.
“Yeah, how in the world do you know about him?” Goku asked.
“Well….thing is…I don’t. it was a widely believed conspiracy by a few people on the internet. There are chat rooms dedicated to the unknown, ya know? And awhile back, all of these people complained about not remembering what they were doing or where they were for the past week or so. And a few of them swore they had a dream…a vision, a premonition, memory, whatever you wanna call it….about this….demon. they called him Majin Buu. And in these visions, they all remembered him destroying the world. But I figured there was a more…normal…answer to it,” Jet explained.
“Wow, they must have been some of the last people alive when it happened,” Goku said thoughtfully.
“When what happened?” Jet asked.
“When Majin Buu destroyed the Earth. Everyone was revived by the Dragonballs. And no one was supposed to remember the destruction. But I guess even the Earth dragon can make a mistake now and again,” Goku said.
“Yeah…I’m glad that Buu is dead. Lord knows it would be a handful….I mean….a single being….destroying an entire planet,” Jet said in amazement.
“Yeah….it would be a sad day if Buu ever returned,” Goku said quietly.
The sky was black. There were dead trees littered on either side of him, their branches stretching out toward him like fingers on an old hand. A breeze blew by and dead leaves rustled past his feet. He stood on a white stone floor, a small set of stairs leading up into an open building in front of him. It looked like a sanctuary, with walls of white. The front wall was collapsed, making the entrance, and the roof had collapsed long ago also. Jet cautiously walked up the stairs, past the white stone rubble of the collapsed parts of the building.
Walking slowly toward him from the opposite side of the room was Kenji, his cloth torn and ripped in many places, and stained with blood. His own blood. His katana was sheathed at his side, and he held something in his hands, wrapped in cloth. Kenji and Jet met in the middle of the fallen chamber, and all was deathly silent.
“He-,” Jet began. Kenji hushed him quickly.
“Quieter,” Kenji whispered.
“What do you have?” Jet asked in regard to the item wrapped in cloth. Kenji flipped over the cloth, and there was a small baby. Its skin was hard and cracked, and it had bulbous red eyes. Blood seeped through the cracks, and the baby looked like a macabre doll, but it was quite alive, apparent by its cries of pain. Jet backed up.
“He is very sick. He will not make it through the night. I had to fight to nearly no end to give his first and last night on this world freedom,” Kenji explained. Jet fell to his knees, and was sick at Kenji’s feet. Kenji became angered at this.
“What gives you the right to judge others? What is it? Do you think that this child is so unfit to be in this world that you must be sick at his very sight? If so then you are no different from the ones I took this child from. They wanted to end its life and feed it to the hunting dogs,” Kenji said in anger and disgust.
“I didn’t mean to-,” Jet tried to stammer, standing. A large black crow landed on a dead tree near to the three.
“He is sick,” Kenji said to the bird in a dark tone.
“Yes. What news do you bring of things from the village near here?” the crow asked. The two talked for several moments, and Jet was lost in his own thoughts. What message was this giving to him? Did it even mean anything? When at last the crow left, Jet approached Kenji. The child was gone from his hands.
“What happened to-,” Jet began.
“The crow took the child. He believed his last experience on this world should be grand and spectacular. Then he will be properly put to rest,” Kenji answered.
“What does….this all mean?” Jet asked.
“Remember…you are a valiant warrior, but just because you can take lives, doesn’t mean you always have the right to choose who lives and who does not. Now awaken,” Kenji answered. Jet obeyed.
Jet sat up in his bed. It was early in the afternoon now, and soon Jet would go about his routine schedule. Or so thought. A loud sound. A flashing red light. The alarm had been sounded. For the first time in ten years. There was a threat in Hyrule. A powerful one. Jet proceeded to gather the team.
Old Friends, Older Enemies by BOEG
Chapter Two: Old Friends, Older Enemies
Hyrule field was now restored, the reconstruction finally completed after the battle with Hell Modeus over a decade ago. The crystal clear water that emptied out into the stream was once again constantly flowing, the lake Hylia again full. The wall in front of Kakariko had been rebuilt, and the massive crevice in the earth had been sealed, but not with ease. Because of the hard work his army had been through, Jet was especially quick to act when a threat entered the field. He had no idea what could possibly be a threat at this time, but he knew one thing; he had to eliminate it.
Shinota, Gogetta, and Samson were with him, all ready for a battle. They were ready to fight physically, but mentally, even the children had a dark feeling. They stepped into the middle of the field, standing on the dirt path leading to the castle. The two children were frightened by what faced them, but the two elder warriors were in disbelief.
“What is wrong, your highness? You look as if you have seen a ghost. Does my presence still surprise you that much?” Ganon asked, armor gleaming in the sunlight.
“Ganon, you made a grave mistake showing your face above ground,” Jet warned, unsheathing his Royal Family’s sword. The other three followed.
“Hmm….very well then. You had the chance to simply offer the children to me….but now it looks as though I shall have to kill all four of you,” Ganon said in his usual overconfident tone. The four rushed forward, each attacking Ganon with their blades. He blocked each attack with ease, kicking Gogetta and punching Shinota in the face. Samson stabbed the King of Evil in the back of the leg, and he fell to one knee. Whipping his arm around quickly, he grabbed the child and slammed him down upon his knee, then threw him to the side.
Jet attacked Ganon quicker and quicker with his blade, wanting to end the fight quickly. He spun around, bringing the blade down upon Ganon’s shoulder. It was a small cut, but it was a start.
“Why, your highness, how can this be a fair fight? I have not had time to draw my blade,” Ganon said with a smile. He charged a large amount of dark energy into his hands, grey clouds surrounding the field, all energy drawn to him. A long, black blade of energy extended from his hands. Jet slashed at the King of Evil’s throat, but he parried the blast with his Black blade. The Royal Family’s sword flew from his hand.
“Tetraforce Power!!!” Jet yelled, the golden light blasting into the King of Evil. He was hit head on, and flew to the ground.
“Agh….it takes two to tango….hya!!!! Triforce of Power!!!” Ganon yelled, charging the golden energy into his already powerful blade. Ganon kicked Jet to the ground, bringing his blade down hard. Jet just barely rolled out of the way, the blade making a smoking hole in the ground. Jet kicked the King of Evil in the chest as hard as he could, using the moment to get to his feet.
“Gotta help him you guys!” Shinota yelled. The children nodded, and ran with Shinota to face Ganon. The four again continued to their group attack, slashing and stabbing at the King of Evil from all angles.
“Fools!” Ganon yelled, placing both hands on his powered sword. He grinned, charging more energy into his sword. The blade exploded, golden light and dark matter knocking the four warriors several feet away from Ganon, sprawling to the ground.
“Ah! Temple Link Blast!!!” Shinota called out, trying his hand at the fight. The King of Evil was hit. He charged two balls of dark energy into his hands, purple electricity swarming around them. He launched both of them at Shinota, the attack leaving him bloody and smoking.
“Ahahahahaa…..heh heh heh heh,” a raspy voice laughed. Ganon turned slowly, and found himself facing Dregan, the dead warrior. He threw a spirit at the King of Evil, and it knocked him back slightly, long enough to allow Dregan to rush forward, ramming the mortal God with his shield, then stabbing him in the chest.
“Do you know nothing, ignorant fool?! The dead serve the living, not hinder them!!!!” Ganon yelled, placing his hands on Dregan’s head. He ripped the head from the neck, throwing it several feet away. Dregan’s body turned, looking frantically for the head. This gave Gogetta the chance he had wanted. He leapt up, stabbing Ganon in the back. Samson followed his lead. The King of Evil fell to his knees. He turned, grabbing the children and lifting them up in the air.
“Let them go!!!” Shinota yelled, transforming into a super saiya-jin. Jet followed his lead, becoming his saiya-jin counterpart, Gotet. The blades in his gloves extended, and he rushed forward, attacking the King of Evil. He aimed a punch to Ganon’s face. The mortal God grabbed quickly grabbed his hand, punching him in the face. Shinota slammed his fists into Ganon’s back, and he spun around, throwing the children.
“Spirit Ki!!!!” Shinota yelled, forming his hands in a circular motion, and launching a large orange blast of energy at Ganon. It hit the King of Evil, and he flew into Gotet’s waiting arms. The saiya-jin took to the air, then slammed the King of Evil into the ground with all of his force. Gotet stood slowly to examine Ganon in the hole he let in the ground, but to his shock, Ganon was not there.
Ganon punched the saiya-jin in the back, and he turned, slicing at Ganon’s chest. The blade cut him, and he grabbed Jet by the neck, slamming his head into the stone of the crater they were in. Gotet tripped Ganon, then slammed him into the ground as he fell. He stabbed the King of Evil in the chest, and Ganon shot a blast of Black magic at the saiya-jin. He left the crater with haste, eager to defeat the rest of them.
“No one does that to my friends!!!!” Shinota yelled, charging saiya-jin power into his Twin Diamond sword. He rushed at Ganon, stabbing at Ganon. He sidestepped, hitting Shinota in the back of the head. Shinota punched the King of Evil in the already bleeding chest, then spun his blade around, cutting the mortal God’s leg. Ganon backed away, charging his signature Black Hole attack. The five fireballs flew at Shinota, and he surrounded himself in a golden aura, each of them bouncing off.
The King of Evil rushed forward, kneeing Shinota in the chest. His saiya-jin powers ceased, and he fell to the ground, at the mercy of Ganon.
“Now…to be done with you,” Ganon said triumphantly. He raised his fist into the air, charging dark energy into it. Shinota closed his eyes, thinking of all of the things that were about to pass him by. His wife. His child. His friends. His kingdom. After several seconds, Shinota opened his eyes. The King of Evil had fallen to his knees, five arrows in his back, each glowing with a golden aura. These were sacred light arrows.
“Heh…looks like miracles can happen,” Shinota said.
“Keep an eye on your children…they are not invincible….meaning I can…….and will…..still….kill them,” Ganon said slowly, blood spilling from his mouth. He warped away using his Black magic without so much as another word.
“Gogetta, Samson, you guys all right?” Shinota asked as the children helped him to his feet.
“Yes,” Samson answered.
“Mhmm,” Gogetta agreed.
“Ah….the disadvantages of having weak bones…” Dregan said, his head finally reunited with his body. They all laughed for several seconds. Out of the rubble of the crater Jet emerged.
“Jet…someone saved me….I think it might have been Zelda. Ganon was shot with Light arrows,” Shinota said, breathing heavily. Jet examined the ground with a sigh. He picked up a broken arrow shaft.
“Did it look like this one?” Jet asked in regard to the arrows.
“Yeah,” Shinota answered.
“Those aren’t Zelda’s….they’re the kind that Link uses,” Jet said slowly.
The Tools of Nature by BOEG
“What news do you bring, servant?” Apocalypse Modeus asked, blood spilling from his mouth and onto the floor, making a loud noise in the hot emptiness of the chamber.
“I may have found something, master. Something resting in the depths of Death Mountain,” the Dark Knight answered.
“What is it?” the Hell Lord asked eagerly.
“The Gruid-noms….the shadows of Gorons….they once served a master. Golem was his name…he was humanoid in stature…and cunning as the Aku-Mari that patrol this land in mind…” the Dark Knight answered.
“They once served? A deceased creature, that is not in my realm…is of no use to me, servant,” Apocalypse Modeus said.
“All evil spirits come down here my lord. And this one was the greatest evil in Hyrule before the time of Ganon and his followers. Which tells me one thing,” the Dark Knight began.
“And what is that one thing, servant?” Apocalypse Modeus asked.
“It tells me his spirit….is still in Hyrule. You see, as legend has it, this master of Gruid-noms…this…lord of the magma….thrives with the mountain. When one sleeps, it is natural that the other would do so also. So master, we awaken the volcano….and we awaken Golem…the kingdom of Hyrule will be scorched…and the mighty Golem will be your first Hylian general…ready to sculpt the world as you see fit,” the Dark Knight explained.
“Then what are you doing wasting time here? Go to Hyrule, to Death Mountain! I grant you life! Now go, travel, awaken the mountain, gather the Gruid-noms, and then send Golem to destroy the kingdom of Hyrule, starting with the royal family and their bodyguards…the Triforce Team,” Apocalypse Modeus ordered.
“Yes my lord,” the Dark Knight complied, bowing once and then leaving for Turtle Rock, the way from Hell into Hyrule.
Jet was laying on his bed, lost in thought. The fight yesterday had left his son with more than a few cuts, and he had his fair share of wounds too. Ganon had gotten at least six times stronger in the last decade, and Jet had no idea how they could hope to defeat him now. Link would have a plan. Link always had a plan, even if it was just to attack and try to stay alive, Link knew what to do when it came to Ganon. Jet knew in his heart that it was Link who had saved Shinota from Ganon yesterday. But why? He had said that he would be alone for the rest of his life, forsaking even his wife.
Jet stopped to think about Malon for awhile. She was heartbroken at the time. A year had gone by and Link had not so much as a thing to her. Not a visit, or even a sign he was alive. Eventually it all added up, and she couldn’t take anymore. Malon left Hyrule that day, traveling to Holodrum to start a farm and hope for a happier life. Talon and Ingo still looked after Lon Lon Ranch, and though they missed her from time to time, they were content with her happiness.
His thoughts were disturbed, as usual. Zelda walked into the room, closing the door behind her and sitting next to Jet on the bed. She still had the most beautiful eyes ever. Zelda could always calm Jet down. It was a gift she had ever since the first time he met her.
“Is something wrong? You’ve been acting so strangely lately…and I’m worried,” Zelda asked.
“Zel…I dunno what’s wrong….” Jet’s voice trailed off.
“Anything you wanna talk about?” Zelda questioned in her usual caring tone.
“I dunno….I just hate the way things are going right now…” Jet said quietly.
“Why is that?” Zelda asked.
“Nothing is like it was,” Jet said quietly.
“Maybe nothing was like it is supposed to be,” Zelda suggested.
“How can you…..wait…..no….” Jet’s voice trailed off.
“Honey?” Zelda asked.
“No!!!” Jet yelled.
“Honey, what is it?!” Zelda asked.
“Ah…..I just….I just….remembered something,” Jet said in a frightened voice, his breathing heavy.
“What is it?” Zelda asked, her arm around Jet.
“I….can’t remember,” Jet said, laying back in his bed. Zelda was about to further question him when Kafei appeared in the doorway.
“Hey, you guys….I don’t mean to disturb anything….but it looks like there’s something going on in Hyrule,” Kafei said.
“How do you know?” Jet asked, sitting up.
“Haven’t you been paying any attention to your Mystic crystal? It’s reacting…a lot,” Kafei answered. Jet leaned over, sticking his hand under his bed. He pulled out a small wooden box. Opening it slowly, he looked at the orange crystal that stored the power of the Mystic Sand. It was glowing brightly.
“Why didn’t the alarm go off?” Jet asked.
“I have no idea,” Kafei answered, shrugging his shoulders.
“I sure hope it isn’t broken….Kazuya hasn’t been around here in years and I have no idea how to fix it,” Jet said, standing.
“What are we going to do?” Kafei asked.
“What do you think we’re gonna do? We’re gonna go to Hyrule,” Jet answered, strapping his sheathed sword onto his belt.
The sky was dark, clouds all traveling toward the mountain of death. The air was dryer than usual, and there was a bitter feeling all over the land. The team walked quickly toward the stairway to Kakariko Village, eager to find the source of the problem in Hyrule. Shinota and Jet could immediately tell something was going horribly wrong. The cloud over the mountain was a fiery red, and the black clouds were quickly gathering around it.
“Kafei, any idea what this is?” Shinota asked.
“None. All I know is that my mystic crystal was reacting a lot to whatever is here, which tells me one thing. Someone who has Mystic magic is here,” Kafei answered.
“Hmm…There’s you, Jet, Shinota and I. The only other person who still possesses Mystic magic is….” Zelda’s voice trailed off.
“Link!” Jet yelled, finishing for her, running quickly ahead and up the mountain path.
“Wait man! We have no way of telling if he’s up there, or sane for that matter!” Shinota yelled to no effect. Jet was already on the mountain path, heading quickly toward the crater at the top. The others followed despite the dark feelings lingering in their hearts.
The mountain path wound and twisted every few feet, and there was no sunlight on the mountain to help guide one’s way. The black clouds covered every inch of light, their dark arms spreading out and holding each other in an embrace that covered the very sky. The only light the team had was the fiery ring of clouds around the top of the mountain’s crater.
“Jet, stop,” Zelda said in a firm voice.
“Yeah?” Jet asked, turning toward his wife.
“This is foolish. I know you hope to find Link, but if he is indeed up here, then perhaps he wants to be alone?” Zelda suggested.
“Zel….I can’t take that chance. He is the only one who can really kill Ganon. He has the Master sword. We need him. He may hate me, but he wouldn’t deny us if he knew he was Hyrule’s only hope right now,” Jet said, beginning to face the steep path once more.
“Yeah man. There’s gonna be other times we can get him. Do we have to try and find him while the mountain is erupting?” Shinota asked.
“You don’t know that it’s erupting,” Jet said calmly.
“Yeah, but what else could it be right now?” Shinota asked.
“I know Link couldn’t produce the fiery clouds. They only appear when the mountain isn’t at peace. That much you all should have learned from the Hylian lore,” Kafei said quietly.
“I guess so….” Shinota said slowly, eyes focused on the pitch black ground.
“And as the king and queen, and the royal knights of Hyrule, it is our duty to protect this world, in darkness or light, or even fire, right?” Jet asked.
“Yes….it is. But we should try to be-,” Zelda was cut off. Two rolling spheroid shaped objects descended down a steep part of the mountain path, stopping before the four warriors standing there. They uncurled, and Jet recognized them instantly.
“Gruid-noms!” Jet yelled, drawing his sword.
“Let’s talk later,” Kafei suggested. Shinota and Zelda readied themselves for battle.
The Gruid-noms leapt at the Triforce Team, exerting much more power than Jet had ever remembered them having a decade ago. Had he just become weaker? No. He couldn’t have. Of this he was sure. They had gotten stronger. Either that or their will to fight was boosted by something, an unnatural ethic that gave them the drive to attack for more than their own survival for once.
Zelda met the first Gruid-nom head on. He was slightly taller than his comrade, and his reptilian eyes shined with anger toward the Hylian queen. She stabbed at the Gruid-nom with both of her daggers, and the creature curled into a ball, the blades not penetrating at all.
“Hmmm…..Triforce of Wisdom!” Zelda yelled, lighting up the black mountain path with the golden aura of the Triforce piece she bore. The first Gruid-nom’s sizzling corpse was without life before it even hit the black ground. The second Gruid-nom, though cowering and afraid, still made his way forward to face the team, ready to fight.
“What are you doing here now? You guys are never out in the open like this,” Jet questioned, pointing his blade mat the creatures throat.
“We do all for him,” the Gruid-nom answered with a hiss, looking to the fiery cloud over the crater of Death Mountain.
“For who?” Kafei asked.
“Our master,” it answered.
“And who is that?” Shinota asked.
“He is at the top. He is waiting for us. We must return. But first we must kill……kill all of you,” the Gruid-nom answered.
“Ugh, we really don’t have time for this!” Jet yelled, raising his blade. The Gruid-nom reared its fist back, terrified, punching Jet in the chest. The blow threw him from the mountain path, and he disappeared into shadow.
“Jet!” Kafei yelled, worried.
“Hee hee. Watch this,” Zelda whispered to Kafei. In mere seconds, Jet’s body flew back above the mountain path, surrounded by a golden saiya-jin aura.
“Now….who is your master?” Jet asked, pointing his index finger at the Gruid-nom.
“You are a d-devil,” it said in disbelief.
“Tell me now!” Jet yelled, the aura flaring around his body like the outstretched wings of a mighty beast.
“H-he is on top of t-the mountain,” the Gruid-nom answered.
“Wrong answer!” Jet yelled, blasting a ki blast through the head of the creature, blood splattering against the black wall of the mountain side. Jet landed safely on the path, sheathing his blade. He continued onwards. The other three stared at the corpses of the Gruid-noms for another moment, then followed their leader.
“Foul creatures that intend to make my kingdom their own. I will smite them for such insolent thoughts,” Ganon said calmly, warping away from the throne room in his mountain chamber.
Over the black hills they slowly passed, nothing lighting their way but the red fiery cloud of the mountain top, smoke billowing out of the crater, covering the skies of Hyrule in thick black mist, the very air as evil as the Gruid-noms themselves. They edged their way up the last large black hill, and saw the wooden pole and red flag that signaled the top of the trail.
It would now be one more climb to the top of the summit, to the entrance of the crater itself. They slowly walked down the open black space leading to the last wall of stone they had to climb. The four stopped, looking up at the fiery red cloud in anticipation of what they would find. Jet had a feeling of hope in his heart that they would find Link. There were so many things he hadn’t said ten years ago, and so many things he had needed to say.
“I hope you’re ready, this is where the fun part starts,” Zelda reminded them. They all nodded, readying themselves. They would have to travel quickly. The four bolted forward suddenly, running full speed toward the wall of rock ahead of them. Boulders of molten rock crashed down all around them, bringing a macabre light to the dead black of the desolate area. Hundreds of fiery red rocks rained down upon them, and it was an incredible struggle to avoid being hit.
At last the warriors made it to the base of the cliff. Kafei went forward first, grabbing onto a rock jutting out of the stone wall. He quickly hoisted himself up, finding a foothold in the rock easily enough. He looked back to the black ground, where he could just barely see the shapes of the others, and he nodded, motioning them up to follow him. He hoped they had seen him.
“Why can’t we just fly up here again? I mean, hit me if I’m wrong, but we’re saiya-jins, right?” Shinota asked.
“We can’t climb, because if whatever’s up there isn’t Link…and they sense our energy….then…well, the word ambush comes to mind,” Jet answered.
“You’re so smart honey,” Zelda said.
“Don’t make fun of me Zel. I know it’s kind of obvious, but-,” Jet started.
“But I’m the one that asked. Man you’re rude to me. Heh,” Shinota cut in.
Jet finally made it to the top of the mountain. There were two cave entrances, one to the left side of the wall of rock, and one to the right side. Below him was a grand view of the village of Kakariko. There were but a few dim lights from candles and torches seen far off inside the houses, and only two or three people out and about. The town was at peace. Jet smiled slightly, then turned to face the mountain. He walked into the cave on the right; the entrance into the crater of Death Mountain.
He ran down the steps, and stopped next to Kafei. There was a shocked look on his face, his fists clenched. Jet was at first very puzzled by this, then he looked in the direction Kafei’s eyes were facing, and he too was then frozen in place.
In the molten pits of the crater, far below the safe rocks, there was a circle of Gruid-noms, chanting. At least one hundred were in the circle, and the rest of the tribe, thousands upon thousands, were in the rest of the crater’s dark caves, waiting and watching. In the center of the circle, there was a bubbling in the lava, and the sounds of strong gasps coming from below the surface as if something was stuck under the burning coals. Jet couldn’t help but wonder to himself though, what kind of a demon it would take to survive the very fires of Death Mountain’s crater.
“J-jet….look,” Kafei stammered, pointing upward to the top of one of the smoking spires of rock in the massive chamber. Jet looked up slowly, almost afraid of what it was he would see. Atop the spire of rock stood the Dark Knight, sword drawn, chanting lowly. Jet finally knew what his plan was; he intended to resurrect whatever was beneath the lava.
“We have to stop-,” Jet was cut off by a flashing light. Suddenly, standing before him, was Ganon. It looked as though the situation was only going to get worse from here.
Chapter Four: A Melee Of Fire
“Ganon, we don’t have time for this!” Jet yelled, shifting his gaze from the King of Evil to the Knight of Darkness, then to the bubbling lava and back again.
“Haha, indeed. Neither do I have time for it, foolish king. I will kill every living creature in this crater, then I will return to my chamber,” Ganon said in an annoyed tone, as if the army of Gruid-noms were vermin.
“Funny, that’s how we feel!” Kafei yelled. Shinota and Zelda rushed into the crater behind Jet and Kafei, seeing the situation they were involved in.
“I wish to eliminate the fools in this mountain, and return to my kingdom!” Ganon yelled.
“Wait…are you telling me you plan on destroyin’ the Gruid-noms?” Jet asked. All sound faded. The only audible noise was the chanting of the Dark Knight and the Gruid-noms. Time seemed to slow down and everything seemed to move in slow motion to Jet.
He suddenly envisioned something in his head. A thought. No; a memory. There was a strong light. He remembered a warm feeling. He was outside at this time. That had to be it. With a yell from Kafei he snapped back to reality. He hadn’t paid attention to what Kafei yelled, but by the looks of it it was something along the lines of watch out. Jet ducked quickly as chunks of molten magma flew out of the crater and onto the land in which they all stood. The Dark Knight laughed menacingly atop the spire of stone, then continued to chant the dark words.
“Yes…..your highness. I intend whole heartedly to kill these Gruid-noms….and the knight of shadow….but make no mistake. This is all too fortunate for me. To have my very next target appear right on my doorstep!!!” Ganon yelled, charging dark matter into his hands and forming two blades out of the black ebbing mass.
“Dammit, be careful you guys. Shinota remembers. We almost got killed by one of those things last time,” Jet whispered, looking back at the team. They nodded in agreement, readying their weapons. Ganon stepped forward, swinging his blade at Jet. He backed off quickly, but to his shock, the blade extended farther, piercing him through the shoulder. He fell to the ground, dropping the Royal Family’s blade.
“Jet! Are you alright?” Zelda asked, staring at her bleeding husband.
“Haha, much better than you are about to be my queen! I missed my chance to kill you a decade ago, but fret not, the Royal Family will fall!” Ganon yelled, pointing both of his black blades forward with a grim smile. Zelda fell to her knees, the blades just barely missing her and flying into the wall.
“Looks like even your new tricks aren’t above us, Mandrag,” Zelda said, panting.
“You really do take me for a war mongering fool don’t you your highness? I know a bit more than simply how to wield a blade,” Ganon said with a scowl. With sudden unexpected force he jolted both blades backward out of the rock wall. The force caused the wall to collapse, Zelda caught under the pile of rubble.
“Shinota….let’s take him together….but let’s be quick, and let’s be careful,” Kafei suggested, reaching slowly behind his black cape and unsheathing his long dagger.
“Right…” Shinota agreed, Twin Diamond sword in hand. They ran at Ganon, Kafei punching him in the face then stabbing him with his dagger in the back. Ganon spun around angrily, taking the dark matter from his right blade and exploding it in Kafei’s face. He flew to the ground just inches away from the burning lava. Ganon faced him, and began walking slowly towards him. Shinota blasted the King of Evil in the back with a ki blast, trying to give Kafei time to recover.
Ganon grinned. He turned to Shinota, slicing the remaining black blade in his direction. The blade extended far, and Shinota barely sidestepped in time. Ganon drew the blade back into his hand, the sword morphing into a black ball. The King of Evil formed the ball into a long handled scythe with a blade near to three feet in height and four feet in diameter. He swung the large weapon at Shinota, the handle extending very far. The Zedusrian warrior leapt over the scythe easily enough, landing back on the ground. He let out a sigh of relief momentarily, but then leapt up again as Ganon brought the blade back.
Shinota, deciding to switch to the offensive, blasted several Ki blasts at the King of Evil. Ganon dissolved the handle, morphing the large black scythe blade into a shield. The Ki blasts bounced off harmlessly, three of the four careening into walls, the last hitting Shinota in the chest. Ganon laughed and held the shield out toward Shinota, then extended it into a long blade. It flew at the Zedusrian with a speed unmatched by any other Ganon had made thus far. It hit him square in the chest, breaking his skin and carrying him with it toward the wall. Shinota gathered the last of his energy and pulled his body away from the blade, doing several flips then landing on top of the dark matter. He launched many Ki blasts at Ganon, each one making contact.
“You need to stay….away from him,” Kafei said angrily, hitting Ganon in the back of the neck. He turned, angered.
“Isn’t one time enough of a lesson for you?!” Ganon yelled, bringing the dark matter into his hand. He made the second one explode much like the first, and Kafei flew to the ground again, this time against a wall.
“Now…to finish the royal bodyguard who just wouldn’t die,” Ganon said with a smile, in regard to Shinota. “You’ve been quite the pest, but trust me, I can generate many more than two blades,” Ganon said with a smile, raising his fist. Ganon suddenly fell to his knees. Out of the rubble was Zelda, bleeding but alive. She had used the Mystic Light, and Ganon sat on his knees, panting and bleeding.
“Now…you will leave us and let us go about our business Mandrag,” Zelda declared, not a single syllable of doubt in her voice.
“I….am shadow…..the amount of light you wield…..is small….in comparison…..to the fear, and darkness…..that is…..that is at my beckoned call…to fight me….here, in my own kingdom….is a damnation….beyond the likes of all…..holy judgment…..because…up here….there are no clouds….with….with silver linings….they are as red as the blood….that has been spilled on the ground…there…there are no angels either….there are winged demons….who deliver the news of death…..to…those…living….but not with paper….or ink and quill…..but with blade….and….magic….and blood…so…wield your light….dear queen…wield it well, and hold up your hope….for…all energy….in this land….is darkness….and all hope…in this land…is a pessimistic view of the minutes you have left….every tear is a….a drop of blood….and every shadow of a doubt….becomes a psychical embodiment, waiting….to feast….upon what little….life you possess in your….weakened bones. So go on, my queen, and show me….hope. show me…light,” Ganon said, standing.
“Very well,” Zelda said, not phased by Ganon’s speech. She slowly picked up the Royal Family’s sword, replacing the crimson jewel set inside the blade with the core of her Mystic Light. The blade shimmered with an intense light. Ganon drew from his Black magic a blade of shadow also. Before either could begin the duel, a voice spoke loud.
“It is done!!!! Now we wait!!! And then your savior will return!!!” The Dark Knight yelled. The Gruid-noms cheered triumphantly in their dark, raspy voices. The Dark Knight drew his blade, and leapt from the spire at this, landing in front of Kafei and Shinota.
“Not you….” Shinota mumbled.
“I have been tasked indefinitely to kill you. I must stay here, until all of you are dead. But first, I believe I will make a trade with you, Shinota. Give me the core of the Mystic Fire, and I will make your death quick and painless,” the Dark Knight offered.
“No….I can’t help if you’re weak,” Shinota said.
“Fool. Khmer was a smart man when he made the Mystic Circle. But I have learned to harness the power. The Mystic Fire is still mine, but I simply wish to have the jewel,” the Dark Knight said with a laugh.
“Never….gonna happen,” Shinota argued.
“Very well. I’ll extract it from your dead corpse,” the Dark Knight said grimly. The battle had just gotten worse.
Battle On The Burning Hill by BOEG
Ganon swung his blade at Zelda, and she barely parried before it cut her throat. Zelda was a skilled an agile fighter, but she had learned the most in the arts of Sheikan assassination, not sword fights. Even with the Royal Family’s sword being powered the way it was, it was still capable of error, of missing a chance to defend or a chance to strike. Zelda had to stay alive and defeat Ganon. If not for herself then for Hyrule. Ganon reared the blade back and swung it at Zelda once more, the Hylian just barely ducking out of the way.
The King of Evil walked toward the queen, his three eyes glowing fiercely, his black blade ebbing and flaring in an equally terrorizing manner. He spun the blade around his head twice then brought it down toward the ground, the dark matter flying toward Zelda. She rolled to the side, then lurched forward, stabbing Ganon in the leg. He clenched his teeth and stepped back, the power of the light like a cancerous virus in his body.
The Dark Knight, tired of merely witnessing the battle, turned from Shinota and Kafei, spinning his blade around quickly. It met Zelda’s flesh quickly, scathing her cloth and skin. She fell to her knees, bleeding from the long gash in her back. Ganon began to bring his black blade down upon the queen’s head, but the Dark Knight then parried the blow with his own blade. Then with a quick and powerful movement, he thrust his blade high, knocking the sword from Ganon’s hand and into the bubbling lava below.
“You wish to protect the queen of Hyrule?” Ganon asked, a scowl about his already unhappy face.
“I wish to do the same as you. Kill everything in this mountain. However, there are two things I will do that differ from what you will do. I will not share the glory, and I will not stop with the mountain. I have been tasked by my master to kill the Triforce Team, then to destroy Hyrule in whatever way I saw fit,” the Dark Knight answered.
“Your master? Heh. Tell me, mere underling, who is your master?” Ganon asked, the smile returning to his face.
“My master is Apocalypse Modeus,” the Dark Knight answered. Zelda dropped the Royal Family’s sword at the mention of that name. A look of nameless fear came into her eyes, and she backed against the wall of stone.
“Does the name of my master frighten you, Hylian?” the Dark Knight asked, turning toward Zelda.
“We…..killed him,” Zelda said in disbelief.
“No….you weakened him to an extreme point. The fall finished the job. As he is now, he is dying, but the-,” the Dark Knight was cut off from his speech. Ganon blasted him in the back hard with a mass of dark energy, then threw him to the side.
“Now….understand this….my queen. This is my kingdom. In here, your authority means nothing. You hear me? Nothing! You may as well be a feeble princess once more as long as you sit and cower in my mountain fortress. I know not what plan the knight in black and the apes of stone are conspiring here, but nothing happens in this mountain that I do not control. Prepare to die!” Ganon warned. He raised his hands slowly, and the all too familiar black hole attack began to form. Zelda closed her eyes, and prayed to the goddesses for a miracle.
She thought about it for a minute. Was it really worth it? Surely after ten years everything was cleared up. She nodded to herself, as if it was a final assurance, and she walked slowly into the gates of Lon Lon Ranch, the home she had left so long ago. She loved the way the blades of grass felt against her ankles, and how fresh the air was here. Even the sound of the cows were all welcome. Something about Hyrule was magical, much more so than Holodrum.
She had left several ranch hands there, and it would be fine. There were no cows or horses there anyway, only cuccos. It was more of a breeding ground for cuccos then anything else. No one had ever visited, but a ranch was in high demand in Holodrum. At the time it was all she could think of to do to escape from the constant thoughts of Link. Her heart ached every time she thought of him, but she knew in her heart why she had returned.
She walked slowly to the house she had lived at for so long and cautiously knocked on the door. No answer. She knocked harder. After several moments the door opened. Talon stood shirtless and hunched, his beard long and shaggy, a bottle in his hand, the liquid inside obviously not milk. He gave her a scowl, then slammed the door shut before she had a chance to speak.
Shocked, she knocked again. This had been her home forever, and she wasn’t about to give it up without a fight. Why would her father be so cold? She had always thought that he would be the one person to except her, even if her love for Link should fail. That was what she had been counting on in her journey back to Hyrule, although she had a strong feeling that the Hero of Time had returned.
“Dad, come on!” Malon yelled out, frustrated at the change in her father’s cheery, outgoing personality.
“Get outta here already, will ya’?” Talon asked in an angry voice.
“But I’m your daughter!” Malon argued.
“I don’t give a hootin’ fuck who ya’ are. Now get the hell out!” Talon yelled.
“Dad….let me in. I’m sorry, I’m sorry for whatever I’ve done okay? I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Malon yelled. The door opened and her hopes rose for a moment.
“You stupid good for nothin’ bitch! I told ya’ ta’ get the hell outta my ranch, but ya’ had ta’ go an’ push me, now din’t ya’? now I ain’t playin’ little girl, get the fuck off of my property!” Talon yelled, backhanding Malon.
“How could you…..this isn’t you! Dad, don’t you remember all the great times you’ve had with me, father and daughter? Raising cuccos, playing with Epona in the field?” Malon pleaded.
“Yeah…..I remember my daughter. Sweet ol’ girl who always stayed by her father’s side, even if a God damned fairy boy came into the framework,” Talon said angrily.
“How dare you talk about Link like that! He saved Hyrule!” Malon yelled.
“Damn…..damn hero?! I tell ya’….it’s all a fuckin’ fairytale…all them people he saved…where was Link to save my ranch when the work piled up and drowned us in debt? Where was Link when my daughter’s heart broke? Eh? Where was Link when I rang the neck of this redheaded bitch on my property?! Eh? I tell ya’….he wasn’t there to save no one cuz’ he was the cause of them problems!” Talon yelled.
“Dad….” Malon said in disbelief.
“Ingo! Get this good fer’ nothin’ slut outta my sight,” Talon said, going back into his house and slamming the door tightly. Ingo came out of the stable quickly, pitchfork in hand.
“You heard him darlin’….ain’t much I can be doin’ fer’ ya’….even if I don’t agree with the drunk,” Ingo said, putting his hand on her shoulder. She looked at Ingo quickly, then nodded, running quickly out of the ranch, tears streaming from her eyes. The hurt was stronger than ever before, and she felt alone, deathly alone.
The sun was shrouded behind grey clouds, and not even the shadows gave her company in this time of need. Rain began to fall quickly, pattering against the grass of the expansive field and moistening the dirt. Malon sat, face in hands for several moments against the wall of Lon Lon Ranch, sobbing. She knew it wasn’t productive, but it was all she could think to do.
After some time had passed and the rain had began to fall harder and faster she stood, soaked, and walked slowly toward the only place she could think to go; Hyrule market.
The shops were closed early due to the rainfall, and no one was about in the market except for the Hylian soldiers on guard, and the beggars who had no better place to go. The rain pummeling against the cobblestone in the abandoned market made a peculiar noise, one which Malon might have enjoyed more had she still been the small naïve child she was so long ago when she first entered this market. Before she knew who Link was. Before she knew who Ganondorf was. Before she knew what it was like to suffer.
She ran toward the entrance of the castle, but was halted by the guards. She had to get in and talk to someone, so she feigned the excuse that she was a Zedusrian ambassador. Easy enough. Zedusria and Hyrule had been negotiating meeting and peace talks for a decade now. She walked up the muddy dirt path slowly, toward the next gate. This set of soldiers were much less excepting of a lie.
“Speak your business,” the first soldier said, any sign of emotion hidden by his helmet.
“I’m a….Zedusrian ambassador,” Malon said in a shaky tone.
“You sound awfully unsure of yourself there,” the second gate man responded.
“It’s just that I’m a little cold in the weather. Come now, would you really deny a young woman like me the right to get shelter in an awful storm like this?” Malon asked, a sweet look on her face.
“We would deny anyone who was a potential servant of Ganon to enter,” the first soldier answered.
“But I have to talk to Jet!” Malon said impatiently.
“Do not refer to his highness so commonly!” the soldier said, angered.
“I’m sorry…..I just….has…..Link returned?” Malon asked.
“Hahaha, you must be joking?” the second soldier asked, face red with amusement.
“No….” Malon said slowly.
“He’s not been seen in these parts for a decade…he was a hero of the land…now he is hero of lore. But don’t worry, his highness is an able handed warrior who will let no waste come to this kingdom while breath still draws from his body,” the first soldier said in an assured tone.
“Oh……..yes, of course……thank…..you,” Malon said very slowly, turning. She hadn’t made it back to the market before she began to sob beyond control. She couldn’t speak to Jet or Zelda, her husband was still missing, and her own father had disowned her. The rain continued to fall harder and harder, and she was drenched, but she had nowhere else to go. She walked slowly out of the drawbridge and near the stream under the arch of stone in the field.
She couldn’t stop the tears. She had no reason to go on, not a reason to hold onto anything. She had gone on for the last ten years in the false hope that her family still thrived. She had lost a son, a husband, and a father, and the friends she valued the most were warm and comfortable, pampered on their thrones, and she couldn’t even gain an audience with them.
“Why……Din…..Nayru…..Farore…….” she slowly called out the names of those she had put her faith and trust in for so long.
“Why?!!!” she screamed at the top of her lungs to the air, water entering her throat and causing her to cough loudly. Her throat hurt.
“Why is this happening to me?!!! I walked a path of happiness, hoping it would pay off in my time of need. What has it done!!!? What has all of it brought?!!!!” Malon screamed again, falling to her knees.
“My beautiful son……dead!!! My husband, who I love with everything in my heart…..gone!!! my father….hating me!!!” she slammed her fists into the ice cold water of the stream again and again until she was numb. Her sobs continued, the warmth of her many tears the only thing keeping her from going unconscious from the cold.
“What is it all for?!!!” she questioned again to the sky, being answered by a flash of lightning. She thrust her numb hands into the water, pulling out a large rock.
“That’s your answer?! More rain?!! You want me to freeze?!!! You want me to freeze to death?!!! You want me to die?!!! Fine!!!” Malon screamed, dashing the rock against the nearby stone wall. It shattered into pieces, the fragment in her hand sharp and jagged.
“I tried to be powerful Din!!! When everything in my life had gone wrong I tried to be strong!!!” she yelled, slamming the rock against her wrist. Her skin turned a bright red from the impact.
“I tried to be wise and look for them, but I found only heartache Nayru!!!!” she slid the rock across her skin, breaking it open, a long narrow bleeding slit on her wrist.
“I tried to be courageous…..and I was answered by constant problems, constant sadness…..it didn’t work Farore!!!!” she slammed the rock against her bleeding wrist again, the rain mixing with the wound, blood running down her arms and onto the ground below.
“It….isn’t worth it!” she yelled, her voice weakening. She slammed the rock against her wrist again and again, the blood running down her wrist quickly. The ground near her was covered in the blood she shed, and it continued to fall, the crimson rivers flowing stronger than the stream itself.
She hit herself harder and harder with each blow, rearing the stone back and splattering herself in her own blood in the process. She didn’t care. In her mind it was worth it to be released from the pain. She smirked lightly as she began to run out of strength. She looked at herself. Her dress was stained all over with spots of blood. Her face was marked with the liquid, and she could barely recognize her own arm amidst the damage she had done to it.
She threw the rock down slowly and thought about all of the things she had lost. She looked at the blood covered ground and whimpered softly as she slowly lay down, the rain mixing with her blood and running into her mouth, the taste sickening her. She was hurting. She wanted this. She wanted it to be over, to end. She continued to cry softly, not strong enough to even make an audible noise anymore. Her last thought as she lay dying in the rain, tasting her own blood in her mouth, on the field where she had had so many good memories, was simple, but all too tragic.
“I’ll see you soon Link,”
The Lord of Fire is Unleashed by BOEG
Chapter Six: The Lord of Fire is Unleashed
A dusty town. It looked abandoned. Every house was made of wood, and the windows were covered with such a thick grime that one couldn’t begin to see in any of the houses that lined the empty streets. Jet walked with Kenji through this eerie deserted place.
“So….is this place like the last town we had the pleasure of exploring?” Jet asked.
“No…..to my knowledge the residents are….more normal,” Kenji answered.
“Hmmm……so….it’s been awhile since I’ve seen you. And I’ve certainly needed some guidance, so why don’t I take this time to ask you a few things?” Jet questioned.
“To a point. Don’t push it,” Kenji warned.
“Okay….hate to be blunt here….but what the hell is going on in my head? I’ve been having these….memories….of useless things,” Jet asked.
“You think they’re useless. But really, until an event actually occurs how can you judge it’s bearing?” Kenji questioned.
“I guess not….” Jet answered. He was about to ask something else but he was soon interrupted. A man came from one of the old houses near them. He was robed in black and looked very aged. He approached Jet and Kenji, then spoke.
“Will you come with us for the procedure? I don’t know how we missed you two,” the man asked.
“Ummm…..okay,” Jet agreed.
“Be careful,” Kenji whispered quietly as he walked past Jet, following the man into the house.
The interior of the building was very different from what Jet had expected. The house was void of features, except for a wooden door set in the floor that led to a staircase going downward. The man motioned them forward, and they followed him down the stairs.
Jet was shocked when he saw what was below. The floor was of cold stone, and there were several iron tables with bloody tools resting on them in the middle of the large basement. Blood splattered the walls and dripped onto the floor, and it was obvious that the place was seldom cleaned.
There were barred cages lining the walls, people wrapped in bloody gauze crying out in pain or whimpering. What was the focal point of the morbid room however, was the skin hanging from the ceiling from hooks, blood dripping from it. A large bald man who carried a butcher knife met with the old man. He wore leather pants stitched tightly together, and had a cold look in his eyes.
“I’m surprised you two agreed so quickly….the others put up quite a struggle,” the man said in a frighteningly gleeful manner. Jet looked once at Kenji. He nodded back at Jet. The two drew their weapons and slew a path through the two men, then worked their way quickly out of the building. When they were at enough of a distance to feel safe, they spoke to each other.
“What the hell……is that supposed to teach me?” Jet asked.
“Judging by what truths these dreams usually hold….I would say it means suffering is around you….” Kenji said slowly.
“….Zelda….Kafei….Shinota…..man,” Jet said in disbelief.
“Wake up now,” Kenji said in an urgent tone. Jet slowly dispersed from the dream world.
Jet’s eyes flew open. He was in Kakariko village. On a warm soft bed. His wife was on her knees, asleep, head in arms. Apparently she had been by his side the whole time. Was he okay? He felt okay.
“Zel…..” he called out gently.
“Mmm….Jet….?” she slowly began to stir.
“Yes?” he asked in a cheery tone.
“Jet! You’re okay! We were all frightened that you might have gotten some of that dark substance in your body or something terrible like that….what a relief,” Zelda said with a sigh. Jet sat up and kissed her on the lips, holding onto her hand.
“Yep….I’m not gonna leave you anytime soon. Hate to change the subject…really hate…but eh, what happened when I was out? I remember getting hit then next thing I know I’m here,” Jet asked.
“Well….you got knocked out, then we took your place. The Dark Knight finished whatever incantation he was reciting, then joined the fight. I almost got killed…if it wasn’t for the mountain starting to erupt I wouldn’t have had the chance to escape,” Zelda said gratefully.
“So….the mountain erupted? What’s up with it now?” Jet asked.
“As far as we know…Ganon and the Dark Knight are still inside the crater…along with the Gruid-noms. But that would be all to fortunate for us, so I doubt it,” Zelda answered.
“I wanna go see for myself,” Jet said, beginning to stand. Zelda quickly stopped him.
“Honey, just take this chance to rest….for me? I mean, this will probably be the last chance you have if something does make it’s way here. Besides, there’s a terrible lightning storm out,” Zelda pleaded.
“Yeah….but I like the rain, remember Zel,” Jet questioned.
“Yes…of course I do. I just want you to get some rest while you can. The villagers are cooking dinner, and the place is so warm and well lit….you know…cozy. We’ll be thrust back out on the battlefield soon enough,” Zelda said.
“Zel…what’s wrong? You never talk like this. Ninety-five percent of the time when there’s a battle you’re right there behind me. And now all of the sudden you’re backing down? Against two warriors that we’ve killed before?” Jet asked.
“I’m…..really frightened. They’re both so much more powerful now….and when the spell was done, and the mountain began to erupt….it can’t be a good sign. I just…I wish everything could be peaceful again,” Zelda said in a weak tone.
“So do I Zel….so do I,” Jet said quietly.
The bubbling lava shot into the air with much force.
Hours after the final component of the incantation was spoken, out of the lava began to come many black stones of all sizes. They slowly began to come together, forming into the shape of armor shod feet and legs, then forming into two knee caps. Stone armor fell over the thighs. Large stones came together forming the chest area, very muscular in appearance. The right arm came together, two large stone spikes emerging from above the wrists, and right below the closed stone fist. The left arm formed similar armor, however there was a sharply cut stone blade attached to it. The neck and head came last, the two stones that served as eyes coming to life in an evil green glow. With a series of sickening snaps and low groans from the creature, wings emerged from it’s back, black and feathery. It screamed loudly, an inhuman sound that none could imitate.
“All hail the master Golem,” the Gruid-noms cried in unison, frightened but all too happy. Their lord was back from beneath the lava of the crater, and his power was second only to his extreme thirst for destruction. It would be a difficult time for Hyrule indeed.
Out of the Flame and Smoke Comes a Warrior.... by BOEG
The rain had slowed to a light shower. Impa had joined with the rest of the team in Kakariko, and they had decided as a group to go back to the castle and strategize. They knew not what the Gruid-noms were planning in the crater of the mountain of death, but they knew it couldn’t be good for them. When everyone had gathered their gear and weaponry, they headed out from the small house and down the staircase that led to Hyrule field. Jet was first, followed by Zelda, then Kafei, Shinota, and Impa last.
Upon entering the field Jet wrinkled his nose, looked around, that let out a stifled gasp.
“What’s wrong honey? Are you feeling okay?” Zelda asked.
“No….oh no,” Jet said in disbelief.
“Jet…what is it?” Impa asked, curious.
“I….” Jet didn’t finish the sentence. He quickly bolted down the remaining the stairs then ran toward the stream. They were all confused by his actions at first, then his shock became all too clear and understandable. Near the stream which led into Zora’s River was the fallen form of Malon, blood all around her, staining her dress, covering the dirt and the grass, and flowing into the water. She was almost completely covered in the liquid, blood splattered on her face and neck, a tangled mass of bleeding flesh all that was left of her wrist. There was a bloody rock next to her corpse, enough of a clue for the team to guess what had happened.
“Why would she….?” Shinota’s voice trailed off.
“But….but she….” Zelda began to sob, tightly embracing Jet. He held her close, kissing the top of her forehead gently. He wasn’t just holding onto his wife in this moment to silence her sadness, but also to help his. Although he wouldn’t voice his pain so openly, Jet felt the same way. He felt like sobbing. Malon had forever been a friend to the Royal Family, even in the days of Harkinarian. He didn’t understand why something like this would happen.
“She was always happy though, wasn’t she?” Impa asked.
“She was until….Link left,” Shinota said quietly.
“Are you trying to blame this on Link?” Kafei asked defensively.
“No. But more likely than not it was him that drove her to do it,” Shinota said quietly.
“How can you say that?” Kafei asked, enraged.
“How can I say what? He left! He abandoned his duties!” Shinota yelled back.
“He’s just a man like you are! He can’t always know what’s right and what’s wrong!” Kafei yelled, pulling his black hood aside and shaking his bright purple hair loose.
“No! don’t hand me that! He isn’t just a man! He’s the Hero of Time! When you have a title like that you can’t simply abandon it!” Shinota yelled.
“Please stop,” Zelda said quietly, still crying, holding onto Jet tightly, not wanting to see Malon’s body.
“It wasn’t his fault! Last time I checked you still had a son!” Kafei continued, in spite of Zelda’s plea.
“Because I wasn’t dumb enough to let my son get kidnapped in the night!” Shinota yelled.
“Are you calling Link stupid?” Kafei asked, drawing his dagger. Zelda buried her face in her husband’s shoulder. She couldn’t take it. She wanted everything to just disappear. The whole world was swirling together around her, and one line was blurring into another. Nothing made sense anymore, and the only comfort she had was in the arms of Jet. She couldn’t stand the death, or the fighting. It made her wonder why she was even a part of the team.
“Both of you! Shut up! Just shut the fuck up! Can’t you see what’s happened? Malon is dead you two! Someone has died! …and you’re gonna sit here and bicker amongst yourselves?! You aren’t warriors….you’re damn pussies,” Jet said angrily. They fell silent, heads low.
“I’m….sorry,” Kafei said quietly.
“So am I….I…just…dunno,” Shinota said lowly.
“Impa….can you take Malon to the castle? I wanna be with Zelda right now, and I’ve got something for these two to do,” Jet asked.
“Yes, of course your highness,” Impa nodded, slowly walking toward Malon’s body.
“Kafei….I need you to go tell Talon his daughter is dead. Try to be as….gentle with it as you can,” Jet said slowly.
“You’ve got it,” Kafei nodded, pulling his mask and hood back about his face and running toward the ranch.
“Shinota, take my digivice and head back to my house. Gather the team and assemble them at the meeting room in the castle,” Jet said.
“Yeah….yeah,” Shinota said in a tone of disbelief, opening the digital portal and traveling through it quickly.
“Zel….let’s go to the castle, okay?” Jet asked in a caring tone.
“Jet….don’t….don’t leave me,” Zelda sobbed out, embracing him tightly.
“Don’t worry…..I won’t….I won’t,” Jet assured her. They slowly began to walk toward the castle.
Kafei stood in front of the entrance to Lon Lon Ranch for several minutes, thinking about what it was he was going to say, how he would say it. It was times like this he really appreciated the mask about his face. It was so much easier to give people bad news when they didn’t know who you were. Giving a friend bad news in Kafei’s mind was the single most unfriendly thing one could do. He inhaled powerfully, exhaled, then entered the ranch.
When he reached the house he knocked on the door quickly. After several moments Talon opened the door.
“Whaddya want?” Talon asked angrily.
“Your daughter-,” he was cut off.
“She ain’t my daughter!” Talon protested angrily.
“Malon…..killed herself. I’m sorry,” Kafei said, eyes on the ground.
“Th-thank you,” Talon said in a low voice. He closed the door calmly. Kafei’s heart sank. It wasn’t a job he took pride in, but it was done. He slowly walked out of the ranch to head for the castle.
“…and that’s the situation you guys,” Shinota finished. The team sat in disbelief at the misfortune. Ganon and the Dark Knight, both actively trying to kill them.
“Dad….do me and Gogetta get to come?” Samson asked.
“Yes. Everyone gets to come. Ready your weapons. We’re going to Hyrule,” Shinota answered.
“I….can’t believe she could do that? Why would she do something so….awful?” Zelda asked in disbelief, sobbing. Jet had taken her to their room in the castle, and ever since then he had been trying to think of anything that might make her feel better, and so far, his thoughts were in vain.
“Because….she got separated from the one she loved,” Jet answered, holding Zelda.
“Promise me then…that if I ever….if I ever die….you won’t do anything like that,” Zelda said slowly, tears still streaming from her blue eyes.
“But you know that’s never gonna-,” Jet was cut off.
“Just promise me!” Zelda said, burying her face in her husband’s chest.
“Okay….I promise,” Jet responded. Before she had a chance to respond, Shinota walked in.
“Everyone’s waiting,” Shinota said quietly.
“And Kafei?” Jet asked.
“He’s back,” Shinota answered.
“Okay, we’ll be there in a minute,” Jet said, nodding.
“Got it,” Shinota answered, leaving.
“Honey….everything’s gonna be alright….I promise,” Jet said, standing. He outstretched his hand. She took it, standing slowly. They both slowly secured their weapons once more, then left to meet with the team.
“Alright you guys….right now there is one thing on my mind. I know that the situation with Malon was terrible, and I know that we all have personal issues, but right now he have to focus on whatever the Dark Knight was brewing in that mountain. So I suggest a full on march to the mountain. Any objections?” Jet asked. Silence answered him. “Any questions?” he asked. Again, silence. “Good, let’s go you guys. Remember to be really careful with this one…we’re not only dealing with the Dark Knight, but also with Ganon, and all of the Gruid-noms,” Jet warned. The team was silent. They were afraid of the odds stacked against them, but none would let it show.
The rain in Hyrule had finally died, but the air was still cold and damp, and the skies were still covered in a grey veil of clouds. The team slowly crossed the bridge over the stream, trying not to stare at the blood drenched patch of land where Malon had lain several hours ago. The world seemed darkened beyond a point of recognition, almost as if it wasn’t Hyrule. It was impossible to tell whether it was day or night, and that lack of light would make the following battles that much harder.
They slowly walked up the staircase leading to Kakariko village, the hint of civilization before entering the mountain path. Very few people were out, and those that were had their eyes fixed intently on the swirling red cloud of fire above Death Mountain, the only fiercely burning light in the black sky. Those still about in the village had spirit’s raised at the sight of their king, even though he himself likely possessed more doubt than they did.
They stopped at the foot of the mountain, staring up at the black path ahead of them. Any direction you looked held the same amount of shadow, and the same unnamed terror, the fear of venturing into the unknown, where each step you took you weren’t even guaranteed to find land beneath your feet. Yoshimitsu sighed loudly.
“What is it?” Lord Deimos asked.
“There is…..this sick feeling of dread here. Aside from the Goron city, I sense….no life here at all, except twisted convulsed imitations of life…” Yoshimitsu said slowly.
“So….I guess that answers my big burning question…..” Dregan said quietly.
“Which is what? Lord Deimos questioned.
“Link isn’t here…the fabled Hero of Time. I want to meet this….hero,” Dregan answered.
“I would think it wise to keep traveling,” Al’Rashid suggested.
“Yes…while there is still a chance of attacking. As opposed to being attacked,” the executioner agreed.
“Right….ready your weapons,” Jet said, unsheathing his Royal Family’s blade. They began to travel up the black path, trusting instinct alone to lead their way. The shadow was terrifying to the team, and it seemed as if every patch of black was moving and alive, pursuing them as if it’s life depended on it. At length they made it once again to the top of the mountain, and ventured slowly into the crater. They took painful measures to make each step a silent one, trying as hard as they could to become one with the shadow that was their greatest enemy on the mountain just seconds ago.
Voices emanated from inside the crater, and a red smoking haze floated about on the outermost part. The Gruid-noms chattered and spoke much to themselves, but were suddenly silenced by a demonic boom that reverberated through the entire crater.
“What the hell was that?” Ogre asked, even his great courage tested.
“Oh no….” Kafei said slowly in disbelief.
“What is it?” Impa asked, clutching her machete tightly.
“I think they know we’re here,” Kafei said, a look of sheer terror in his eyes.
“How are we supposed to kill the entire lot of them?” Trunks asked.
“And whatever the hell it is that made that noise,” Shinota added.
“If we stick together we should all have enough power,” Goku said calmly.
“Mom, I’m scared…” Samson said slowly.
“Just keep your eyes on the enemies,” Samus responded, hand on her arm cannon.
“Yes, be careful, but aggressive…remember what Jet taught you,” Zelda added. The sound of shuffling feet was heard suddenly.
“You guys….the second they come around here, and I mean the second, we nail them all, as quickly and quietly as possible,” Jet instructed. It was a painful process almost, the anticipation of waiting for the opponent to arrive was horrible and slow, and all were tense. Finally ten Gruid-noms made their way around the corner.
They yelled loudly, pointing at the team assembled at the crater entrance. Jet rushed forward, delivering a magically charged spin attack, decapitating the first. It’s head flew several feet away, and it’s bleeding corpse hit the ground with a thud. Dregan came up behind him, slashing the next Gruid-nom in the chest, then stabbing him in the head with the pointed end of his shield. With a morbid cackle he kicked the dead and bleeding creature off of his weapon and to the heated stone ground. The executioner ran towards the Gruid-noms, impaling one of the Gruid-noms with his axe. Another ran to him, launching a punch at his chest. It hurt him slightly, and he angrily retaliated by pounding the creature in the head with his fist. It fell to the ground, the suffered the same fate as the other Gruid-nom.
Goku launched a ki blast at one, pinning it against a wall, it’s burning body dead before it hit the ground. Gogetta and Samson cut the legs of one of the Gruid-noms, stabbing it in the chest several times as it fell to it’s knees. Another ran to meet Impa in combat, launching several swings at the Sheikah. She parried each blow, smashing the Gruid-nom in the chest with her hilt, then stabbing it in the neck. Samus charged a blast of the ice beam, freezing one of the creatures. Shinota ran at the frozen creature, slicing it into pieces with his blade.
Ogre quickly tripped one of the monsters, then dug his fist into it’s chest, finding and crushing it’s heart. The last Gruid-nom cowered in the shadow, slowly backing away from the team. Jet smiled and stepped forward.
“You’re so pathetic I’ll let you go. But you can tell the Dark Knight this. We aren’t fucking around,” Jet said with a smirk. The Gruid-nom nodded, then turned and began to run. Jet smiled to himself, launching a ki blast at the Gruid-nom, sending him plummeting over the cliff. “Oops,” Jet said with a smile.
“Nice workout,” Shinota said.
“Yeah, now, how to handle the real thing. There’ll be a lot more over there,” Kafei said.
“Yeah, no point in letting them come to us,” Al’Rashid commented.
“Well then, let’s go,” Jet said, running ahead. He instantly stopped in his tracks. The rest of the team wondered why he had ceased the attack, when they all saw what he was looking at. A tall figure of black stone with wings of the same color and a large blade with glowing eyes was before him. It looked straight at him, pointing its blade in his direction and screaming in an inhumanly low tone. A stream of the burning lava flew in Jet’s direction, and he barely jumped to the side in time.
“What is that?!” Trunks asked, shocked.
“That’s not looking good,” Captain Falcon said quietly.
“Ah….screw this,” Jet said, flying toward the creature full speed. He stopped right in front of it, launching a barrage of punches at it’s chest, then one heavy blow to it’s face. The creature didn’t budge at all. It raised it’s fist, reared it’s arm back and hit Jet hard, the force of the blow sending him back and into the wall.
Goku, Trunks, and Shinota immediately charged to super saiya-jins, running at the stone creature and attacking with all of the strength they had, every move they made in vain. It raised both of its hands angrily, and boiling lava flew at the saiya-jins from all directions, sending them to the ground, smoking and wounded. Jet burst out of the wall he had been thrown into in this moment, in his super saiya-jin form, as the powerful Gotet. The golden aura once more surrounded his body, spikes emerging from the numerous spots on his body, his white eyes glowing fiercely in the dim light of the crater.
He flew with all the speed he could muster towards the black creature, planning to ram it head on. It quickly raised it’s hand, grabbing Gotet by the head, then thrusting him into the ground. He raised his foot slowly, and Gotet rolled out of the way of the crushing blow just in time, the strength of the stomp tearing the ground asunder.
“Mystic Light,” Zelda called out, the rays of light shooting out of her hands and straight at the monster they now faced. To her shock and dismay the blast did nothing short of agitate the beast.
“What….are you?” Gotet asked, standing.
“Golem……is my name,” it spoke out in a slow, dark voice.
“My name is Jet….I’m gonna be the one who kills you,” Jet said in a confident tone.
“Meh….I will leave this entire place in ruin….before you get a single attack in,” Golem said slowly. No matter how positive Jet tried to sound, he couldn’t help but believe Golem deep down. It was the most frightened he had been in a long time. He couldn’t lose.
The Great Flame That Engulfs by BOEG
Gotet rushed forward quickly, punching Golem as hard as he could several times, each attack doing absolutely nothing. Golem took a swing, and Gotet ducked, but was caught by an uppercut. Gotet regained his composure quickly, running forward and kneeing the beast, then hitting him in the face.
Kafei followed up with a blast of his Mystic Ice magic. Golem turned angrily, giving Gogetta a chance to stab him in the back of the leg. The blade stuck, and the creature bled. Samson followed quickly, stabbing Golem in the other leg. It yelled in pain, spinning around quickly. It kicked both of the children, knocking them to the ground. It raised it’s fist. A stream of lava flew at Kafei, knocking him to the ground. Yoshimitsu now came forward, slicing at the demonic beast. It smashed it’s wings into Yoshimitsu’s body, and he fell to the ground.
“Goku, and Falcon. You two leave the mountain and look for something that can help us kill this guy!” Jet said quickly. They nodded in agreement, and Goku picked up Captain Falcon and they both flew quickly out of the crater. Shinota ran forward now, slicing at Golem with his Twin Diamond sword, all of the blows doing no damage. Golem head butted Shinota hard and the Zedusrian stumbled backward, dazed. Jet ran behind the creature, stabbing it in the back of the shoulder with his Royal Family’s sword. It growled in pain, it’s black blood spilling to the ground. With a loud scream, it surrounded the entire fighting arena in a dome of flame. All were hurt and smoking on the ground.
Goku and Captain Falcon landed on the ground of Hyrule field quickly. The sky was still covered in a darkness, and the sun was far out of sight, and it’s warmth evaded the field as well. They looked around the field slowly, as if they expected an answer to their problems to just be lying around in the grass. After several moments however, they both got the same idea, and bolted toward the castle. There had to be some clue there.
“And you trust this creature to escape from the mountain and destroy Hyrule when they are all on his tail like that?” Apocalypse Modeus asked angrily.
“He is not a creature my lord. He is a demonic god. He is the lord of fire, the very essence of the mountain’s dark energy. He serves as a sage, just as Darunia, in a very negative opposite way. He needs no assistance, nor help. If he wills it he can collapse the entire crater and escape unscathed,” the Dark Knight responded.
“I care not. He is a Dark Sage. I am a Hell Lord. Look what they have done to me. I order you to assist him in the mountain crater. Make sure they hinder his exit no longer!” Apocalypse Modeus said angrily through the magical flame the Dark Knight summoned to communicate with.
“Yes….my lord,” the Dark Knight said slowly, bowing down and then standing quickly, using his magic to quickly reach the crater.
“Just…..because…..I bleed…..it does not mean….that I am….defeated,” Golem said angrily, looking at the charred wounded members of the Triforce Team before his feet. Trunks stood slowly and spoke through gritted teeth.
“Just because….we’re smoking and burned….doesn’t mean we’re defeated,” he said slowly, holding the hilt of his blade tightly and running at Golem. He took a swing, and Golem brought up his own blade, blocking the attack, and countering with a smash of his hilt to the saiya-jin’s face. He moaned in pain, then spun around, delivering another blow, this time to Golem’s face.
“Triforce of Wisdom!!!” Zelda yelled. The familiar golden light shot forth, hitting Golem in the back. He turned to face Zelda. He was not wounded, but he was being overwhelmed somewhat.
“You are all lucky. I have not been awake for close to a million years. But soon, I will return to my full power….and then….it will be you….who will bleed,” Golem said angrily. Suddenly the Dark Knight appeared in front of them.
“I was instructed to aid you, Golem,” the Dark Knight said in his demonic tone, drawing his long blade and surrounding it in flame.
“Very well,” Golem said, punching Zelda. The odds of victory were slowly rising against them.
“How are we supposed to find a clue to fighting a demon in a castle?” Captain Falcon asked in a rushed tone.
“I really have no clue…maybe we should ask someone?” Goku asked.
“Like who?” Captain Falcon asked. A maiden with black hair walked by the hallway the two were standing in, and a smile crossed Goku’s lips.
“H-hey! Can I ask you something ma’am?” Goku asked happily.
“Umm, yes, sure,” the woman answered, stopping.
“If you were to…..fight a demon…..metaphorically speaking of course….um….what would you do?” Goku asked. The woman gave him a strange look, then quickly walked away.
“Spoken like a cunning linguist my friend,” Captain Falcon said with a smirk.
“Let’s see you do better,” Goku said angrily.
“Heh…if you insist,” Captain Falcon responded, walking towards the throne room. He approached one of the two soldiers on guard at the door. “Hey…..I need some help,” Captain Falcon began.
“Yes?” the soldier asked.
“The king is combating a demon of fire named Golem. I need to know anything that may help him win,” Captain Falcon said.
“Golem!? I know just what to do….follow me,” the soldier said. Captain Falcon winked at Goku, and the two followed the Hylian soldier.
The Dark Knight swung at Lord Deimos, who parried with his all seeing sword, punching Golem in the face then quickly countering the Dark Knight’s attack with one of his own. It bounced off the Dark Knight’s armor, doing no damage. Gogetta stabbed Golem in the back of the leg again, more blood seeping through the black rock. Golem slammed the ground hard with his foot, and a blast of lava flew at Gogetta, hitting him square in the chest.
Samus angrily shot several rounds of Diffusion missiles at Golem, and he was frozen for several seconds. Jet took the opportunity to blast the creature with his Tetraforce at point blank range. The Dark Knight angrily sliced at Jet, the blade cutting across his back. He fell to his knees. The Dark Knight lifted his blade, ready to finish the weakened earthling. The executioner ran at the Dark Knight, tackling him to the ground and hitting him in the face. Ogre fell to his knees quickly, bashing the Dark Knight in the helmet with his shield, the noise reverberating through his deadened ears.
Golem broke free of the ice now, smashing Jet in the back of the neck with his hilt. For some reason it seemed as though he was biding his time, and not taking opportunities to kill the team. Dead or not, they were all beginning to become weary.
“Now, in order to understand the method of defeating this….thing…you first need to know the manner in which this thing came to be. So I will tell you the history of this….Golem,” the soldier said slowly.
“Okay,” Goku said. This soldier seemed to know a lot. They only hoped he could help them defeat Golem before it was too late for Hyrule.
Cold Waters and Fierce Flames by BOEG
Chapter Nine: Cold Waters and Fierce Flames
Captain Falcon and Goku were seated on wooden stools in a small room somewhere on the lower levels of Hyrule castle, near the dungeon. The soldier had found a replacement for his gate duty, and was seated near a desk. On the desk were several ancient scrolls, the paper yellowed and cracked from years of use, so delicate in appearance that it would seem one would touch them and they would break into a million pieces.
“To begin, I’m going to touch on something I’m sure you both know about,” the soldier began.
“And that is…?” Captain Falcon asked.
“The lore of Hyrule, of course,” the soldier answered.
“What about it?” Goku questioned, not seeing what the soldier was getting at.
“Okay. Thousands and thousands of years ago, when the three goddesses descended upon the realm of Hyrule, they unleashed their powers upon the blackness of space, forming the planet as we know it. They used wisdom, courage, and power to create the elements that would uphold the world, right?” the soldier asked.
“Yeah,” Goku answered.
“And then they left the Triforce at the point where they left Hyrule, in a land that was permanently stained gold from the power of those triangles. That land became the Sacred Realm, right?” the soldier asked.
“Yes,” Captain Falcon agreed.
“Now, during the beginning of the world, the Sacred Realm was pretty much open to well…anyone, and the goddesses saw this, so they picked a Hylia worthy of honor and respect to put into motion a plan to guard the Sacred Realm. And they picked Rauru for this job,” the soldier said.
“The Sage of Light?” Goku asked.
“Yes. Now, as part of this plan, he picked other spirit’s which could govern over the elements to aid him. Forest, fire, water, shadow, and spirit to be exact. These would become the sages. They created a temple, the Temple of Time in this very market. But of course, it wasn’t enough to deter evil ones. So they created a lock of sorts, the Master Sword, and they sealed it behind a wall called the Door of Time, which could only be opened by a playing a song, the Song of Time. But in turn, the door would only recognize the notes when played on the Ocarina of Time, and the Ocarina of Time could only be found after collecting the three sacred gems to represent unity in Hyrule, the Spiritual Stones. And of course, the Spiritual Stones were spread all throughout Hyrule, so naturally, it was a seemingly flawless plan,” the soldier explained.
“But what does this all have to do with Golem?” Captain Falcon asked.
“The Sages felt they needed one more form of protection. They took the power from elements found in Hyrule, and made guardians in the likeness of the Sage’s powers. Golem being the guardian of the Fire. In a way, the Dark Sage of Fire. He protected the spirit of fire, but was evil in mind and heart, and knew only how to kill. He was in the most technical sense, invincible. He was made so that one thing could destroy him, would something go horribly wrong and he couldn’t be controlled,” the soldier said.
“What….one thing?” Goku asked.
“The Master sword,” the soldier answered.
“He can be killed with the Master sword?!” Captain Falcon asked.
“Yes, yes, indeed. And it would be rather easy at that too,” the soldier answered.
“That isn’t an option….we need something else,” Goku said slowly.
“Hmmm……there is one other thing that could work,” the soldier said at length.
“Which is?” Captain Falcon asked.
“A Dark Sage of Water was created too. Shoruto was his name, or BlackFin in regular Hylian. He was a deceased Zoran preist who was revived from death. He was killed at the bottom of Lake Hylia, horrible horrible murder. He was resurrected by the magic of the Sages, and was incredibly powerful, even though he was….decomposed. if you were to resurrect him again, and get him to combat Golem, he would have the power to defeat him,” the soldier answered.
“And what happens when he wins and starts killing us?” Goku asked.
“He won’t. If he were to gain victory over another of his kind his power would be thrown off balance and he would die. A win-win situation,” the soldier answered.
“How do we resurrect him then?” Captain Falcon asked.
“You will need to go to Lake Hylia, to the plaque on the piece of land in the middle of the water, and speak the incantation, but it isn’t that simple. First you need to find the incantation,” the soldier said.
“Where is it?” Goku asked, standing.
“Somewhere in the uncharted areas of Hyrule, the ruins of the Hylia, there is a deserted town. Katalas it was called in it’s glory days. An incredible city of the Hylia. No one has built over it in fear of …angering the spirits that linger there. But in that town there is a crypt in the graveyard. This is no ordinary crypt. The Hylia respected the dead incredibly. It is a temple unto itself. Inside, near the end of the crypt, is the scroll. It will be near the body of the High Priest. There may be an incantation though. The High Priest was buried with the scroll, so obviously he valued it. It will be a long journey, so you might want to send others in your stead. Once you have the scroll, go to Lake Hylia and speak the incantation. From there the decisions are up to you,” the soldier said.
Goku and Captain Falcon nodded, then stood and left the room slowly to return to Death Mountain. They had a plan, but they feared it would throw them into even more turmoil than they were already in.
“Mystic Fire Attack!!!” the Dark Knight yelled, blasting the Triforce Team with the flame. Golem raised his hand, shooting a much hotter blast of magma at the team. They all felt the effects of the attacks, and were in terrible pain. Shinota blasted the Dark Knight with the Temple Link’s golden light, and Jet began another assault on Golem, striking him repeatedly with saiya-jin charged blows of his Royal Family’s sword.
Golem sliced Jet in the chest with his own blade, and he fell to his knees before the stone gargoyle. He then kicked Jet hard in the face, knocking him on his back. Golem smiled slightly, and raised his arm, after several seconds he put it down, fist clenched, then opened his palm. A stream of flame flew at Jet, singing his cloth and burning his bleeding wounds.
“You won’t do this! We’ve already proven you aren’t invincible!!!” Trunks yelled, changing to a Super Saiya-jin and clutching his blade tightly once more. He flew at full speed toward Golem, delivering blow after blow with his mighty sword, each attack surprisingly knocking Golem back toward the lava pit below. This went on until Golem had reached the edge. A smile crossed his stone face once more as he grabbed Trunk’s blade, throwing it to the side. He then clutched the saiya-jin’s head tightly, flinging him off of the platform. He laughed menacingly.
“No! An outrage!!!” Al’Rashid yelled, twisting his scimitars about and launching a whirlwind of dirt and rocks at Golem with all of the power he could muster. The creature was caught off guard, and fell from the battlefield. They all let loose a sigh of relief for a second, but within the next they saw the flying shapes of Golem and Trunks battling in the air.
“It was my orders to aid Golem, and so aid him I will!” the Dark Knight said angrily, rushing at Lord Deimos. He spun his blade around, smashing Deimos in the visor with his hilt, the black glass cracking. Deimos shoved the Dark Knight to the side, then reared his all seeing blade back with both hands, swinging at the Dark Knight with full force. His armored form flew into the air, landing just inches away from the lava.
Zelda quickly ran toward him, unsheathing her daggers. Before she had a chance to stab at the Dark Knight however, Golem blasted her in the back with lava. She fell to her knees slowly, crying out in pain. Golem laughed menacingly. Horribly angered, Jet punched Golem in the back as hard as he could with his right hand, stabbing him in the back of the knee with the blade in his left. He yelled again, whipping Jet to the side with his wings. Trunks, not willing to give up so quickly after coming back to land, launched a torrent of Ki blasts at Golem, and momentarily he was covered in a cloud of smoke.
When it ceased there was a scowl about his face, and he slammed his fist into the ground, a geyser of lava flowing up from the earth and spraying the team. Gogetta ran towards Golem, sword in hand, but was quickly pummeled by the Dark Knight, once more on his feet. The executioner threw one of his heads at the Dark Knight, and it bounced off his helmet, distracting him. Dregan then ran forward stabbing him in the back. He yelled in pain, blood spilling to the ground, then whirled around, slashing him in the chest.
Quite suddenly Golem ceased attacking and stood tall. He flexed his wings once, then nodded to the Dark Knight, and spoke, “My power is back, and the waiting is over. Now we go below, and set the plan into motion,” Golem said. The Dark Knight nodded.
“What plan?” Samus asked.
“This world is ending….we are the ushers of the apocalypse,” the Dark Knight answered, warping away with his magic. Golem did the same, and the team was left alone in the heat and flame of the crater of the mountain of death. In this moment Goku and Captain Falcon returned to the mountain.
“Did you guys kill him?!” Goku asked in shock.
“No…..the exact opposite….we bored him,” Kafei said in a low tone.
“What did you find out?” Samson asked.
“We spoke to a Hylian soldier. He told us that Golem is a dark sage, and there is another like him, a dark water sage named Shurtoken, or Blackfin. In the ruins of a Hylia town up north of the castle, there’s a crypt with an incantation. When the incantation is read on the plaque in Lake Hylia, the sage will be summoned, and he’ll fight Golem, then die due to the imbalance of power. We were sent to get a few of you to go to the Hylia city,” Captain Falcon explained.
“I’ll go,” Ogre said.
“So will I,” Al’Rashid said.
“Gogetta and Samson, you two go with them. It’ll give you experience, and you’ll be safer,” Jet said, sheathing his blade.
“But dad…..” Gogetta whined.
“No….I want you to be safe, so just do as I say,” Jet said in a stern voice.
“Okay….you kick his butt, okay?” Gogetta said.
“Heh, yeah. Will do,” Jet said with a smile. The four left the crater to head for the Hylia city, leaving the rest of the team in the mountain, wounded and weak.
“Now what?” Shinota asked.
“Now…we go to Hyrule field and fight,” Jet answered. They readied their weapons, then headed out of the crater, a long trip down through the darkness the only break they had from combat.
They had made it at length north of Hyrule castle, and they were now near to the ruins of the Hylia town. Al’Rashid and Ogre had left to look ahead at the town and try to get a layout of the land, leaving Gogetta and Samson alone.
“D’ya think dad’s gonna do it?” Gogetta asked.
“That Golem guy is strong….I don’t know if any of ‘em are gonna be able to do it,” Samson answered.
“But we never lose…we’re the good guys,” Gogetta said quietly.
“Yeah, but……..hey, Gogetta,” Samson whispered.
“What is it?” Gogetta asked, leaning in toward Samson.
“Did you hear that?” Samson asked.
“I don’t hear anything with you asking me if I heard anything like that,” Gogetta answered. Samson hit him over the head.
“You moron! Listen….it’s coming from those bushes behind is,” Samson said slowly.
“Oh no….what if it’s Golem?!” Gogetta asked.
“On the count of three, we draw our swords, turn around, and pounce like a cat!” Samson said.
“Meow!!!” Gogetta said in excitement.
“One….” Samson began.
“Two…..,” Gogetta continued.
“Three!!!!” they both yelled in unison, unsheathing their swords and jumping behind the bush. They were amazed at what they found. A boy their height with Kokiri boots and a red tunic covered in chain mail armor stood before them. He had leather gloves and a pointed red hat on, and blonde bangs hanging over his face, covering his bright blue eyes. He had a sword sheathed behind his back, his left hand clutching the hilt.
“Who are you?” Samson asked, pointing his blade toward the boy’s chest.
“My name is Link the Second,” he answered slowly.
The Crypt of the High Priest by BOEG
Chapter Ten: The Crypt of the High Priest
Golem screamed loudly, his demonic shriek echoing through all of Hyrule for as far as there were ears to hear. He raised his stone blade slowly as the Triforce Team rushed behind him, weapons drawn, stances struck. The black of the field was lit up with a flash of immense red in the sky, and the cloud over Death Mountain suddenly exploded with a brilliance far beyond anything previously seen in the Hylian sky. This cloud had been special however, it wasn’t full of rain; no, it was full of liquid magma, and it was slowly spreading across the other clouds, like a sick disease.
Down from the top of the crater of Death Mountain flowed an incredible amount of lava as well, so much so that the mountain appeared to be dyed a glowing orange in the black sky. This was Golem’s plan. To cover Hyrule in magma until all life ceased except for him and the Gruid-noms. The Triforce Team had to do something to stop it, no matter how far into the events they already were.
“Golem….they are here,” the Dark Knight said quietly, sword drawn.
“We will dispose of them,” Golem said quietly.
“Like hell!” Jet yelled, rushing at Golem with his Royal Family’s sword drawn. He struck the beast in the back, then stabbed at his knee once more, but to his shock, it did no damage. Golem laughed. He turned and faced Jet, punching him in the face. Blood flew from his mouth and onto the grass of the field just seconds before he himself fell.
“Triforce of Wisdom!!!” Zelda yelled, the golden light shining in the darkness and hitting the demonic creature. Again, the attack was useless. Samus blasted Golem with her Ice Spreader, encasing him in crystalline ice. Impa ran forward, cutting the left wing from Golem’s back with her machete. The warm blood of the creature melted the ice, and it cried out inhumanly, slashing at Impa. The Sheikah blocked with her machete, throwing a Deku nut to the ground and disappearing in the flash, reappearing several feet away.
“Do not stand dormant, attack! Attack!!!” Golem screamed at the Dark Knight, blood spilling to the grass at an alarming rate. He nodded, slashing at Shinota, who ducked, digging in his satchel and throwing a handful of his poison powder at the Dark Knight. He screamed loudly, the grains penetrating his visor and stinging his eyes. Shinota followed up by stabbing the Dark Knight in the shoulder with his dagger.
Things again were going in the favor of the Triforce Team, but with a flash of white light their hopes were cut down to nearly nothing. There was a dark laugh, followed by the sound of a large blade formulating from nothing, and all slowly turned to face the third evil, Mandrag Ganon.
“Heh heh heh….I do hope you all know just how serious I am being when I say I will be the only one who will leave this field alive,” Ganon said with a grimacing smile.
“We don’t have the time for this Ganon,” Zelda said, readying her whip.
“Neither do I your highness, neither do I,” Ganon said, raising his fist and outstretching his palm. The dark matter in his hand exploded into thousands of electrified black ropes, each one flying into someone in the battlefield, piercing the skin or armor, wrapping around limbs, even tripping. The might of Golem was even tested. Ganon had gotten even stronger. The team had small hopes of victory in this moment.
“So….you’re really Link II?” Gogetta asked.
“The one and only….except….second,” Link II answered.
“Well where’s your dad? My dad’s been looking for your dad for next to forever,” Gogetta asked.
“I don’t know my dad. I was raised by a man named Lei,” Link II answered.
“Where is he?” Samson asked.
“He should be up-,” Link II was cut off.
“I’m right here,” Lei answered. He was dressed in the blue armor of the Doomknocker warriors, a blade sheathed at his side, and two battleaxes behind his back.
“You’re a….a….,” Samson’s voice trailed off.
“I’m a Hylian….in disguise,” Lei said, removing the blue helmet. He had short brown hair and yellow eyes like that of a wolf.
“Oh! Well how did you find Link II?” Gogetta asked.
“That is a story that I will tell in much detail later, preferably with your parents, for now, what are you two doing here?” Lei asked.
“They are here with us. We are looking for the Scroll of Shurutoken,” Ogre answered, appearing behind Gogetta and Samson.
“That’s in the Crypt of the High Priest!” Link II exclaimed in shock.
“So?” Ogre asked.
“So!!!? So!!!!? The Hylia High Priest was an incredibly powerful wizard! There’s not a doubt in my mind that the crypt is rigged with booby traps!” Link II answered.
“I apologize. He is young and speaks his mind without thoughts for the repercussion. But I must also question the saneness of such a decision. Why do you seek this scroll?” Lei asked.
“We need to summon Blackfin,” Al’Rashid answered.
“Are you mad?!” Lei asked in disbelief.
“No. We plan to use his powers to defeat Golem,” Al’Rashid answered.
“Golem is awakened?! …very well. We will aid you in the city, but I must meet with the king in return for my knowledge,” Lei said.
“I can do ya’ one better. Being the prince of Hyrule and all….I might be able to get you on the team,” Gogetta said.
“What about me?!” Link II asked, pouting.
“You’re already on the team. You were from birth,” Samson explained.
“Yay!!!!” Link II yelled happily.
“Now….let us go,” Lei said slowly, latching his helmet back about his face.
“This is my world! Any who challenge that one fact will taste pain!” Ganon yelled, blasting dark orbs at all on the field. Golem angrily blasted magma at Ganon, a smoking burn now breaching through his armor. Jet ran forward, sword in hand, shooting the Dark Knight with a Ki blast, followed directly by a stab to the shoulder. He angrily swung his blade down, cutting Jet in the shoulder. He backed away, bleeding.
Kafei attacked Golem, blasting him with the Mystic Ice, then attacking with his dagger. Samus followed a similar pattern, attacking with the Ice Beam and Diffusion missiles, then lashing out with something more powerful. He was being wore down slowly, but they knew he had something up his sleeve. Chances were by the time they wore him to the brink of defeat he would pull another trick to make the fight impossible to win once more.
“Mystic Light!!!!” Zelda yelled, firing the pure beams at the King of Evil. He was hurt and bleeding, but made no notice, launching a blade of dark matter in Zelda’s way. She leapt to the side, whipping Ganon in the side of the face, causing blood to run down his face from the wound made. The Dark Knight raised his fist, charging the magic of the Mystic Fire into his palm slowly, aiming it at Zelda’s back.
Lord Deimos ran at the Dark Knight quickly, and he redirected the aim of his attack, launching it at Deimos instead, he batted the fire into the distance, impaling the Dark Knight upon his blade. With a loud cry of demonic tone the Dark Knight dropped his blade, falling to his knees, the length of the blade in his chest and sticking out of his back, a profuse amount of blood running down the metal and onto the grass below him. He struggled for several seconds as if he was trying to speak, then went limp. Deimos kicked the corpse off of his blade, wiping it clean.
The ruins of the Hylia city were incredible, the very buildings and roads under a blue hue from the darkening night sky. It was indeed the only place in Hyrule beyond the black clouds of Golem’s dark spell. Even though this itself was probably the effect of another spell, they couldn’t complain. The light, no matter how small, was much better than the shadow the rest of the world had been cast into.
They headed quickly into the graveyard, past the grand houses of blue and green, and into a much more desolate area. The graves were covered in webs from the colony of Skulltulas living near the graveyard, but the crypt at the head of the area was surprisingly clean.
“Even the animals and insects stay away from this place….that is how dark of a feeling it conveys,” Lei said slowly.
“Yeah, I don’t want to do this very much,” Link II said slowly.
“Yes, but we have to…you have shown us the crypt, if you wish to leave we will not judge you,” Ogre said.
“No…I need to talk to the king….and I will aid you to earn that right. To whatever end you may meet in this crypt. It is that urgent,” Lei said without a tone of indecision in his voice.
“Very well then, we travel,” Al’Rashid began.
“Stop! It’s gonna be real dark-like in there, right? So let’s just light things up a bit, eh?” Link II said with a grin, pulling a Deku stick from a bag strapped to his belt. He started a fire and lit the stick with such speed and precision one would think he had used magic from the very heavens.
“Alright, not, let’s do this!” Samson yelled. They slowly walked in.
“That’s one down!” Ganon said in reference to the Dark Knight. He formed a long double bladed staff out of his seemingly infinite supply of dark matter. The Dark Knight was dead, but Golem and Ganon had gotten stronger, and the odds were still highly stacked against them.
The Scroll and it's Guard by BOEG
They crept their way through the black tunnels of the crypt slowly, the dim light of Link II’s Deku stick the only thing keeping the six from complete shadow. The crypt was very desolate, yet the feeling of dread that hung in the air was stronger than maybe even that of Death Mountain Crater.
The Hylia, even in death obviously held great sway over their ancestors the Hylians. They were crafty men and women, and they had likely cast spells all over the catacombs for the mere purpose of striking terror into grave robbers hearts. Al’Rashid hoped the spirit’s would understand the urgency of their task. They had to revive BlackFin, it was the only way possible at the moment to kill Golem.
“Hey, I think this is it!” Gogetta yelled, running ahead. The narrow pathways of the catacombs opened into a larger room suddenly, and there in the center of the room was a large wooden casket marked with red spell components. They couldn’t read what the spells said, but they could make a good guess. Next to the coffin was a wooden chest latched shut with a golden lock. Lei kneeled before the chest, breaking the lock with one of his axes. He carefully lifted the lid open, grabbing the tightly rolled scroll of yellowed parchment in his armored hand and slowly giving it to Al’Rashid.
“All right! Much simpler than I had expected!,” Al’Rashid exclaimed in excitement. Right after he finished the sentence the lid of the coffin moved. It slowly slid off the base and onto the stone ground of the dimly lit crypt. Out of the coffin came a rotting corpse of a Hylia, a vibrantly colored headdress about his skull, his eyes glowing a faint white. It spoke slowly, in a ghastly voice.
“Return it,” it said calmly.
“We need this,” Al’Rashid said, putting the scroll inside a pouch latched to his belt and readying his scimitars.
“Return it!” it yelled.
“Who are you to tell us what to do?” Ogre asked, his golden shield shining in the slight light of the chamber.
“I am Argoro, the high priest of the Hylia, I demand….you return the scroll,” it said, obviously agitated. It’s eyes flashed a fierce green and a strange smoke emerged from the ground, swarming around them all and seemingly cutting off the oxygen in the crypt. Al’Rashid spun his blades around, cutting through the weak skin of the priest. He was knocked back, but to their dismay, his wounds healed before their very eyes.
Lei attacked with his axes, getting the same results. Link II stepped forward, stabbing the priest in the chest and then swinging his Deku stick around. It caught fire, falling to the ground and letting out a cry of anger and anguish.
“You may take the scroll…..but the cost will be much greater than any fate you may have suffered here,” the high priest uttered angrily with his dying breath, it’s flaming body slowly dying to a halt and it’s spirit leaving the planet. It was now but a trip to Lake Hylia, then they would have the power to defeat Golem. They could only guess at the meaning of the High Priest’s words however.
Goku was once more a super saiya-jin, rushing at Ganon then delivering a barrage of punches. He blocked several, then was hit in the face, blood running from his mouth. He leapt into the air, back flipping in what seemed like slow motion and landing several feet away. He wiped his chin slowly, blasting several fireballs at Goku. The attacks caught him off guard, each and every one hitting him, the sparks of the magic lighting up the black field, Goku’s cries of pain unsettling and weakening the team.
“I can’t take this….I’m gonna take him down,” Jet said, turning to Zelda.
“Isn’t that the point?” Zelda asked him.
“I mean I’m not going to stop….not until one of us is dead…” Jet said angrily.
“Honey…..no…I won’t stop you. Just…be careful,” Zelda said slowly. Jet kissed her slowly, unsheathing his sword and running at the King of Evil. He delivered a powerful left slash with his blade, then he reared back, making a stab at Ganon. The King of Evil countered the stab with a blast of dark matter. With a grim smile Ganon formed yet another blade out of the black mass held in his hands. This time it was long and thin like a staff, two blades extending out of either end. He spun the blade around his head twice, bringing it down upon Jet the last time. He stepped to the side, the blade extending into the ground.
“You won’t….escape this time Ganon,” Jet said, his tone dark and serious.
“I don’t plan to escape, my dear fool. I plan to stay here until you are all dead, then claim the world as my own. After of course, I extract the Triforce pieces from your dead bodies,” Ganon said with a grin. Jet wasted no more time with words, backhanding Ganon and then kneeing him in the chest before he had a chance to draw his ebbing blade from the ground. He angrily head butted Jet, twirling his blade about in the air once more, stabbing Jet in the shoulder. The blade went through and planted itself in the ground, and Jet was pinned.
“No! hang on man!” Shinota yelled, blade in hand. He ran toward Ganon quickly, but the bleeding angered form of Golem stepped in front of him. He angrily sliced Shinota in the chest with his blade, the Zedusrian spinning around in the air and hitting the ground hard on his back. He turned over slowly, coughing up blood. Golem angrily kicked him in the chest, knocking him back to the ground.
“Your time…is nearly over,” Golem said calmly.
“Don’t dream it!” Trunks yelled, shooting Golem in the back with a ki blast. He turned to face the saiya-jin.
“I know not whether you are brave, or suicidal. But either motive will end with the same result,” Golem said darkly, walking slowly toward Trunks. He raised the arm where his blade was fixed as he walked, poised to strike. He took a mighty swing, but Trunks parried, countering with a slash of his own. It did nothing positive, but it did prove to Golem that the saiya-jin could hold his own.
Samus shot several missiles at Ganon, leaving the battlefield in a cloud of smoke and flame for several seconds. When all subsided Jet stood on one knee, as did the King of Evil, both bleeding and battered, but still prepared to fight.
“Thanks Samus,” Jet said between heavy breaths. She only nodded.
“Boroku….Aquai…..Sha….Syentocurious!!!!!” Ogre yelled in a dark menacing voice over the water of Lake Hylia.
“That was it, right?” Samson asked, arms crossed in impatience.
“Yes…” Lei answered.
“Now…how long do you figure it will take before we know if it worked?” Al’Rashid asked. He was almost instantly answered. Several bubbles slowly rose to the surface of the lake’s black water. At first they were few and small, but after several minutes they were large and unceasing.
“Let’s go and aid the team. This may take awhile. I told Shurutoken in the incantation what it was I was tasking him to do and where it was he was to fight,” Ogre said.
“Yeah, we need to help them out as best as we can,” Al’Rashid agreed. They quickly headed back across the wooden rope bridge linking the land together. They would try to stall Golem for as long as possible in the hopes that Blackfin would indeed awaken.
Red lightning cracked through the sky, the thick black clouds growing closer and closer to the shaded earth the warriors fought on. It would be soon that Golem’s great plague would come to pass and all of Hyrule would be covered in a thick blanket of molten rock, it’s every citizen dead. The Triforce Team had but one choice. They had to fight, they had to battle constantly no matter how useless it was until they defeated the evil or could fight no more. To this oath they held true, especially in the dark hour they were now faced with.
Dregan launched a spirit at Golem, the tormented soul knocking him back but not hurting him. He laughed, spraying Dregan with magma. Zelda took his place, blasting Golem with the Mystic Light. He was momentarily blinded, and in this moment Impa delivered a heavy slash at his remaining wing. Black blood spilled to the ground, and Golem angrily raised his fist into the air. He spun his arm around, then planted his fist back into the ground. Zelda knew what it was he was doing before she even felt the effect. A dome of flame surrounded his body, then extended nearly the entire length of the field. Golem knew how to cast Din’s Fire.
Almost everyone was instantly on their knees in pain, weapons dropped, except for Jet and Ganon, who had taken to the air. Jet had charged his powers once again into the super saiya-jin form, his eyes burning a fierce white and his sharp body spikes making for a fierce appearance in the blackened sky. He launched punch after punch at Ganon, each contact he made piercing the King of Evil’s skin with the large spikes emerging from his fists.
“Not…a bad idea,” Ganon said angrily, kneeing Gotet in the chest with his spiked armor. Blood ran from his mouth and he began to fall, but Ganon grabbed a hold of him by the arm, then swung him high into the air. With a dark smile he charged dark matter into his hand, forming another blade, and waited silently for Gotet to fall upon it. The King of Evil was suddenly knocked to the ground by a heavy hit to the back of the head. He looked up at the sky and saw the form of Ogre, carrying Jet to safety.
“We’re ba-ack,” Samson grinned, unsheathing his sword.
“You children offend my senses!” Ganon yelled, raising his fists and charging the Black Hole attack. With an angered yell he launched the five fireballs at Samson and Ogre. Gogetta and Samson single handedly deflected four of the fireballs, the last batted back by Link II.
“That’s right Fart face, just try and take us down,” Gogetta said with a smile.
“Arungh!!!!” Ganon yelled angrily blasting a fireball in their direction. Link the II slashed it back at Ganon. With a scowl he deflected it again. This went on and the King of Evil grew impressed with the new child’s skills. He caught the fireball and threw it into the air, wanting to speak to the child. “You have quite a bit of skill for someone of your age, child. If I didn’t know better I might have thought that you were….no…..no!” Ganon screamed, examining the child’s face closer.
“What’s wrong?” Link II asked.
“You…are the descendent of the Hero of Time!!!!” Ganon screamed in disbelief.
“Somethin’ wrong with that?” Link II asked.
“You….you’re the one I ordered to kill him!” Ganon yelled to Lei.
“Yeah…I am,” Lei said.
“Why didn’t you then?! Foolish Doomknocker!!!” Ganon yelled.
“I didn’t kill him because I didn’t want to see this world dictated by a greedy thieve like you. And for the record, I’m a Hylian, my name is Lei,” Lei said coldly.
“No….no!!!! ahh…it matters not!!!!” Ganon screamed, floating into the air. The Triforce of Power glowed on his hand, and a blue light surrounded him. He slowly transformed into the familiar boar-like beast. He drew his golden spear and sword, smashing his tail into the earth angrily. He slashed at Link II, the child just barely blocking the enormous blade with his own tiny sword. Ganon angrily whipped him with his massive tail and he fell to the ground. The King of Evil reared his spear back, ready to impale the child.
“Tetraforce Power!!!!” Jet yelled, blasting Ganon in the hand. His spear dropped to the ground behind him, then fell into two pieces. Ganon shrugged his shoulders, then reared his blade back. Lei ran forward, drawing his sword. He pinned Ganon’s tail into the ground, blood spurting out of the wound. The King of Evil dropped his sword, screaming in pain.
“It seems like they’re having quite a good time over there…but after all, it is my celebration. So let us make things more exciting. Come forth!!!!” Golem yelled. Nearly instantly out of the shadows came the entire clan of Gruid-noms. They carried clubs with pointed rocks tied to the ends, or large stones as their weapons.
“Oh no….” Kafei said in disbelief. He shook his head, drawing his dagger and rushing at the Gruid-noms. The other’s slowly followed.
Ganon angrily raised his fists into the air, surrounding them in dark matter. The black masses formed into a substance as hard as metal, and Ganon thrust his fists toward Link II. He rolled to the side, stabbing Ganon in the arm.
“Akvar!!!” Al’Rashid yelled, a mass of swirling sand flying at the King of Evil. Ogre unlatched his shield from his arm and threw it with full force at Ganon’s face, splitting his lip. Samson and Gogetta then ran forward, each taking turns stabbing him in the tail. Lei rounded the assault off by throwing his axes into Ganon’s chest. With a mighty flash of light and a cry of pain Ganon was again back to his humanoid form. He was on his knees, blood spilling out of his wounds quicker than he could hope to stop. He slowly stood.
“Now that I know you live….small child…I will work seven times as hard to kill you all….” He said, warping away quickly. Jet slowly walked toward them.
“Just….what the hell is going on?” Jet asked, confused.
“Well, we were on our way to the crypt of the high priest when we met up with these two,” Al’Rashid explained.
“And who are these two?” Jet asked.
“I’m Link II,” Link II said cheerfully.
“What?!?” Jet asked, mouth open in shock.
“Umm….I’m Link II? If it makes ya’ that confused you can call me something else mister,” Link II said slowly.
“You’re alive?!” Jet asked.
“I sure hope so…” Link II answered.
“And who are you?” Jet asked.
“My name is Lei. I am a Hylian spy who was sent into Ganon’s army to learn of his plans against Hyrule. I’ve been disguised as a Doomknocker for countless years now. When I heard of Ganon’s plan for a soldier in his army to capture and then kill Link II I volunteered, because I knew it would be the only way either of us would make it much longer,” Lei answered.
“So….you raised him?” Jet asked.
“Yes, but he knows who his father was. He knows the Hero of Time’s legend. He always wanted to be a hero like that, and so I raised him and clothed him and taught him how to fight in the closest way to Link I knew how,” Lei answered.
“You said he knows who his father was,” Jet said in a low tone.
“Yes, isn’t it a known fact that Link has been dead for years now?” Lei asked.
“What?! How do you know this?” Jet asked in disbelief.
“Well I don’t….not for sure. But that’s the only way the Hero of Time would ever abandon Hyrule in times of need,” Lei answered.
“I…..don’t believe it,” Jet said bitterly.
“I’m sorry, but you know it in your heart to be true…you can feel it, can’t you?” Lei asked.
“You guys….help them fight Golem…I hope that this Shurutoken gets here soon. I have something I need to do,” Jet said, sheathing his blade and whistling loudly. His steed Firestar quickly ran toward him. He mounted quickly, then rode in the direction of Kokiri Forest.
“Jet! Come on, this is foolish!” Ogre yelled. He didn’t respond, but only rode quicker.
“Well….you heard him, let’s fight!” Al’Rashid said. Ogre nodded. The six ran toward Golem, weapons ready. Yoshimitsu sliced at Golem several times, performing his Doorknocker move, causing the creature to stumble back. Golem smacked Yoshimitsu to the side, and Kafei took his place, blasting away at Golem with his Mystic Ice. He was again frozen. Captain Falcon drew his pistol, shooting Golem numerous times, small pieces of the rock cracking away. He broke free of the ice, screaming loudly.
Samus unloaded a Sunburst on Golem, the rays of light exploding upon him. He was again blinded, and Lord Deimos ran at him, clubbing him in the face with the Mace of Tannis, then taking off his remaining wing completely. With an incredibly loud scream, the black clouds in the sky drew closer to Hyrule, and drops of lava slowly began to fall. Suddenly, out of nowhere, almost as if to combat the lava there came an immense amount of normal rain from the direction of Lake Hylia.
Out of the black darkness came a creature standing as tall as Golem. It’s skin was a blue color, and it had a robe tied from the waist down, a long sleeve on it’s right arm, a dagger with a spiked hilt hanging out from the sleeve. It was obviously a Zora, albeit an undead one. It had several holes in it’s head, and part of it’s head tail had indeed been devoured to the point where all that remained was the bone. It’s face had been eaten away by the ravenous fish, leaving the left part of it’s skull completely exposed, the right part of it’s face still covered in sinewy skin. The skin of it’s lips had melded together from centuries of being buried under the lake. It opened it’s mouth slowly, the motion of it’s jaw for the first time since it’s creation ripping apart the skin closing it’s mouth. There was a belt around it’s chest and a large bleeding spear wound near to it. It’s upper right arm had been partially eaten away, but it was still very muscular. This was Shurutoken.
“It knows to attack Golem right?” Zelda asked.
“Yes, that is what I said in the incantation,” Ogre answered. Never mind what side he was on, it was a truly terrifying and apocalyptic scene. Blackfin raised it’s hand, and hundreds of droplets of stinging water flew at Golem. He backed away, grunting in what was obvious pain. He retaliated with a blast of lava at Blackfin. It went on like this for several seconds, and Zelda stepped in. She blasted Golem with her Mystic Light once more, and then to her shock, she was stabbed by Blackfin.
“Get out of my way. You thought you knew what you were getting into did you not, Ogre? Heh heh heh….I will kill Golem, yes. But then I will take over Hyrule with my control of the seas! The land will be drowned, and all life will cease, and then my power will radiate through all of the land and I will be a god unto myself,” Shurutoken said with a laugh. Ogre couldn’t believe it. He had just unleashed a terror equal to that of Golem. They may have defeated Ganon and the Dark Knight, but Blackfin was stronger than both combined. They had to kill two of the Dark Sages, or Hyrule would be lost.
The Elemental Apocalypse by BOEG
Chapter Twelve: Elemental Apocalypse
The fight had been raging on for nearly an hour between all three sides when Shurutoken’s first wave of black water came. It knocked most to the ground, stinging their eyes and filling their mouth with a sickening flavor not different from blood. The water from the stream meshed in with the water from Shurutoken’s magic, and in almost no time the field had began to flood, only a couple of inches, but still progress to Blackfin’s cause. It still rained magma from the black skies, and the burning ashes glided softly along the water, almost in a surreal fashion as the ones causing it were battling to the death. Not just to the death of each other, but to the death of all.
Golem slashed at Blackfin with his blade, the Zora parrying then kneeing him in the chest. He backed up, into the waiting arms of the executioner, who picked him up, then slammed him down into the water. He stood, beating the executioner to the side then continuing his battle with Blackfin. He launched another blast of magma in Blackfin’s direction, and he was hit, a searing hole forming in his flesh. He angrily thrust his dagger in front of him, launching an icicle as hard as metal straight into Golem’s chest. Blood spattered from the wound, falling into the diseased water.
“No! This was meant to be my world! I will not accept this!!!” Golem yelled, casting Din’s Fire once more. Blackfin hit the ground with a large splash, and raised his fist. Another large wave flew from the direction of Lake Hylia, adding to the flooding field. Meanwhile, the Triforce team was still trying desperately to destroy the Gruid-noms. Their corpses already littered the field, the lighter ones carried away by the water. It seemed however, that for every one they killed, three more moved to replace them. Neither of the Dark Sages was tiring, and the field was becoming more and more in ruin. They were losing help, but then it came once again in the most unlikely of ways.
A Gruid-nom was hit in the head with a large stone, and he fell to the ground, bleeding and dead. Another was decapitated by a set of razor sharp fins. The team turned slowly, and there before them stood the Gorons and Zoras.
“You guys! Why did you come?!” Zelda asked gleefully, impaling a Gruid-nom as she talked.
“These things are mockeries of what we are. We don’t wish to dominate the world, we love to eat and sleep, and the Zoras love to swim and bring peace. So in order to respect our lifestyles, we figured we had to help to here,” a Goron answered.
“Yes. It was Darunia and Ruto that made us aware of the situation,” a Zora answered.
“The Sages?” Zelda asked.
“Yes, they would come and aid us but they can’t at the moment, they are struggling with something much more important,” the Zora answered. This made Zelda’s heart sink for a reason she couldn’t place her finger on, but she shrugged the matter off, something she had learned from her husband.
“I don’t see the king. He’s alright isn’t he?!” a Goron asked.
“He isn’t okay, no. None of us are. But he’s alive. He left,” Zelda said.
“Why would the very king of this realm leave in such a time of need?” a Zora asked.
“Jet always has a reason for what he does….he’ll come through for us,” Zelda said, silently trying to believe the words herself. The Gorons and Zoras entered the battlefield.
With every wave that splashed against Hyrule’s green field the waters came closer and closer to reaching the safe haven of the Kokiri forest. Not that it was necessarily a good place to be anyway, as though the elevation kept the land from the flooding, the sky was the same no matter where you were, and the dripping magma that fell from the black sky like tears of misery hit the ground quickly, leaving burning holes in the once lush grass and soil.
The Kokiri were hidden in their houses, and they were lucky. The wood of the forest was very resilient against fire, one of the first gifts the Great Deku Tree had granted the realm in its beginnings. Jet had moved on from the forest however, and from the safety of houses, he was now in the midst of the Lost Woods, somewhere past the Sacred Forest Meadow. He had gone on a less known path, but a path nonetheless. To him it didn’t matter if few had traveled the path, he didn’t even care if it led to nothing, it was his path to follow now, and he would take it to the end. He only hoped he would find something worthy of the search at the end.
Gruid-noms were dying at a rate quicker than most gifted mathematicians could count. The people with less combat on their hands than others could no longer tell if it was the blood falling in the water, or the water in the blood. There were so many limbs laying around on the ground still twitching and bleeding that it seemed as if the ground itself was alive, trying desperately not to drown in the liquid that covered it.
With every punch delivered, or stab of a blade, or solid hit with a magical spell someone was hurt, or someone died. There was now no such thing as a wasted attack. There was not a standstill, there was an all out apocalypse raging on. You could look outside from the safety of the market or you could just look up at the sky and you’d still get the same feeling. the feeling that the world is getting smaller and eventually there won’t be enough room for you because you don’t serve enough of a purpose. But maybe this was what the Dark Sages were trying to accomplish even more so than the ultimate destruction of the land. It was impossible to tell. Still the fight went on. In a battle you think only about what the opponent will do next, never his reasoning behind the previous move.
A clearing was ahead. Finally there was an escape from the seemingly infinite amount of trees and thorny bushes that Jet had been running through at an alarming rate for near to two hours. This had to be it. He knew it in his heart. He ran the last stretch of closed off unused path quickly and there he finally was. In the forest clearing. In front of him exactly what he was looking for. Exactly what he knew he would find. Link slowly turned to face him.
“What are you doing here?” Link asked slowly, the wind blowing around them both, sending drops of the magma rain careening into walls.
“I’m looking for you,” Jet answered.
“Why would you do something like that?” Link asked.
“We need you,” Jet declared.
“No you don’t,” Link said with just as much certainty in his voice, if not more.
“Yes….we do,” Jet said again.
“Why would you need me? Because it’s raining?” Link asked, laughing.
“Funny. Funny fucking shit, man, really. Do you know what’s going on out there?!” Jet asked, pointing in the direction of the field.
“Yeah yeah yeah…somethin’ bad right? So go handle it,” Link said.
“You think I didn’t try?!” Jet asked.
“You’re the king! You’re the hero now! They write about you now!” Link said, pointing at Jet.
“Well fine, give me your sword and then they can write about me again,” Jet said sarcastically. Link unsheathed the blade and threw it to Jet. He caught it quickly, the blade just barely missing his foot.
“Are you fucking psychotic?!” Jet asked.
“C’mon man, it’s just a sword,” Link said with a smile.
“The fuck it’s just a sword! Throwing that around like it’s a basketball or something!” Jet yelled.
“What you don’t want it?” Link asked.
“No! I want you to help us!” Jet yelled, planting the sword back in the ground.
“I’m sorry. I can’t. Even if I wanted to. I’m not a hero anymore. How can I protect Hyrule if I couldn’t even protect my son?” Link asked.
“Link….he’s alive,” Jet said slowly.
“W-what?” Link asked.
“Link II is alive…he’s on the field fighting right now. He looks up to you more than anyone in the world, even though you might as well be a fairytale to him. He dresses the same way, fights the same way…everything. He wants to be just like the Hero of Time in the old stories,” Jet said.
“No……not the Hero of Time in the old stories man….just….the Hero of Time,” Link said, eyeballing the blade in the ground that he hadn’t handled in almost ten years. He picked it up slowly.
“That sword, and the fact that you’re the Hero of Time…you’re the only one who can kill Golem and Shurutoken….they’re the Dark Sages. Kill them, and all of our problems will be over,” Jet said.
“Well…what are we waiting for?” Link asked. Jet nodded, and the two headed for the field as quick as their tired limbs would carry them. Link didn’t have confidence in himself, no. But he knew he had to fight. And he would.
There were casualties on both sides, Gorons, Zoras, and Gruid-noms were dying at an alarming rate. The black water was up to knee level, and the magma rain continued to fall from the sky, the sounds of war and death loud in the field. Zelda was beginning to wonder what hope they had. Blackfin was the one thing they had been counting on to kill Golem, and now even if it did it would still try desperately to kill them, and it would not stop until all life ceased and Hyrule was buried beneath the waves.
Shurutoken stabbed at Golem, who angrily parried with his sword. The two were at a complete standstill, neither had been hurt for hours now. It was the all too mortal Triforce Team that was suffering the most. Everyone had sustained terrible burns and other injuries in the mountain crater, and they themselves were on the brink of death, but they couldn’t let go, not now anyway. They fought. They fought with everything they had left. Gruid-noms were dying by the handful, and ever so slowly their numbers were staying down.
“Poor pathetic mortals…are these foul Gruid-noms giving you so much trouble? I will aid you, in return for waking me up,” Blackfin said with a smile on his sinewy face. He raised his hand as high into the air as it would go, then he formed a fist, aiming his arm straight forward.
“Gorons, get on our backs!!!” a Zora called loudly. They all complied. The Zoras could sense something bad happening. They had always been in tune with the oceans and rivers and streams, and now they felt a power greater than any previous force felt in six generations of Zoran lives. A wall of water nearly sixty feet in height lashed out from nowhere, spewing spray from all directions like a mighty bull, untamed with it’s saliva dripping from it’s mighty maw. Zelda used every last amount of magic she had, casting Nayru’s love on the Triforce Team, the entire group now next to each other.
The massive wall slammed into the ground with such force that it tore asunder land, and it’s reach was far, it’s creeping tendrils and massive limbs lashing out and flooding the ranch and castle, even the village of Kakariko. There was now but a single small peak of land above water level, and atop it stood Golem and Blackfin. The Triforce Team was swimming about in the water around the area, trying to stay conscious, or trying to find higher land. The Zoras still carried the Gorons on their backs, alive but unsound. They swam swiftly looking for areas of Hyrule uninfected by the water. Every Gruid-nom was now dead, an entire species, extinct.
“You….took my children!!!!” Golem screamed, his voice making ripples in the water. Without another word he thrust his blade through Blackfin’s chest, then thrust his other fist into the Dark Sage’s mouth. He ripped out Shurutoken’s bleeding skull, throwing it to the ground and breaking it into thousands of pieces with his foot. Blackfin’s body fell to the ground in what seemed slow motion to those watching. It quietly burst into blue flame, light reflecting off of the waves and bathing the field in a glow.
Kafei looked around in awe, realizing that the dagger Blackfin had been using was now sheathed behind his back. He had no time to marvel at this strange occurrence however, as Golem again began to angrily yell, his blade raised in the air. It didn’t take the team long to realize he was yelling out spell components into the air. They knew this was it. They had to something to stop him, or else Hyrule was lost. Zelda quickly made it to the land where Golem was standing, blasting him with her Mystic Light at point blank range. It did nothing, and Golem angrily punched her in the chest, knocking her back into the water.
“My…world!!!!” Golem screamed, his eyes glowing red. He sprayed a dully colored liquid all around into the water with his sword, then he blasted the water with a single flame. The entire flooded area caught fire, the world seemingly lit ablaze. No one was able to fight. They already were in the most technical sense, fighting to stay alive.
“Heh….in a mere few minutes….your world….will be mine! Every living soul….in Hyrule….will explode….with a spell known as the Eternal Flame….they will combust….they will die….those you love….those you care for….those you’ve never even spoke to…they die because of your actions….they die a painful, terribly painful death…and you will do…nothing about it!!! I…will….ru-,” Golem didn’t finish the sentence, but instead cried out in pain, a flash of light behind his back. He turned slowly, an arrow sticking into his body, blood running down his back. Jet appeared in the water with the others.
“Come on you guys, we have to swim out to land quick. Trust me, everything’s under control,” Jet ordered. They all gained a surge of strength from once more seeing their leader, just enough energy to make it to the land Jet spoke of. He swam quickly to Zelda.
“Jet…I tried to stop this,” she said quietly.
“I know….it’s all okay….everything’s okay now. Golem, Malon, everything’s fine. I love you,” Jet said, staring his wife in the eyes for the first time in a long while. She saw his blue eyes, that sense of burning passion for battle and adventure that Jet had lacked for years…ever since Link had left. It was back now, and it was like a piece of Jet had returned.
“I love you too,” Zelda said.
“Let’s go,” Jet said. Zelda nodded, and the two headed for land.
Link punched Golem in the face. He laughed.
“You think that’s going to wound me? After all of the warriors I have fought in these last days, you think that will hurt me? What makes you special?” Golem asked, punching Link in the chest. A smile grew on his lips, even as blood streamed down his chin. He kicked Golem. The Dark Sage sliced in Link’s direction, and he blocked with his Hylian shield, parrying with another kick. Golem head butted the Hylian hard in the face, and he fell to his knees.
“Golem…I am your Angel of Death….I am the beginning of your end…I let you beat me around a little,” Link began, standing and wiping the blood from his mouth with his clenched fist. “So that you didn’t feel so bad about yourself in Hell,” Link finished.
“You jest,” Golem said laughing.
“We’ll see,” Link said, unsheathing the shining metal of the Master Sword, the blade of evil’s bane. Golem stepped backward.
“You recognize it then?” Link asked.
“It is a replica…it must be,” Golem said in disbelief. With a single spinning stroke Link cut Golem’s arm from his body.
“No! I will not give up! Not so close to the end!” Golem screamed. He punched Link with all of the force he had. The Hero of Time blocked with the blade, then stabbed Golem in the chest. He brought the blade out quickly, then brought it down upon Golem’s head, cleaving his skull through the middle. With one last cry, the black stone and bleeding body burst into red flame, and the magma rain ceased, the Eternal Flame spell reverted to nothing. Link wiped his blade clean, then sheathed it. The waters would soon disappear. He had done it. He quickly ran to the others.
“I can’t believe….you actually came back,” Shinota said in disbelief. The sword Golem had wielded was now in Shinota’s hand, similar to what had happened to Kafei with Blackfin, but he had not the time to care.
“I…can’t believe I’m back either,” Link said.
“Link…there is someone who wants to see you,” Lei said, interrupting the conversation. He stepped to the side, and Link II stood behind him. He walked slowly to Link.
“Dad….?” Link II asked.
“I….” Link stammered.
“Are you okay?” Link II asked.
“I love you,” Link said, embracing the child tightly, tears streaming down his face. He chuckled lightly, eyes closed. He couldn’t believe it. His son was alive. It was really the child he had not seen for ten years, safe in his arms.
“What about Hyrule?” Zelda whispered in Jet’s ear.
“What about it?” Jet asked.
“The damages….the lives lost…” Zelda said.
“There’s time Zelda….I’ve got a great feeling that there’s lots of time now,” Jet said, putting his arm around her. She smiled. He was right. They had won. Hyrule was safe, despite the state it was in. the black clouds had disappeared from the sky, and the sun would soon rise. The Triforce Team would meet the day together, truly together, for the first time in a decade.
Part II: A Fallen Kingdom and a Rising Army by BOEG
Chapter One: A Fallen Kingdom and a Rising Army
Bright blue skies. Large yellow sun. Intense light and heat shining down on the scorching sands surrounding the wooden square the two were standing on. It was the middle of nowhere, but in the heat of a moment like this, it might as well be the only place left in the world. A ray of light hit the blade as it cut through the air and was parried by another blade.
“It’s as hot as hell out here,” Jet said, slicing in the direction of the second blade again. He wore tightly bound baggy green pants with a sash of the same color, and his yin-yang was about his neck. He wore no shirt, nor shoes. The wood the fighter’s stood on was very finely finished, indeed it would take much exerted effort to get a splinter.
“Truly disappointing comparison from someone who has been there close to six times,” Kenji said with a smirk, dressed as he always was, long black hair tied down in a pony tail behind his back. Kenji spun his blade around, slashing in Jet’s direction. It was parried and countered, the blow aimed low and to the legs. Kenji leapt high above the attack, kicking Jet. He caught his opponents leg, and pushed him back.
“Yeah, I suppose Hell is hotter…but I haven’t been there in a good while, so…yeah,” Jet said, stabbing in Kenji’s direction. Kenji blocked, and Jet attempted the stab again. Kenji held his long katana with both hands like a quarterstaff, blocking each blow delivered by Jet then hitting him in the chest with his hilt. He backed up, spinning his blade around and to his side, sheathing it quickly and launching his chakram in the direction of the scorching sands.
“You know how bad that sounds right?” Kenji asked, laughing.
“Hey, you go there almost everyday!” Jet said.
“Yes, but I go to Heaven the same amount…” Kenji said, punching Jet in the arm.
“Yeah, yeah…but look at all the progress I made when I went there,” Jet said, a proud look on his face.
“Yes, I’ll admit, killing two Hell Lords is no small feat,” Kenji said. There was a whistling in the air, and Jet suddenly ducked. Kenji raised his blade instinctively, blocking the spinning chakram. It fell to the ground. Jet slowly latched it back to his belt and sat down.
“That reminds me….do you know anything about the condition of Hell?” Jet asked. Kenji laughed aloud. “What’s that all about?” Jet asked.
“I’m sorry, again that just sounds like such a foolish question when taken out of context,” Kenji explained, sheathing his katana and sitting next to Jet.
“Yeah….but you know what I mean…we killed Apocalypse Modeus over ten years ago…the whole army is still rotting down there…wouldn’t they have elected a new leader?” Jet asked.
“They are demons first of all. They wouldn’t “elect” anyone. In the most technical sense if there was to be a new leader there would probably be a mass battle ending in ultimate catastrophe and the one left standing would take the first level,” Kenji began.
“Still…” Jet said.
“Yes…you’ve told me of the recent assault on Hyrule by way of the Dark Sages…Golem was revived by the Dark Knight, correct?” Kenji asked.
“Yeah, he was there at the crater, he was the one who said the incantation,” Jet answered.
“And the Dark Knight is now a demon of Hell. Now, why would he do such a thing without being ordered to? And better yet, how would he be brought back to life without a more powerful being granting him the power to pass the gates?” Kenji asked.
“So you’re saying there’s another Hell Lord?” Jet asked.
“I’m saying there has to be. I don’t know who….but there has to be one,” Kenji said.
“Thanks….thanks a lot Kenji,” Jet said with a smile standing. He faded out of the dream slowly.
The damages done to the land were incredible and all too horrible. It was amazing in a chaotic way, how water and fire could literally tear apart a world of beauty, exposing it’s ugly dying skeleton for all left alive to see. The amount of black charred holes in the earth from the magma rain were uncountable and incredible. The land was reduced to mud to a point where one could sink to their knees in what used to be solid earth in the areas closer to the river.
The defense of the castle was also required to be raised, as the erosion of the land had awakened the long thought dead Stalchildren, and they were gathering in the hundreds in some areas. The Gerudos worked feverishly near the border of their land to eliminate the threat, and the Hylian army did the same. Today the Triforce Team had been assigned to assess the damages, and Jet was with them, overseeing their work along with the work of the army. Zelda slowly walked out of the ranch, gripping her husband by the arm.
“Jet…you need to talk to Link about what happened….” Zelda said, tears welling up in her eyes. Jet held her, then spoke.
“Yeah…why all of this right now, Zel?” Jet asked, nervous.
“Talon and Ingo died in the flood….it looked as if they climbed the stable building to try to avoid being washed away, but the magma…..” she couldn’t finish. It was too painful to convey the words. These were the people she had grown up with. Everyone around her was dying, slowly but surely. First her father, then Malon, now Talon and Ingo. She feared more than anything in the world Jet would be next. It seemed the only part of her past that refused to go away was Ganon. Jet was about to ask what Zelda meant by the magma, when he saw Marth and Roy dragging the bodies out.
There was a swollen hole in Talon’s head, burned by lava so hot that it evaporated his blood. His face was contorted in an awful expression of agony. Ingo had suffered a similar fate, a charred black hole through his neck. Jet slowly let go of Zelda.
“How could I let this happen to my kingdom?” he asked in disbelief.
“It’s our kingdom…nothing that you face you face alone,” Zelda said, still crying.
“I love you more than anything else….I’m gonna go talk to Link,” Jet said. She nodded. He slowly tapped Link’s shoulder, motioning him forward. They walked a short distance away from the ranch.
“What’s up man?” Link asked, in a low voice.
“Well….it’s about the ranch…” Jet began.
“Yeah….I feel so….horrible…I wasn’t able to save Talon and Ingo…Malon’s gonna take this really hard,” Link said. Jet turned pale. “What’s wrong?” Link asked.
“Link…Talon was a drunk toward the end….because Malon left. And a little while ago….she came back,” Jet said, choking on tears. He hated himself right now. He wanted to slam his head into a rock wall until it was painted with his brains.
“What’s wrong?” Link asked, in his heart beginning to fear what Jet might tell him.
“And when she came back….Talon…was so drunk…and hurt…and mad…that he…pretty much disowned her,” Jet continued, a tear streaming down his face.
“And….what happened?” Link asked.
“Malon…she…Malon…she killed herself man….she killed herself….she’s dead,” Jet said, crying.
“…” Link couldn’t speak. After several minutes of disbelief and silence he began to scream, punching the air with his fists, over and over, yelling louder and louder each time.
“Man….stop it,” Jet said, wiping his face. Link didn’t listen, and continued to scream at the top of his lungs. Epona slowly trotted toward him, trying her best to comfort him, rubbing her mane against his face.
“Go away, girl…not now,” Link said quietly. It continued to try to calm him down. “Just go away!!!” Link yelled. She backed off slowly. He continued to yell at the top of his lungs until his voice grew hoarse, and the screams of pain and anger were as dull whispers.
“Link stop it!!!” Jet yelled, grabbing him by the shoulder. Link spun around punching Jet in the face. He angrily tackled him to the ground, tears streaming down his face. He punched Jet over and over, blood spilling to the damp ground.
“Shut up!!!! You let this happen!!! You let it happen!!! You killed her!!!! you killed her!!! You let her die!!!” Link screamed, punching him in the face. Jet bled from every orifice in his face, yet he had not the heart or energy to stop Link. He deserved this. It was his fault. Zelda ran to the two.
“Stop it Link!” she yelled, crying.
He glared at her angrily. “He….killed….Malon!!!” Link yelled, punching him harder.
“Just stop it Link! This isn’t going to do anything, it isn’t! we’ve been friends forever Link! Why can’t you just believe me?!” Zelda yelled, falling to her knees. She began to sob, in disbelief of everything that had happened. Link looked at his friend, sitting there in the ruined world crying, all because of him. He could save nothing. He was worth nothing. His child didn’t even know him. He stepped backward, next to the moat of the castle, crying. He slowly pulled a bomb from his belt.
“What….in the fuck are you doing?!” Jet asked, standing up, warm blood spilling from his mouth as he spoke.
“I…can’t be the hero anymore,” Link spoke in a slow raspy voice.
“Link….why are you doing this?! Just stop!!!” Zelda sobbed out, still on her knees.
“No Zelda…you helped me to realize how pointless this is…trying to pretend to be something great when I’m just the source of pain. Malon, my son, and now you guys,” Link said, clutching the bomb tightly in his hand.
“Link…don’t do this!!!” Jet yelled, blood soaking his shirt a deep crimson with every word he spoke.
“I’m worthless man….look at what I did to you!!! Look at it!!! and what I did to Malon!!! I’m not a hero!!!” Link yelled, lighting the fuse.
“Don’t!!! this is crazy!” Jet yelled.
“I…don’t care. It’ll be better this way,” Link said quietly, crying.
“No….please Link….please don’t,” Zelda pleaded. The fuse was drawing closer and closer to the explosive in his hand, and within seconds Link would be dead. With a sudden loud neigh that obviously portrayed anger at the stupidity of her owner, Epona head butted Link, sending him into the moat of the castle, the fuse going out. Jet sighed, and Zelda rushed to him quickly, embracing him tightly and crying. Yoshimitsu jumped into the moat, grabbing Link and carrying him back to the damp land. He had lost consciousness. Jet didn’t know what he was going to say to Link when he awoke, but he knew it had better be good, and meaningful.
“Sir!” a soldier saluted, slamming his shining spear into the ground.
“Yes?” Jet asked, leaning against the wall near to the drawbridge.
“The casualty rate is in sir,” the soldier stated rather darkly.
“And?” Jet asked, eyes fixed on the ground.
“Sixteen deaths in the market, twelve in the castle, and nine in the village. Twenty-four Zoras and forty-five Gorons also died. The population of the ranch, cows, cuccos, horses, and…people…is gone also sir,” the soldier darkly.
“I see….thank you,” Jet said quietly.
“Sir…I don’t like delivering bad news sir, I’m sorry,” the soldier said. Jet turned to face the young man.
“Neither do I…but…we have to, right?” Jet asked.
“Y-yes sir,” the soldier agreed.
“How long have you been working?” Jet asked.
“Four hours sir,” the soldier answered.
“Go take a break, get a replacement for awhile. You’ve seen enough of this for today at least,” Jet said.
“Yes sir, thank you sir,” the soldier said, nodding and then turning for the castle quickly. Jet stopped him.
“How’s Zelda doing?” Jet asked.
“I don’t know your highness,” the soldier answered, turning.
“Have Impa check up on her okay?” Jet asked.
“Yes sir,” the soldier said, running toward the castle.
“He’s not doing well at all,” Roy said in regard to Link.
“Where is he?” Jet asked. Roy didn’t answer, but instead pointed slowly toward the ruined Lon Lon Ranch. Jet nodded, and walked off toward the stone structure. He couldn’t believe that they had all died. Talon, Malon, and Ingo. He couldn’t believe he had let such great allies to his kingdom die. That he wasn’t there to do a thing. It was a heavy burden on his heart, but even so, he knew the pain Link felt was far greater. Malon was the love of his life, the one who kept him going through long days and made him smile during his lowest of lows. Jet had no clue what he would do if such a fate were to befall Zelda.
Without warning a white light seared through his thoughts, dominating every inch of his brain to the point where he couldn’t even make himself move forward.
“I dunno….I just hate the way things are going right now,” the words rang out in his head like a bell.
“Why’s that?”
“Nothing is as it once was,”
“Nothing is as it was meant to be,”
A flash of light cut through his thoughts again, and the voices continued to speak, words with no faces attached, just the same white light.
“How were you betrayed?”
“Someone….who mattered….someone who meant everything….went behind my back and joined with an ally I trusted. They were lovers. He took what I had,”
Suddenly the light faded, and Jet was flung back into reality, into a situation that he was in no way ready to face. He inhaled loudly, then exhaled slowly, walking quickly into the ranch, or what was left of it.
The houses had been nearly completely ruined, the windows shattered and hundreds of holes through the roof and walls of each house. Most of the wood had been washed away anyway due to the fierce waves of the flood. Jet slowly walked into Talon’s house. Link stood quickly pulling down his sleeve with haste and throwing something to the floor. Jet didn’t see what it was, nor did he care.
“Are you okay man?” Jet asked.
“No…I’m not,” Link answered honestly.
“I know that Malon dying…..hurt,” Jet said.
“No…you can’t,” Link said, shaking his head.
“Yes….yes I can,” Jet argued.
“You don’t know what it’s like to lose someone you love!!!” Link yelled.
“Yeah….yeah I do, man. My parents….died in front of me, but I don’t expect you to remember that,” Jet said, exiting quickly and slamming the door behind him. Link sat down, picking up the nail he had dropped and continuing to draw it across his skin, tears falling to the ground.
A bleeding cracked wound roughly five feet around was left in the shoulder of Apocalypse Modeus’ corpse. The Dark Knight wondered what had become of the Hell Lord, when out of the shadow came the small form of Modeus, back to his original stone body, eyes glowing fiercely.
“I am free once again…yet while I regained my strength you failed me,” Modeus said angrily.
“Master….it was not my intention….I tried, but they were simply too-,” the Dark Knight was cut off.
“Silence! I care not for your excuses! You have failed me too many times! Servants!!! Come forth!!! Devour him!!!” Modeus yelled angrily. The Dark Knight pleaded with Modeus for several seconds, but before he was fully aware, it was too late. Demons of all forms were upon him, tearing his armor apart and biting through his flesh, blood spilling to the ground, his cries filling the black air. Modeus laughed at his pain.
After near to an hour of ceaseless torture, when all that remained of the Dark Knight was a bleeding battered skeletal mass that slightly resembled a human, with gobbets of flesh hanging from the bone loosely, Modeus called off the attack.
“Take him to the prison!!!” Modeus yelled. The demons complied, throwing him into a chamber on the second level of Hell. There he was bound to a stone slab by chains, and locked in darkness. He writhed horribly in pain, though he was barely powerful enough to move. He bled all over, his cries loud in the chamber, but it just added to the other screams of pain and torture in the realm. Modeus was back, and he would soon enlist a new general; the Aku-Mari that killed Jet ten years ago.
The Meeting at the Golden Realm by BOEG
Chapter Two: The Meeting at the Golden Realm
Jet gently pulled aside the curtain to his bedroom in Hyrule castle. There were so many memories tied to each part of Hyrule for Jet, and it saddened him that he could only ever seem to remember the worst of them. Battles that had taken place on beautiful lands, blood that had been spilled into the clear waters of the lake, great people struck down in war. It was all he could recollect sometimes.
Zelda sat on the corner of the large crimson colored bed in the room. She wore a lime colored dress, and her blonde hair complimented it well, though it was tied behind her back. Her eyes were focused on the stone ground of the room, and she was lost deep in thought. Jet slowly sat next to her.
“How are you holding out?” Jet asked in length.
“I’m….a mess,” Zelda answered, not moving her eyes from the same stone tile that had been in her vision for at least an hour.
“I think we all are,” Jet said, shaking his head.
“Jet…how did everything go so wrong?” Zelda asked.
“It didn’t go wrong…everything happens for a reason…” Jet said with confidence in his voice.
“What’s the reason behind this? What did this do? It ruined Hyrule, it took lives, it took the confidence of one of the greatest heroes ever to grace Hyrule,” Zelda said darkly.
“I don’t know why Zelda,” Jet said slowly.
“Don’t bring me back,” Zelda said quietly.
“What?” Jet asked.
“If I ever die, don’t bring me back,” she sobbed out. Jet held her tightly, then at length, spoke again.
“Why?” he asked, confused.
“Because….if I die, then it’s my time…if I ever get to the point where my time comes, then I don’t want to go against that, to change my predestined path,” Zelda said, still clinging onto Jet, tears rolling down her eyes.
“But Zel,” Jet began.
“Promise me!” she cried out.
“I….promise,” Jet said quietly, staring blankly into the distance.
“Why does everyone dear to me go away?” Zelda asked.
“Hmmm?” Jet asked.
“I don’t want you to be next…..you can’t be next,” she said quietly.
“Listen to me…what happened to Malon and Talon and Ingo…and even now what’s happening to Link…it won’t happen to me. It can’t. we’re the Royal Family Zel, we can’t afford to die. And as long as this kingdom is still plagued by evil, I don’t intend to,” Jet said in a positive tone.
“But…okay…how was Link?” Zelda asked, changing the subject.
“I didn’t really get a chance to see,” Jet answered.
“What do you mean?” Zelda asked.
“Let’s just say he wasn’t quite in the mood to talk,” Jet said quietly. Zelda would have said more, had she not been interrupted by a knock on the stone wall.
“Come in,” Zelda said quietly. The curtain of the room was drawn aside, and Impa stepped into the room, fully armored.
“Is something wrong?” Jet asked.
“We have been called to the Sacred Realm by the other Sages. They need to discuss something with us,” Impa announced.
“What are they gonna tell us? You’re a Sage, so you should definitely know, right?” Jet asked.
“No…I’m afraid I don’t,” Impa answered, eyes on the ground. Zelda slowly stood.
“What about the rest of the team?” she asked.
“They have been made aware. They’re waiting for us in the courtyard,” Impa answered.
“Alright, let’s go,” Jet said, tying his sheathed blade to his belt.
“Might I advise something your highness?” Impa asked, stopping Jet at the door.
“Yeah, sure,” Jet answered.
“Be completely honest. Anything you keep from them could alter what they tell you, and any mistake could lead to disaster for Hyrule. I’m not completely sure, but I believe Golem and Shurutoken have something to do with this meeting the Sages have called for,” Impa said.
“Yes, we will be quite honest,” Zelda agreed. Jet nodded slightly, then the three headed out of the castle.
“Alright you guys….I hope you don’t have too many questions because I don’t have anything valuable to tell you. What you know, I know. The Sages have called us to meet in the Sacred Realm. So I guess we might as well get going,” Jet began. “Dig-Port open!!!” he yelled, holding his digivice in front of his face, the glowing blue light cutting through the air like a knife and opening the gate into the Sacred Realm. The entire team slowly stepped in the swirling mass of light.
The blue light of the rift was bathed in the gold of the Sacred Realm, the tiny flicker of golden light in the distance shining more intensely than anything any of them had seen in weeks. The incredible feeling the light placed in their hearts cleansed them, ridding them of all dark feelings and thoughts they had carried from the battle with the Dark Sages, and they were in this moment rejuvenated. The small golden hole that was so far away suddenly grew, swallowing the team, and then they were there, in the land of eternal gold, the place where the Goddesses left Hyrule, the purest place still left in the world. Impa stood slowly, unsheathing her machete. She motioned the others forward with a slight nod of her head, and they slowly began to follow her.
For the newer members of the team the realm amazed them, and to the older, it was an immense comfort. The very sky and grass was gilded, every light reflecting off of the other one, creating a seemingly endless chain of light. The land had healed it’s wounds since the battle waged there with Ganon so long ago, and indeed no traces of any of the evils Mandrag had brought to the land remained.
At length they came to the golden Temple of Light. Impa walked up the long staircase leading to the entrance first, and the rest slowly followed her, through the narrow hallways and the staircases of gold, past the dimly lit torches that hung from the walls, and across the crimson carpets laid out before their feet, so unused even to this day that they glowed as brightly as the golden earth of the realm.
After a countless amounts of twists and turns through golden chambers, they came at last to a large door, ten feet high at least, and nearly twice as wide. Impa walked forward slowly and spoke, “Link, step forward.” He did so slowly. “Now, place the Shadow Medallion in the seal on the door.” He fumbled around in his pockets for several seconds, then placed the purple medallion into a circular lock on the door. With a loud creaking and a release of cloud-like matter, the doors flew open, and Link slowly retrieved his medallion.
The team stepped forward slowly, and they soon realized where it was they were. The room they were in was large and expansive, a dark shadowy chasm taking up most of the space, seven large crystalline blue pillars rising out of the black and forming platforms on which to stand on. the central was the largest, and could easily fit forty or so people on, and the six others surrounding it were small, large enough only for one. The middle platform had a large Triforce of golden stone atop its center, with large colored stone plates in the form of the Sage medallions.
Impa suddenly sheathed her blade, and closed her eyes, and an odd aura covered her body. Her feet slowly rose from the ground, and she glided softly through the air, stopping above the platform across from the shadow medallion’s engraving on the central platform. She landed slowly, and her eyes shot open once more. Five beams of light shot out of the roof of the temple many many feet above them all, and the lights hit the pillars across from the Sage medallion engravings. From these lights came the rest of the Hylian Sages. Ruto the Sage of Water, Darunia the Sage of Fire, Rauru the Sage of Light, Nabooru the Sage of Spirit and Saria the Sage of Forest.
“You all know why you are here?” Rauru began in a loud booming voice which echoed strangely in the circular room. He was very old looking, with a short white beard. His eyes held a certain gleam that showed wisdom much greater than what could be acquired in the years he had lived. Indeed there was that same look about all of the Sages, and it frightened most who gazed into their eyes.
“We’re here because of the Dark Sages attack on Hyrule,” Jet answered with certainty, almost instinctively. There wasn’t a hint of doubt in his voice, but in his mind he could not even reason why he had spoken. Maybe he was growing into the position of the leader.
“Yes, that is one major reason we have assembled you all here,” Saria answered. Her voice was childish but her words were powerful.
“Well….I’m gonna bet you know why we’re here more than we do, so why don’t you tell us what’s happening?” Link asked.
“Very well, but I will speak with as much time as I am willing to take in this hour of darkness, and any attempt to hold my tongue from you will be ignored, and you will be expelled from the chamber. You are a hero, but a hero is not needed for a meeting. Understood?” Rauru asked. Link nodded.
“Now, in order to understand the present we must delve far into the past,” Darunia began.
“We learned some of the events from a Hylian soldier in the castle,” Captain Falcon said in a gleeful voice, excited to know something the others didn’t for once.
“The soldier knows little. We know very much,” Impa declared. Captain Falcon focused his eyes on the blue pillars and stepped back.
“When Hyrule was first created, many many years ago, the three Goddesses Din, Farore, and Nayru left the world at a single point,” Ruto said.
“And that’s where the Triforce was,” Dregan finished for her.
“Correct. It was a balance of power, wisdom, and courage. However, naturally, many sought the Triforce, some for riches, others for the three powers. Hyrule was just a land covered in numerous tribes and armies, all striving for power. The main tribe of the land was the tribe of the Hylia. They are the ancestors of the Hylians, and were very skilled in the arts of all magic, especially Black,” Impa said.
“The Hylia knew much. They could see the presence of the Triforce in the midst of the wars would cause only more battles, and so they began by separating the land, putting up borders if you will. They cast a magical incantation, a spell which would invoke death upon anyone who crossed the set boundaries. The land in which they were allowed to dwell was Hyrule. The land in which they could not cross was named the Sacred Realm,” Rauru continued.
“But naturally, with the wisdom of the Hylia came trouble, and eventually there came Hylias who could dispel, manipulate, or override the Barrier magic with new and more terrible magic. They crossed into the Sacred Realm, but even then found nothing. There were no landmarks, no people, no signs, not a thing in the Sacred Realm,” Saria said.
“But to ensure that no one ever found the Triforce the Goddesses sent us, our spirits, to Hyrule. The first plan we put into place was to build a chamber to house our powers, the elements in which we were given rule over. We did so, and you are now standing in that chamber. Naturally, we built the chamber very near to the Triforce itself, in order to protect it. We surrounded the chamber by the Temple of Light, and then we took the final precaution and split the very lands in two. The Sacred Realm could no longer be found on Hyrule. Again, this would have worked, had the Hylias not been strong and well equipped in magic,” Darunia said.
“Indeed. They found ways into the Sacred Realm with their magic, and so we took another necessary step. We enlisted the aid of a mountain dwelling tribe of Hylias, great smiths of their time, to create a blade. A blade which would be blessed with our magic and the magic of the Goddesses themselves. This blade was made with haste, and when the last embers of the fire were put out, and the liquid hardened into metal, the Master Sword was complete. It was to be a shining beacon, a light in the darkness. It was the Blade of Evil’s Bane. A pedestal was created in Hyrule, and the sword was placed inside of it. an impenetrable stone called the Door of Time was set into place, and locked by the three Spiritual Stones, which were then spread across all of Hyrule. The stones magic was suppressed in an item called the Ocarina of Time, and the ocarina was given to a trusted Hylia, and passed down through what has now become the Royal Family. A Temple of Time was built around the Door and the sword, and the Sacred Realm was locked. And so it should have stayed,” Ruto explained.
“Warriors each carrying an element that one of us possesses were created. They were to guard the Temple of Time. The very sword they protected was the most effective way to kill them. They were the Dark Sages. You have been told lies Triforce Team. Golem and Shurutoken were two of six Dark Sages,” Rauru explained.
“Now where do we come in?” Jet asked, growing impatient.
“Shurutoken and Golem were recently revived, and then killed. This set the forces in an imbalance. Fire and Water in this land have lost energy, and so if something is not done, Spirit, Light, Forest, and…Shadow will grow more powerful,” Rauru explained.
“But that’s ridiculous! You’re all still alive! How’s there an imbalance?” Link asked.
“We simply granted Hyrule the powers, the Dark Sages were the physical manifestation of that power in Hyrule. The guardians have awoken in Hyrule now, and are each plotting their own apocalyptic devices even as we speak,” Impa answered.
“So…what do we do?” Lei asked.
“You kill the guardians one at a time. The order in which you go about this is up to you, but keep in mind one thing as you fight. Water and Fire are destroyed. In Hyrule that magic will have no effect, not until all the Dark Sages are slain and the balance is returned. Also remember that right now the power is divided in four ways, but as you kill guardians, the ones remaining will grow powerful due to the imbalance. The last guardian you fight will prove more powerful than anything any of you can imagine,” Rauru said darkly.
“Now…what about these weapons Shinota and I got after the Dark Sages were killed?” Kafei asked.
“Those are tokens of their defeat, tokens of the imbalance. When you gain all six, and each who carry that magical element the most potently have a weapon, you will return here, and the balance will return. Understood?” Saria asked.
“Yes,” the team agreed in unison.
“Then go back to Hyrule. You know your task. We wish you all the luck in the world,” Rauru finished. Impa rejoined the team, and they all slowly headed out of the temple. They had four battles, and each one was only going to get worse. They had enough problems to deal with personally, and now there was the added threat of the remaining Dark Sages. They had not saved Hyrule, they had put it in more danger than ever before.
Waiting For the Earth to Reveal the Shadow by BOEG
Chapter Three: Awaiting For the Earth to Reveal the Shadow
The Christmas season was over now. The snow had melted away from the Earth and existed once again only in the coldest reaches of the world. There was no Snowhead, only North and South Poles. There was no magical incantation to keep the warm loving feeling of family and thankfulness alive after the holiday season. For just a moment in time, once a year, people forgot everything else and cared only about love, about each other. The amount of money you had to spend, how expensive your clothes were, what kind of food lined your cupboards, none of it mattered.
Greed had crept it’s way back into Earth now, the horizon lined with metal skyscrapers was now alive with the sound of industry once more, people driving to work, driving from work, driving to waste the money they made from said work. Lights flickered on and off. A small child left a room with the television on because he didn’t care about conserving energy. Like maggots fresh from the thousands of eggs on the water’s surface they burst forth onto the land, unforgiving, pulling on shirts and lugging briefcases around, working their businesses, trying desperately to become powerful flies before their twenty-four hours were up.
Even the smallest of towns, what most would call a quiet neighborhood had the dirty little wish to become a large city. The people there worked the same jobs, but the lack of results is what made their conditions a neighborhood, and not a thriving city. Jet sighed to himself, expelling the polluted air of his town of Pallet, and walked back inside. It was just now six in the morning, and the sun had barely crept up from the mountains. There was just enough light to make the town visible, and the sight was making him sick.
What if he couldn’t save Hyrule? What if he failed his kingdom? He knew the answer. He would go from being a mighty king to just another mindless drone, drowning in the industry. He knew the truth, others were great at it, but he couldn’t even stay afloat. If he failed Hyrule, he failed himself. He had already failed many, in one way or another. He had failed Link, so in turn he failed Malon, Talon and Ingo, which resulted with him failing Zelda. It was like a horrible chain. With every person dear to him that he hurt, someone else dear to him was hurt as well. And then it happened. Like always.
Link distracted him from thought. None of the lights in the house were on, and the feeling of emptiness was strong. But he was there, completely clothed and armed, leaning against the wall, eyes focused on the ground. It was almost frightening how still he was. Jet walked toward him slowly.
“What’s up man?” Jet asked. Link looked up slowly.
“Just standing here, thinking,” he answered.
“What about?” Jet questioned.
“How awful a turn things have taken,” Link responded.
“There’s still hope. We just have to fight off all of the Dark Sages,” Jet said in as positive a tone as he could muster. In truth, he was closer to Link’s mood than he’d like to admit.
“You think that’s what I’m talking about? A fight is a fight. There’s nothing to it, it doesn’t take a turn. If someone is stronger than you in a fight, you train until you’re stronger than them. No big deal. I’m talking about life. Malon…my sweetheart…she meant the world to me man…still does. What do you do when you see your own child…and he reminds you of your love? How do I tell him that every time I look him in the eyes I wanna cry?” Link asked.
“You have to let go of that. I know it isn’t easy, but she’s not around anymore man,” Jet said slowly.
“How can I let go of her?” Link asked, angered.
“I don’t have all the answers-,” Jet couldn’t finish his sentence. The red light of the alarm shot through the darkness and the loud ringing noise cut through the awkward silence.
“Worst possible time,” Link muttered to himself.
The Triforce Team reached the ruined Hyrule field quickly, eager to end the trouble before it began. They unsheathed their weapons and formed into ready stances, yet the one they were ready to fight bore no weapons. Ganon walked slowly toward them, unarmed. This did not ease their worries; indeed it heightened them. As Ganon walked he raised his hand, as if to tell the team to lower their weapons. They ignored him. He stopped mere feet away from Link.
“I have come to propose an offer,” Ganon began, inhuman yellow eyes glowing fiercely, even in broad daylight.
“What is it Mandrag?” Link asked angrily. He despised the mortal god more than anything in the world. Link didn’t even consider him a living being anymore, but an embodiment of everything he hated.
“You too know of the Dark Sages revival, correct?” Ganon questioned.
“Yeah, we do. Point?” Link asked.
“My point…dear hero, is that one of the remaining Dark Sages has a gift that I am in need of. We could aid each other in this time of need. I have powers that you could use, and likewise you have powers I need,” Ganon explained.
“And what happens when you get what you’re looking for and then try to kill us?” Link asked.
“That isn’t my decision to make,” Ganon responded with a smirk.
“No deal Ganon. We’re gonna kill the Dark Sages, and we’re not leaving a single thing for you,” Link said angrily, rejecting the deal. Ganon scowled, then spat on the ground in front of Link.
“You will regret this choice more than any you have made in your life,” Ganon warned.
“I doubt it,” Link said in a despairing voice.
“Very well. The race is on. Good luck. If you make it before I do, take what you want, but remember, you’ve engaged in a dangerous game,” Ganon said, warping away quickly.
“Where are we going to go then?” Zelda asked, stepping next to Link.
“Ask him, he’s the leader,” Link said, staring into the distance.
“Ah….not as great as it’s cracked up to be,” Jet said with a sigh.
“Well, there’s two that are dead, and four that are alive,” Kafei said.
“And we got fire and water,” Link II said.
“So that leaves which ones again?” the executioner asked.
“Forest, Light, Spirit and Shadow,” Link said quicker than most could process the words.
“Now…let’s think logically here. All the other forces are rather ambiguous location-wise, but we can pretty safely say where Forest is right?” Impa asked.
“Yes. Kokiri forest would be the ideal place to begin a search,” Lei said.
“So that’s where we’re headed?” Marth asked.
“Yeah…we should split up,” Jet said.
“Alright. Now…how are we gonna be divided?” Goku asked.
“Hmm…you, Lord Deimos, Yoshimitsu, Marth, Captain Falcon and Shinota are gonna explore the Deku Tree’s corpse. If I’m right there should be lots of unexplored tunnels, which would be ideal breeding ground for evil sages and the such,” Jet said.
“Alright,” Lord Deimos said. The rest of the group nodded in agreement.
“Trunks, the executioner, Ogre, Roy, Samus, and Dregan, you guys head for the Lost Woods,” Jet said.
“Mhmm, just the woods? Or the meadow too?” Trunks asked.
“Woods. The ones I want to go to the Sacred Forest Meadow are…umm…Al’Rashid, Impa, Kafei, and Lei,” Jet said slowly.
“Yes, sure,” Lei said with a smile.
“For the forest…Zelda, Gogetta, Samson, and Link II,” Jet said quickly.
“Heh….I see how it works,” Link said with a slight laugh.
“Yep….you and I will take the Forest Temple,” Jet said.
“What happens if one group finds the Dark Sage?” Samus asked.
“First and foremost, you’ll fight with you all have. Then you’ll try to give a signal that’s as visible as possible, and the rest of us will go that spot,” Jet answered.
“Alright,” Samus said, nodding.
“Now, remember…this guy was part of the balance that we helped unbalance. That means his power has gotten stronger. So this fight will be worse than the fight with Golem or the fight with Shurutoken. But if Link can get in one attack, one move, then we win,” Jet said. They all nodded in agreement, and the team slowly dispersed for the forest.
“Hey man,” Link said, grabbing Jet by the shoulder before he could follow the team. Jet turned slowly.
“Yeah?” Jet asked.
“I…ummm,” Link stammered with the words, clutching onto his sleeve tightly.
“What is it man?” Jet asked, a concerned look on his face. Link sat down on what remained of the grassy field.
“I miss her,” Link said, his eyes focused on the ranch.
“I’m….sorry. So sorry….for everything. I was wrong back there the other day, ya know? I don’t know what it’s like to lose someone I love more than life itself. I lost my parents…but I was too young to know what love was…I knew I was alone…that I had…lost something that everyone else had. I knew how pissed off it got me, but I didn’t know why I was pissed off. It took me until I was a lot older to realize I was mad because I loved ‘em…but by then the wounds had healed for the most part. I mean…if I were to lose Zelda…” Jet’s voice trailed off.
“It’s okay…I just…I wish I was. I was gone for ten years…you know how many people I’ve let down in those ten years? How many expectations I didn’t rise to meet? Malon, man….the love of my life…killed herself because of me, because of my ignorance to what was needed of me. Do you know why I ran away in the first place?” Link asked.
“No….no I don’t,” Jet said, eyes on the ground.
“I ran away because I was so…I was so scared. I lost my son. What if someone else I loved was on the line like that? What if you or Zelda were in trouble, were gonna die…and I couldn’t…rise to meet your expectations?” Link asked.
“You would…you don’t meet everyone’s expectations man…but you sure as hell meet their needs,” Jet said with a slight smile.
“But…sorry for the lack of confidence lately, but…have you ever stopped to think it wasn’t you that was saving people, and that it was the golden triangle inside your body?” Link asked.
“Man…remember when you got the Spiritual Stones the first time you fought Ganondorf? You didn’t have the Triforce of Courage until after you got the Master sword. That right there is proof that it isn’t the sword, or the Triforce that makes you the hero,” Jet tried to assure him.
“…I can see why they love you so much,” Link said with a smile, looking up at Jet.
“Huh?” Jet asked, confused.
“The Hylians…you’re a great king,” Link said.
“I just say what I mean…and mean what I say…” Jet responded quietly.
“Yeah….yeah. Do you think we can make a stop?” Link asked.
“Yeah…I think that might be a good idea,” Jet agreed. Link stood, and the two slowly walked toward Lon Lon Ranch.
No one had moved in to take over ownership of Lon Lon Ranch. No one had even repaired the buildings that were so ravaged from the Dark Sages’ attacks. Everything in the ranch had been killed, all of the animals, all of the people, it was empty. Link walked into Malon and Talon’s house slowly, and traveled up the dusty stairs and through the door. Jet followed. Talon and Malon’s room was ravaged horribly.
Link slowly sat down on Malon’s bed, or what was left of it. There were so many holes burned through the mattress from the lava rain that it was difficult to call it a bed. Jet just stood, watching silently. Link cautiously opened a drawer on a dresser next to Malon’s bed. He pulled out the golden necklace she had always worn around her neck, and placed it slowly about his own, tucking it carefully under his tunic. He closed the drawer and looked up at Jet.
“This hurts…so much,” Link said, a tear streaming down his face, his voice weak.
“I know…it’s normal,” Jet said, trying to comfort Link.
“Jet…” Link said, crying softly. He pulled up his sleeve, revealing several deep cuts. Jet stepped back, surprised. It wasn’t the sight of wounds, that he was quite used to. it was the condition Link was in. He had always been so strong, mentally and physically. He was someone that Jet had always looked up to, and now he needed Jet. How could he help Link? He was just as weak mentally as Link.
“Man….you know what I’m gonna say don’t you?” Jet asked.
“What a fucking idiot?” Link asked, looking up at Jet.
“Okay, maybe you don’t…this is really…completely normal. I mean…missing someone. It’s just…there’s lots of ways to handle it…and you picked one that isn’t really all that great…” Jet said, his voice trailing off.
“You don’t say?” Link asked, tears falling from his face. Jet sat down next to Link slowly.
“You know hurting yourself isn’t going to help your son any right?” Jet asked.
“Yeah…don’t worry, I’m not gonna do that again….I just wanted you to know,” Link said in a low voice.
“Yeah man….I know, I know,” Jet said. They were suddenly interrupted by a loud rumbling. They ran from the building quickly, and bolted out of the ranch and onto the field. A large light was shining into the sky, and Jet knew it was their sign. They had found the Dark Forest Sage. Link and Jet ran quickly for the forest.
Another Lost to the Cause by BOEG
Chapter Four: Another Lost to the Cause
A tall figure he was, eleven feet at least. His body was comprised of tightly wound roots, bound together by red and green vines. The gnarled roots extended out of the creature’s head, forming horns, and its eyes glowed a fierce red, razor sharp teeth lining it’s gnashing maw. It had a long whip in one hand, and a large blade in the other, and several Deku Babas emerged from its body. It yelled darkly, spinning the whip around and hitting Captain Falcon hard. He was knocked to his knees, but quickly stood, bolting toward the creature. He delivered a heavy kick, which did nothing.
Trunks unsheathed his blade, running at the creature from behind. He delivered a slice, which did nothing against the roots which were like metal. A Deku Baba shot out its head, clamping its maw around Trunk’s arm and ripping through his skin, the creature’s saliva dripping into the bleeding wound. Trunk’s screamed in pain, decapitating the plant and backing away.
The executioner launched a head at the Dark Sage, and he turned to face the man. He took a swing with his mighty axe, and it hooked in the ancient bark. The Dark Sage smiled as several vines shot from the wound and pummeled the executioner against a nearby wall, piercing his flesh and splattering fresh blood onto the ground. Samson quickly sliced through the vines that had the executioner pinned, but as each was cut, it released flesh searing spores, and Samson was soon on the ground, writhing in pain.
Shinota ran forward at this, attacking the Dark Sage with both of his blades, the attacks doing nothing. He was hit in the chest with the whip that creature wielded. He backed away, in pain, but still determined to wound the creature. He charged the power of the Temple Link into his blades, then delivered two quick blows, and the creature was harmed, ejecting more spores into the air. Shinota ducked, then bolted forward, stabbing at the Dark Sage with his swords. A Deku Baba quickly latched onto Shinota’s face, scraping away the flesh on his cheek and leaving behind the burning saliva. Shinota fell to the ground, face bleeding and burned.
Link and Jet finally stepped into Kokiri Forest. They were now very close to the battle, but they still knew not where it was. The smell of burning was rather evident, but it came from all directions, and not just one, making it impossible to distinct a battlefield. The sign they had seen was somewhere to the west of where they now stood, that much they knew. They also knew it meant a long trip through the Lost Woods, something neither exactly looked forward to.
“Should we split up?” Jet asked.
“No, no, I don’t think that’s the best idea right now. We’ll head for the Lost Woods, and we’ll travel quickly,” Link responded.
“Yeah, what are we waiting for?” Jet asked. The two ran toward the hill behind Mido’s house which led to the entrance of the Lost Woods quickly. Link was stopped suddenly by Mido, the small Kokiri running out of his house and standing in front of the Hylian.
“Mido….we don’t have time. We need to get to the wood, quick,” Link said quietly.
“It’s important….there’s something that we all need to show you,” Mido said, quickly.
“Mido…” Link’s voice trailed off. He was too tired to argue but he knew he had to go quickly.
“I promise you’ll understand when we’re done,” Mido pleaded.
“Jet…head for the woods, protect them like you always do man….I’ll be there as quick as I can,” Link said. Jet nodded, and ran quickly toward the woods.
“This way…I’m sorry, I know how urgent everything is, but this might be the last chance we have…” Mido said weakly.
“…A-alright,” Link said, his throat swelling for a reason he couldn’t comprehend. He followed behind Mido slowly.
“Mystic Light!!!” Zelda yelled loudly, the flashing light spreading out through the entire forest, blinding the Dark Sage. Impa attacked with her machete, cutting a Deku Baba’s stalk. The Dark Sage cracked its whip angrily, slashing at Impa with its sword. Her breastplate cracked, and she backed away, just as Yoshimitsu advanced. He slashed the Dark Sage, then sat down on the ground in a meditating position. His seated form spun around several times, then he appeared behind the Dark Sage, hitting it in the back of the head with his hilt.
“Kyor hor hor!!! You fight to no purpose! You will win not! I have planted seeds of death! All living things in Hyrule wilt and die in hours, unless my life first fades!!!” the Dark Sage growled.
Link had followed Mido around Kokiri Forest as he gathered every Kokiri in the village. They were not playing outside, nor were they wearing the smiles and carefree expressions that fit them so well. They walked silently, but not sadly. Link was utterly confused by the entire trip, and he wished he knew why he was there, at that very moment, with a group of people he shared nothing alike with, aside from clothing alone.
“We’re almost ready, we just have to go to the Deku Tree’s meadow,” Mido said quietly.
“…okay,” Link said in as low a voice as he could use while still being heard. They entire Kokiri tribe headed for the Deku Tree’s meadow.
Jet ran quickly through the wooded tunnels, running past Deku Scrubs and Skulltulas, all the life forms that would likely try to kill him could they catch him. He was amazed at himself right now, at the speed and accuracy in which he sped through each cavern in the Lost Woods. Today he moved and talked and would fight like a king. He would make the Hylians proud to be under his guidance.
With one last leap he finally made it to the Sacred Forest Meadow. He could hear yells and the sounds of magic very close by. He shot into the air and flew quickly towards the sound. Faster and faster the forest scenery went by, trees, grass, even living creatures all blurred together into a green and brown mosaic, alive with the sound and atmosphere of the woods. He found what he was looking for and halted to a stop, dropping to the ground beside his wife.
“Thank the Goddesses,” Zelda said with a sigh of relief.
“Yeah, took me long enough to find you guys,” Jet said, breathing heavily.
“Where is Link?” Lei asked.
“He’s with Mido in the forest, he wants us to keep fighting, and he said he’d be here as quick as possible,” Jet answered, glancing over at the armored Hylian. Lei nodded, then ran back into the heat of the battle.
“Rauru wasn’t lying, this fight has been incredibly hard, and everyone is hurt, some worse than others. Samson was wounded very badly,” Zelda said with a concerned look in her blue eyes.
“Well…there isn’t much we can do about that until Link gets here. Right now we just have to stick together, and be careful,” Jet said. Zelda nodded slightly. “What’s wrong?” Jet asked, noticing her lack of confidence in his words.
“What if we can’t hold him off?” Zelda asked. Jet smiled softly, then kissed her gently on the lips.
“…remember honey…we have to hold him off….for Hyrule,” Jet said, unsheathing the Royal Family’s blade. Zelda nodded, understanding her husband’s words completely. They wouldn’t give up, not even in death. She readied her own whip, and followed Jet into combat.
The entire Kokiri tribe had assembled in the Deku Tree’s Meadow, along with their guardian fairies. The Deku Tree Sprout was present, keeping a watchful eye over the tribe. Mido walked over to Link, who had been standing several feet away. He looked down at the ground for several moments, then up at Link.
“Link…would you mind coming here?” Mido asked.
“Isn’t it getting a little dark for you guys? It’s already about eight,” Link asked, ignoring Mido.
“It’s okay tonight….it’s all okay…now please, come over here,” Mido said, grabbing Link by the hand and pulling him to the other Kokiri and the Deku Tree Sprout. The Kokiri children all looked at Link with bright smiles, and a tear fell from his eyes. He remembered those looks from so long ago, when he was nothing but a carefree child. He remembered all of the days of childish play in the stream and the Sacred Forest Meadow. The games of tag and hide and seek they would play all day under the safe watch of the Deku Tree.
Every Kokiri was exactly the same as they were so long ago, not a noticeable change at all. They would stay like that forever; happy. No worries would come to them, no troubles, they would always be the Kokiri. Link smiled brightly for the first time in days. He forgot everything, and remembered only those faces, those days, those places…those people. He laughed, lightly at first, then harder, and the Kokiri followed, all chuckling loudly, remembering the same things he did.
“Almost everyone is here now,” Mido said to the Deku Tree Sprout.
“Hey! Wait! I’m here!!!!” the winged shape of Navi cried out gleefully, flying toward the group. She hovered lightly beside Link. He smiled yet again, facing his Fairy partner.
“Navi! It’s been….forever! where were you?” Link asked.
“I was always right behind you, making sure you didn’t get into too much trouble,” Navi answered happily. Link was amazed. Everyone that had shaped who he now was was here in the forest. Almost everyone. He was slightly saddened, when someone poked him in the back. He turned, and more tears strolled down his eyes. Saria stood behind him, and her eyes were damp as well.
He finally realized he wasn’t alone. That all of these people he had been around for his entire life were going through the exact same things he was. They all felt pain, and they all were alone at one point or another, and they all felt a need to belong. All of his friends, his family, his tribe. He tried desperately to get words out, but he only cried more. It was such a bittersweet moment. He had missed so much, and gained so much back.
“It’s alright…you’ll always be a Kokiri,” Mido said, patting him on the back. He looked back and nodded, smiling, then faced Saria once more. He looked her in the eyes, and remembered so much. Thoughts, long days in the woods, feelings.
“I….always loved you the most,” Link said smiling. She nodded, kissing him softly. The two embraced tightly, laughing.
“Now, we finish this,” the Deku Tree Sprout said in a deep voice, deeper than Link had remembered it.
“Finish?” Link asked, slightly worried.
“We aren’t letting the Dark Sage kill the wood, no. Our time has come Link. We’ll always be Kokiri, and so will you and Saria!” Mido said with a smile.
“You guys….thank you,” Link said, still holding Saria tightly.
“Thank you Link….” Mido said, looking into his blue eyes.
“You’re….you’re welcome,” Link said lowly. They had thought of him as a hero. This whole time nothing was in vain. Through all of it, no matter how alone he felt he wasn’t. His smile only grew larger. With a shining light the Deku Tree Sprout was lit ablaze, and the rest of the forest followed slowly. The houses, the trees, even the Deku Tree’s corpse. All caught fire, and soon the only thing that mattered was the Kokiri together with the fairies, and their bond, the friendship they shared.
The entire forest was lit ablaze, burning embers flying into the air. The Kokiri slowly rose into the air, disappearing, one by one. Link was confused, but not sad. Mido faced him.
“We’ll always be Kokiri,” he said smiling, as he rose into the air, fading into the night sky lit so bright by the forest fire. The fairies slowly followed, and Navi faced Link once more.
“Please don’t be sad, please understand Link…you’re one of the Kokiri, you always were, and that’s why we needed you here, more than anything. That’s why we needed you to see the lights,” Navi explained.
“I know Navi…thank you. I’m not sad…this is the happiest I’ve ever been,” Link said.
“Goodbye Link,” Navi said quietly, flying into the air with the others. Saria looked Link in the eyes, crying.
“They….didn’t forget us,” she said softly.
“No…we’ll always be Kokiri,” Link said softly. She nodded, and Link kissed her, forgetting everything, and there, in the Deku Tree’s Meadow, while the rest of the forest burned, all that mattered was the fire in their hearts, and the tears in their eyes, and the fact that they belonged. For the first time in years, they knew it more than anything else. They belonged.
“Put it out Kafei!!!” Gogetta yelled.
“I can’t, fire and water magic won’t work, remember?!” Kafei yelled back. The fight had been raging on, and the fires had engulfed everything, leaving not one thing intact. All burned. Then with a sudden loud cry came Link through the fire, Master sword and Hylian shield ready. It was the most confident anyone remembered seeing him.
“I won’t lose to you,” Link said, sure of himself. He blocked an attack from the creature’s whip, then parried by slicing off the Dark Sage’s hand. He raised his shield, the spores bouncing off harmlessly into the fire. He spun his blade around, slashing at the Dark Sage. It parried with it’s own sword, and Link backed up. He advanced again, slashing at the Dark Sage. It was cut, and reared back angrily.
To Link it seemed like everything was in slow motion in this moment. It was his chance. He knew everything was going his way. People cared for him. They viewed him as a hero, and not a failure. He was a shining beacon of hope. He was needed. He grinned brightly and reared his blade back, rushing forward. The cries of everyone around him were dulled down, almost as if the volume had been turned off in his head. He barely heard the cries as the blade pierced his heart and his blood spilled to the ground. His own blade went through the heart of the Dark Sage, even as he fell backward into the ground.
And as he died his last thought was a happy one. He thought of Saria, and the rest of his tribe. He thought of how he was loved, and how people cared. He had killed the Dark Sage, and with his last breath he said one last phrase.
“I will always be a Kokiri,”
Into The West We March by BOEG
Chapter Five: Into The West We March
“Link!!! No!!!!” Shinota yelled at the top of his lungs, in complete shock. Zelda backed away, crying. She retreated slowly, farther and farther away from the two bodies, almost to the flame. Jet dropped his blade, his eyes wide. He fell to his knees, overcome with emptiness. His best friend had died. The person who had taught him so much was now on the ground before him, and the very forest that he and his team had been trying to save was lit ablaze all around them. He would have cried in this moment, had he any feeling in his heart aside from disbelief.
“Zelda…step away from the fire, it may grow bigger any second now,” Jet instructed her. She slowly complied, just as lost in thought as he was. The tears streamed down her blue eyes quickly. She was confused, and more depressed than she ever remembered being before. Even when she was disguised as Sheik so many years ago she wasn’t this distressed.
“Jet…” Zelda said slowly.
“Yeah?” he asked.
“He was my best friend…for the longest time I thought I was in love with him…he was…just so…brave…and…strong…it was exactly how I wanted to be as a leader, and now he’s…” Zelda’s voice trailed off.
“I know…” Jet said quietly.
“I mean, please don’t misunderstand my words…you completely have my heart…all of it…it’s just…there’s a piece of it missing now,” Zelda said, tightly embracing Jet.
“I know, Zel…same here,” Jet said softly, kissing Zelda’s forehead and holding onto her. His family was one of the only comforts he still had. He stood slowly, and walked toward Link’s fallen body. There was blood all over his tunic, the blade that the Dark Sage had wielded still sticking out of his chest, a smile on his face, and blood running from his lip. Jet walked toward him, a tear falling from his eye. He grabbed the Dark Sage’s blade and pulled it from Link’s chest, more blood spilling from the wound, rivers of crimson flowing to the dirt ground. The blade burst into dust seconds after Jet grabbed it, sending a shock through his wrist. He shook his arm in pain and kneeled down before Link’s body.
“I love you man…always will,” he said silently, tears rolling down his cheeks. He picked up the Master sword and walked slowly to Lei. He looked the armored Hylian in the eyes, and without words he nodded, knowing what Jet wanted. Lei would give the sword to Link II. Jet walked slowly back to the body, and dug around through the pockets of Link’s Kokiri tunic. He slowly pulled out a bottle filled with red potion and emptied it on Link’s wound, and the bleeding almost instantly stopped. He carefully picked up Link’s body and stood to face the Triforce Team.
“Who has the Dark Forest Sage’s weapon?” Jet asked.
“I do,” Ogre answered, the whip latched to his gold belt.
“You guys…put out this fire…I’m gonna go on ahead to the castle with Link…” Jet said slowly. They nodded quietly in agreement wasting no time in trying to kill the flames any way possible. Jet quickly flew towards the castle. It was his duty as king to make everything alright. And he would. As soon as he figured out how to solve his own problems.
“Hmmm, what is this? An energy has shifted…someone has died. No…many…many have died,” Ganon said with a smile.
“Sir,” a Darknut said, pounding his breastplate and bowing.
“Yes servant?” Ganon asked.
“The Kokiri Forest sir. It’s burning. Everything in it has died. Our soldiers have spread across the area to see the damages,” the Darknut answered.
“And?” Ganon asked.
“Like I said, the Kokiri, the fairies, the Deku Tree, everything is dead,” the Darknut answered.
“Heh heh heh….great. one of the Dark Sages has been killed. The Forest Sage. Now…look for any traces of the Triforce Team. We must follow them, and find the Dark Sage before them,” Ganon said happily.
“Yes master,” the Darknut answered, leaving the chamber. Things were going in Ganon’s favor.
Zelda slowly walked into her room in Hyrule castle. Jet was laying on the bed, which was still neatly made. His weapons were propped against the wall, and his shirt and boots were near them. His chest was tightly wrapped with white bandages. He had sustained many wounds from the battle with the first two Dark Sages, but the burn Golem had given him was definitely the worst. His arms were behind his back and he looked relaxed, yet oddly tense.
The window was open, and the cool air from the rain outside was flowing in. Jet was glad it was raining. It aided stopping the fire in the forest, and it also soothed his weary mind, to a certain point anyway. Zelda, finally back in her dress, sat down next to Jet and slowly laid down.
“Jet…?” she asked quietly.
“Yeah?” he asked back. It was his general response to all questions.
“No matter how….unfitting it seems for a queen…can I do something?” she asked.
“Uhh….sure…I guess,” Jet answered, confused.
“No, no, no…yes or no,” Zelda said.
“Yes,” Jet answered. Zelda kissed him passionately, putting her arms around his bare back. She continued the kiss, being completely absorbed by the feeling. It was the best thing she had felt in months. She had needed this. She slowly slid her tongue into Jet’s mouth, playfully lashing against his. It was like a power struggle, but she enjoyed being in control. Everything in her head filtered out for just a second, and she was in bliss. She ended the kiss, laying next to her husband, holding his hand tightly.
“Heh…thanks,” she said with a smirk.
“Wow….yeah…anytime…” Jet said, a smile on his lips.
“Oh…I’m embarrassed now…I know how inappropriate that was considering the events recently, but I just…” Zelda couldn’t find the words. Naturally, Jet could.
“You just needed to know that something was still the same,” Jet said.
“Yeah…I just needed to know that something was still the same,” she repeated, holding onto Jet.
“A lot’s gone on…we all need some closure Zel,” Jet assured her.
“Yes…some more than others,” Zelda said in a saddened voice.
“He’s strong…he’ll be fine,” Jet said, knowing immediately that Zelda was referring to Link II.
“But…he had just met his real father…and then he died in front of him,” Zelda said, tears welling up in her eyes.
“Honey…as cold as it sounds…his friends probably cared about him more than his son did. Link II knew him for less than a week before the battle…and you’ve known him almost your whole life,” Jet said quietly.
“Yes…he’s a strong boy…he’ll be fine. I hope,” Zelda said quietly, closing her eyes.
“Why?!” Link II cried out, the tears falling quicker than he could keep up with.
“You know that the Dark Sages were powerful…you knew of the might of Shurutoken even without seeing him. You’re a smart boy. You know the fight with Kharo would likely take your father’s life,” Lei said in a rather cold tone.
“…yeah, I did. But…he’s the good guy. He was my dad. Heroes don’t die…they win,” Link II said quietly, wiping tears from his eyes.
“In the fairytales they do. This is not a story. This is not a book that you could simply close and stop reading if things got too grim. The battles engaged in here are real. The Dark Sages, Ganon, it’s all real my child, and you have to be ready to get hurt…to lose…to die,” Lei said.
“I am…I would have taken his place in a second,” Link II said, complete certainty in his voice.
“You have the makings of a hero my boy. You will not disappoint them. Hmm…all of this talk reminds me…your father wanted you to have something. This is now the last treasure of the Kokiri…the last sign they even existed in this world,” Lei said quietly. He pulled from his bag of supplies a small sword with a golden gem inlaid hilt, and slowly handed it to Link II.
“What is it?” Link II asked.
“It is the hidden treasure of the Kokiri tribe. The first blade your father ever used. The Kokiri sword,” Lei answered.
“It’s…mine now?” Link II asked.
“Yes. But remember the way of the sword…never disrespect the memory of the one who gave you that blade. Use it nobly,” Lei instructed.
“Yeah….I will. Thanks,” Link II said, walking away slowly, blade in hand.
“Okay everyone. I know how you all feel. I know the toll that the recent events have taken on us all both physically and mentally are great, but the road will only get harder to travel with the more time we waste standing idle and crying over things that happened yesterday. Yesterday has passed. Our lives are today. No tomorrow, no yesterday, not even an hour ahead. Right now, this moment, is what we will live for, until this moment has passed. When the balance has returned to Hyrule, we can look back on better times, or plan ones in the future. But as of now, our thoughts, our sights, our hopes, All is set on this one moment that is before us. Now, the force of Shadow would be found where death is found. And likewise, Light would be near forces that are no longer living, but Spirit has always been a force harnessed and worshipped by the Gerudo. We will march into the west, and find the Dark Spirit Sage. The warrior who wields the Master sword hasn’t been decided yet. Now, let’s go,” Jet said. He was never good at speeches, but this one made him proud. He was slowly learning to be a leader, and it wasn’t as hard as he initially thought.
Everyone on the team had a heavy burden on their heart and mind, their thoughts on all the lives they had failed to save, on the destruction of the land, even their own fear for death. But they pushed these thoughts aside, and marched silently, hands on hilts and otherwise, prepared to fight the Dark Sage of Spirit to the death, just as Link had. They walked out of the white castle gates, and into what remained of the fields of Hyrule, past the damp earth and singed plants, and into the desert, a place where things seldom lived, whether there had been apocalyptic occurrence or not.
They walked past the shaded land overlooked by the sandy hill in Hyrule field, and marched past dead trees and red boulders, until at last they reached the Gerudo Valley. From here they quickly sped across the bridge over the canyon, and traveled with haste into the fortress of the Gerudo, eager to seek a counsel with one of the more knowledgeable thieves.
Into the large structure they wandered, each going their own individual ways to search for the leader of the base. Past countless sandy corridors they traveled, the skulls of creatures the Gerudos had hunted for sport hanging proudly from the walls above each doorway set into the wall, adorned with brightly painted feathers. They walked with haste, searching all areas, and being disappointed. There were normal Gerudo guards all over the base, walking the hallways with their spears at the ready for intruders or rival thieves.
It was Kafei who found who the others were looking for at last, a woman clothed in black Gerudo garb from head to toe, golden bracelets and belts and all other types of jewelry imaginable adorning her body. Her face was beautiful, but there was no makeup on it, and her eyes shined brighter than the sun that hung in the sky of the desert. They were an odd shade of bluish grey, with flecks of black in them, and they pierced the heart of anyone who gazed into them. Finally, there was a single long blade at her side, sheathed on her right hip.
“You have to be the leader of the Gerudo right?” Kafei asked, the visible portions of his face flushed red from all of the running he had been doing all over the length and width of the fortress.
“Saharna is my name. And I do rule over this place, but only until the birth of the new king. You are Kafei,” she said, a sly smile forming on her lips.
“How did you?” Kafei asked in disbelief, choking on the words.
“I know much. One with a clouded heart is weak, and therefore I can see everything about them….and those with pure hearts are proud, and not afraid of who they are. Anju misses you as well, Kafei,” Saharna said, the same smile on her face.
“T-thanks…but…how do you know my wife misses me?” Kafei asked.
“I go through many travels my young friend, many travels. And indeed I am only a few years older than you, but mentally, I have evolved to a level that it will take even Jet long to master,” Saharna explained.
“Wait….Jet’s going to be like you? And you met my wife?” Kafei asked, more confused now than before.
“Jet may be what I am…yes…but I should hope he won’t stop at my level…his potential is much greater than that. He is destined to lead Hyrule into a new Golden Age of prosperity…he is destined to….well….it would be wise to not give away too much. But yes, I have met your wife, Kafei. She is a very nice woman. Her mother grandmother died recently….but the Stock Pot Inn still has as much business as ever,” Saharna answered, switching topics quickly.
“How did she take it?” Kafei asked.
“She was crushed…family wasn’t plentiful in her life. First her husband, then her grandmother,” Saharna answered.
“First her husband? What are you talking about? I’m completely alive!” Kafei asked, confused.
“Is Kafei alive…or are you Magnum now? Tell me, why did you take up the mask and become who you are in the first place?” Saharna asked inquisitively.
“I became who I was to pay Link back for what he did for Anju and I,” Kafei answered.
“That wasn’t it…you know it,” Saharna reminded him darkly.
“Y-yes….it was the only reason. I owed Link my life, and my wife’s….I owed him the lives of everyone in Termina. The debt even now is larger than I can ever hope to pay off…even in respect to his spirit,” Kafei answered.
“You know why you did this. Why you began…killing. You know the fire that was in your eyes and the coals that were burning in your heart when you saw the Dark Knight, even in Death Mountain, when he was just a ghost of his former self,” Saharna answered.
“I’m…doing this for Link. And Link only,” Kafei said, a heavy feeling in his chest.
“Yes…but remember…all truths are revealed in time, be it by the one holding the secret, or by the one’s affected by the secret,” Saharna reminded him.
“I’m….gonna go get the team,” Kafei said slowly, turning for the exit of the chamber.
“They’ve all heard my voice in their heads. They are heading to this room as we speak,” Saharna said quietly.
“Alright then,” Kafei said quietly, sitting against the wall, head in knees.
“I did not say that to hurt you dear friend…I said it to try and aid you before the end,” Saharna said.
“The end?” Kafei asked.
“Yes…you should tell them how you feel…before Link is put to rest with the others. Your window for revenge has closed…your window for atonement is still open, no matter how slight. I want you to know that if you stay silent now, then this will burden your heart forever, and Kafei will die more and more each day, letting Magnum replace his heart,” Saharna said.
“Just….let me think,” Kafei responded quietly. The team slowly filed in, one after another, into the small room. It was crowded, and all of the breath and body heat between them all made the already hot conditions almost unbearable. Saharna slowly stepped forward toward Jet.
“You are the Hylian king that I’ve heard oh so much about?” Saharna asked with her eyebrow raised, eyeing Jet up and down.
“Yes,” Jet answered quietly, not showing a hint of emotion in his voice. It was something he had been taught by the soldiers. It hid weaknesses well.
“You have a lot to live up to, being under King Harkinarian’s shadow. That is not an easy position to fill…he unified the Hylian nation. The only person who ever proved more cunning them him was-,” Saharna was cut off.
“Ganondorf Dragmire,” Zelda said, rolling her eyes in disgust.
“You say that so offensively?” Saharna noticed.
“Yes. He wasn’t intelligent. He was deceitful,” Zelda said angrily.
“Quite the opposite my dear, he was very cunning to gain the trust of the very king of Hyrule then use that trust against him,” Saharna argued.
“He was pure evil! He was driving your whole tribe into Hell! If you followed his beliefs and standards you would be murdering children and women, and stealing from the defenseless. Quite a life of pride and accomplishment if I do say so myself,” Zelda said angrily, her hands on her hips.
“To begin with, we do not follow his beliefs or…methods. And my other point would be that Ganondorf Dragmire has died,” Saharna said angrily.
“Ganondorf is not dead!” Zelda argued, infuriated.
“No, your highness, Ganondorf is dead. Mandrag Ganon lives, but the man who was our king died long ago, when he first heard of the Triforce,” Saharna said in a low tone.
“The Triforce is a power that is best left alone, but can be used for whatever end the owner needs, if the power is called upon,” Zelda said quietly.
“I see you and your king use the power quite well,” Saharna noted.
“Yes, but we would not even have the powers if it wasn’t for Ganon,” Zelda stated.
“Ah, so you owe him something in a way?” Saharna asked.
“What are you getting at?” Jet asked, slightly vexed by the assault the women had begun to make on his wife.
“Just…be mindful of your true enemies, and do not begrudge aid when it comes to you. Now, without further wait, I know what it is you wish to know. If you take with you a gem, the Amulet of Mudora, then you will be protected from the sands of the Haunted Wasteland; the storm will clear. In the farther reaches of the desert, there is a pyramid. Here you will find the Dark Spirit Sage. But be careful…he is much more powerful than before,” Saharna warned.
“Thank you…it means a lot,” Jet said, nodding.
“Yes…I look forward to seeing what you become in the coming years,” Saharna said with a smile. Something about her face was greatly unsettling to Jet, but he ignored it, turning slowly to face the team.
“We need that gem,” Jet said. Saharna tapped his shoulder lightly, handing him a glowing crimson ruby.
“Be careful with it,” Saharna instructed.
“Yes, thank you. Now, we head out, to kill the Dark Sage of Spirit,” Jet said. They all readied their equipment and left the fortress slowly, heading for the raised gate of the Haunted Wasteland, to a place where few escaped, their fate decided by a small rock. And at the end of the treacherous desert they had nothing to look forward to except a battle of greater difficulty than anything they had faced before. The burdens on their minds were now greater also. Saharna was a gifted woman, but her ability to see the future and the past unveiled some things best forgotten.
A Battle of Epic Proportions by BOEG
Chapter Six: A Battle of Epic Proportions
The Haunted Wasteland was quite rightly named by whoever had actually had the wits to make it out alive in the first place. The rivers of quicksand around the entire area were all too numerous, and looked no different from the regular sand. There was barely anything living in the land, no cacti or lizards, just the Leevers that fed on the flesh of wanderers who grew lost, and myths of larger things in the deeper parts of the desert.
The storm raged on, sands whipping through the air and stinging the eyes of the people who traveled through the desert. The sands were so thick that it was difficult for one to see their hand in front of their face, yet the Triforce Team persevered.
“Aren’t you supposed to use that gem?!” Link II asked Jet, yelling at the top of his lungs to be heard above the howling winds.
“I sorta figured it would just work when we got in the desert!” Jet yelled back.
“Apparently not!” Link II shot back sarcastically.
“Thanks for the colonel of knowledge there!” Jet said, slightly annoyed.
“Well instead of wasting time why don’t we actually try to figure out how it works?!” Roy asked.
“Al’Rashid! You know a lot about the desert, do you have any ideas?!” Jet asked.
“Hmm….if you could harness the forces somehow, maybe the Amulet of Mudora would keep them stabilized. I can harness the powers, but only to a small extent!” Al’Rashid yelled back.
“Jet! The power of Spirit hasn’t been destroyed in Hyrule yet! Use the Mystic magic!” Shinota called out.
“Oh yeah!” Jet said, a smile on his face. He had almost completely forgotten that he even had the power anymore. He stood tall, spreading his legs apart and digging his boots into the dirt, thrusting his fists forward then opening his palms and raising his hands toward the sky. “Mystic Sand Attack!!!” he yelled, and all at once, the swirling sands rose to the sky, drifting upwards magically. Jet quickly pulled the Amulet of Mudora out of a pocket and thrust it into the air. There was a bright flash of crimson light, and then the Haunted Wasteland was as clear as the Gerudo Valley.
“Now that takes care of one problem…but we still have to find this pyramid,” Ogre said in a tired tone.
“Maybe that isn’t such a problem. Goku, Trunks, you two fly ahead and scout the area. When one of you sees the pyramid, then come back here and lead us to it,” Jet said.
“Okay,” Goku agreed.
“Yeah, that’ll work,” Trunks said. The two flew quickly into the distance.
“I guess we should just stay here until they get back then?” Lord Deimos asked.
“Yes. If we get lost, and they get lost, then it won’t very well serve our cause,” Zelda answered.
“Alright. We wait then,” Lord Deimos said, sitting on the sandy ground.
“So…is this place really haunted?” Samson asked, to no one in particular.
“There’s one Poe that’s known of. If you can see the truth he will guide you to the Desert Colossus, where the Spirit Temple is,” Lei answered.
“You’re pretty smart when it comes to Hyrule and it’s past,” Captain Falcon noted.
“Yes, well, I figured that if I was to ever aid the king in defeating Ganon then I should know as much as possible about any traps that the King of Evil may use against us,” Lei responded.
“Hmm…why don’t you tell us all some about this desert then,” Dregan suggested.
“Very well. I know all of the common things, such as only one male is born to the Gerudo tribe every hundred years, and the lingering of Ganon has almost killed the Gerudos-,” Lei was cut off.
“Excuse me?” Kafei asked, finally breaking his long silence.
“You didn’t know? Did any of you know?” Lei asked. He was answered by silence. “Well, yeah, of course. Everyone knows that the one male born into the tribe of the Gerudo must carry on their kingdom, and the repeated revival of Ganon is slowly killing their tribe,” Lei said.
“But one male is born every hundred years…it hasn’t been nearly that long, so they should be safe,” Zelda said, confused.
“You’re under the assumption that a male is born one hundred years after the new king is knighted. This is wrong. This is understandable however. The Gerudo keep their past quite locked away from outsiders, especially Hylians. A male is born one hundred years after the death of the previous king, regardless of whether there is a male alive or not,” Lei explained.
“So…what you’re saying, is even if there is a king, a new child will be born one hundred years after the death of the previous king,” Jet said.
“But that doesn’t add up, there could be more than one male at a time,” Marth noted.
“Yes. But there is not a limit on males. There is a limit on Gerudo males. Once the king is decided, there could be no more male babies, or there could be a thousand, but only the first born in the century is a Gerudo. The others are outcasts, and are sent away, and raised as Hylians,” Lei explained.
“…this isn’t just a standard hatred for what Ganon has done to the Hylian nation is it?” Jet asked.
“You are observant, and for that I am proud that you are my king,” Lei said, bowing. He rose slowly, and removed his breastplate and shoulder armor, removing his chain mail and black cloth shirt. He turned his face from the team, and there in the scorching sun it was clear for all to see; a crescent and star tattooed on Lei’s back. He slowly turned to face the team again.
“Indeed, I am the rightful prince of the Gerudos. Akullodorf is the name that was given to me at birth,” Lei said slowly.
“So this is a personal score to settle with Ganon,” Jet said, a smile crossing his lips.
“Yes, it was because of him that the cycle was ruined, and my royalty was rejected. I do not regret being a Hylian, and I do not regret passing up the chance for royalty, but what I regret is what he has done to the Gerudo,” Lei said, a fierce look of hatred in his eyes.
“But the Gerudos never mentioned any such threat to the Hylian nation, and the fortress was thriving,” Zelda argued.
“Of course not. They’re too proud. I’m surprised someone like you hadn’t figured that one out earlier Zelda,” Lei said with a smirk.
“Well…it isn’t as if they tell us enough to even make a guess as it is,” Zelda said, trying to defend her intelligence.
“There weakness does not yet lie in their numbers your highness. They are weakening from within. Their soldiers are large in numbers, but weak in heart. In fact, combating the Dark Spirit Sage and ruining the balance of power Spirit magic has in this world may be a heavy blow to the Gerudo,” Lei said.
“Then why did they let us pass, let alone tell us where the pyramid is?” Jet asked.
“Likely hope. That or fear. The Gerudo know that the quicker you defeat these Dark Sages the quicker the balance will be restored. And the last thing they wanted right now was a war. The Hylian nation is strong. If they were to resist granting you passage to the Haunted Wasteland, then they feared a battle would break out. Their numbers are still strong, but they are slowly declining at a rate quicker than they are raised. And either way, a baby is not a fighter,” Lei explained.
“Don’t the Gerudos have great magic though? I mean, can’t they just revive the dead?” Samus asked.
“They take the bodies of dead men and women and put an incantation on their corpses. They are brought to life to attack and drain the life out of grave robbers, in the hopes of becoming mortal once more. That is the revival magic of the Gerudo. They create Gibdos,” Lei answered.
“Hmmm…Jet?” Shinota asked.
“Yeah?” Jet responded, turning to face the Zedusrian.
“Why…didn’t you revive Link?” Shinota asked suddenly.
“Zel…should we?” Jet asked quietly.
“I think it’s the right time…” Zelda responded. The entire team was confused, and slightly frightened now. Jet and Zelda were there leaders, and were never ones to keep secrets.
“Alright…there’s something that every ruler of Hyrule is told when they begin their reign. We’ve all been sworn to secrecy, and it’s taboo to say this, but…you guys have a right to know. Link was more than a hero to you, he was a partner and a best friend,” Jet began.
“Go on,” Shinota said.
“Zelda and I…this is so hard to say…we knew of the Dark Sages,” Jet said.
“You what?!” the executioner asked, standing.
“We didn’t know of their names, or the timing in which they’d arrive, or even their names, we were just told the legend of the creation of Hyrule. It was a book that both Zelda and I had to read before we become the true rulers. It told of an event that could ultimately lead to the apocalypse of Hyrule, where six dark warriors would emerge from the corners of the earth, each carrying with him an element, and a will to destroy. Well, along with this, there was a line that me and Zelda hated talking about, but it was still there. It said that a sacrifice had to be made or else the final sage would be able to tap into some kind of power…I forget what it was called, but it would be enough to take out Earth, Hyrule, and Zedusria,” Jet said quietly.
“…wow,” Shinota said, amazed at what he had just heard. He had very accurately caught the emotion of all standing there.
“So you see…if we were to revive him, the sacrifice would be in vain, and someone would else would have to die. It hurts, and I would revive him and give my life in a second…but we don’t have that kind of time right now. It’s true that with each Dark Sage we kill, the remaining get stronger, but as they are now, if the three were to gather together, then we’d have no chance. So one at a time, one after another, no break, is the order we have to go in,” Jet explained.
“It’s okay…we understand. A leader must make difficult decisions,” Yoshimitsu said, also catching the feelings of the entire team.
“Thank you…all of you,” Jet said quietly, sitting down on the sandy ground.
“Yes. But as I was saying…with every day that passes that Ganon lives, the Gerudo grow closer and closer to death. The tribe as a whole cannot survive much longer. Ganon is a cancer, he is by rights not even a Gerudo, but by tradition he is the king. Now…this is the thing. There is a child, a male child…to be born in five months. But if Ganon is not killed before then…then the child will be rejected, and raised as a Hylian. And believe me when I say that the Gerudos will not last another many more centuries. Even if Ganon would be killed soon, they will still need to wait one hundred years for a proper king, and will have only a prince until that time. But as long as Ganon lives, there is no hope for a future,” Lei said darkly.
“So…basically, we kill Ganon, or the Gerudo die,” Jet said quietly.
“Exactly,” Lei confirmed.
“Maybe some talks are in order…if we could convince them to change their tradition…then they could be saved,” Jet suggested.
“Ganon would be their king nonetheless, and he would simply reject the idea, and kill any who oppose his rule, ever Saharna,” Lei explained. Kafei grunted lightly at the mention of the name, but no one noticed.
“So…umm….how about some more information about the Haunted Wasteland?” Marth suggested.
“Well there’s one legend I’ve heard,” Lei said.
“And that is?” Ogre asked.
“There’s a myth of a breed of giant worms that live in the depths of the desert. They are called Moldorms, and vulnerable from the tail only, for the rest of their body is covered in an armor-like shell. There were also legends of two masters of the desert, Twinmold they were called together, two master Moldorms, nearly forty times our size,” Lei said.
“Good thing it’s only a myth,” Jet said quietly. Lei was about to respond, when the flying forms of Goku and Trunks appeared before the team.
“Well?” Jet asked, standing.
“The pyramid is east of this place, a few miles. If we start walking now we should get there before sundown,” Goku said.
“What are we waiting for then? We’ve got some ground to cover,” Jet said. The team slowly stood, and headed eastward, past the featureless land, one stretch looking exactly the same as the next. The sun beat down on them all, and their clothing and gear was making the journey difficult, yet they were determined to reach the pyramid before nightfall. The chill of the desert night was much worse than the heat.
The Dark Sage would be a difficult battle, the most difficult to date, and their magic was weakening. The power of Fire, Water, and Earth was already gone, and their list of powers were growing thin. None who walked through the desert in this moment had any form of a plan, for they were all too lost in thought. The toll the Dark Sages had taken on Hyrule was only a fraction of the things that made their hearts heavy.
At length the pyramid became visible on the horizon, and everyone’s spirit’s rose at the sight. They were halfway done. But before they had a chance to move forward, they were greeted by an all too familiar sight.
“I see we’ve all found a place to meet,” Ganon said, standing in front of the pyramid, dark matter charged into his hands.
“Ganon-,” Jet began, being cut off.
“Ganon, you have caused to many wounds to this land. You are not welcome here, and we will kill you,” Lei said, stepping forward.
“You? You are a pathetic Hylian posing as a an even more pathetic Doomknocker soldier,” Ganon said with a laugh.
“No…I have denied my heritage until now…but no more. No longer will you ravage this land with your evil! I am the rightful heir to the Gerudo kingdom, and I shall take the Gerudo’s back to prosperity!” Lei said triumphantly.
“Heh, you? Foolish liar,” Ganon said, chuckling lightly. Lei silently turned, exposing his Gerudo tattoo, the proof that he was the male. “Akullodorf,” Ganon said darkly.
“Yes…you know my name. Now…prepare to die,” Lei said darkly, unsheathing his blade. The others on the team slowly readied their weapons, but before a move was made, they were all interrupted yet again. From the ground burst two large holes, unrivaled by anything any of them had ever seen. Out of these holes came a torrent of sand, and two worms, at least fifty feet in width, and hundreds of feet in length. One of these worms was a bright blue, and the other a dark red. They had three large green eyes on their head, two large mandibles attached to their maw, and their tails a bright yellow. All were awestruck.
“Well…it looks as if we will be working together for a bit,” Ganon said with a smile.
“You guys…never turn your back on him! He will do anything to get to the pyramid before us, and chances are, Twinmold is just a distraction anyway,” Jet warned them all. Without another word they ran in between the Moldorms as they burrowed in and out of the sand. Everyone on the team was having trouble trying to figure out how to properly attack the creatures, especially due to the lack of distanced weapons. Jet unlatched his chakram and threw it into the distance, the spinning metal bouncing off of the hard skin of the Moldorm and flying back at Jet. He caught the weapon, latching it back onto his belt.
Goku and Trunks both went Super Saiya-jin now, launching wave after wave of Ki blasts at the worms, each attack bouncing off of the Moldorms and into the sand. The blue Moldorm suddenly burst out of the ground which the saiya-jins stood on, throwing them high into the air, the sound of their bones cracking as they landed loud and sickening. They were hurt, but not ready to give up.
“Mystic Light!!!” Zelda yelled, blasting the red Moldorm in the face. Black smoke rose into the clear air, and blue blood flew from the worm’s face, splattering against the ground. The Moldorm crashed to the ground with a cry of pain, and the blue Moldorm burst forth from the ground before her, screaming loudly. It opened its maw, ready to engulf her, but it was pummeled to the side, an amorphous mass of Dark Matter covering it’s body and devouring it. Ganon nodded slightly, then turned to face the second worm.
He charged a large amount of Dark Matter into his hand, blasting it at the already wounded worm. In seconds, it too was dead, Ganon the victor of the battle.
“Good luck getting to the pyramid first…” Ganon said, warping away. The team now burst into a full run for the pyramid. They had to get there first. They knew that they stood no chance at the moment against Ganon’s power. And that meant to them all only one thing: their chances of winning a battle against the Dark Sage of Spirit were even slimmer.
A Different Kind of Duel by BOEG
The conditions were calm, yet all too terrible. The sun beat down on their bodies, drenching them in sweat and burning their skin. They were now running towards the pyramid at full speed to try to beat Ganon, as slim as the chance may be. Their equipment was heavy, the weapons, gear, armor, and clothing making it difficult and painful to run as fast as they were. The sands were thick and unkind to travelers of any sort, especially the type in a hurry. They stumbled and fell, others picking them up and literally dragging them until they were back on their feet again.
They knew that they would be the only ones able to kill the Dark Sage, but they were all too certain that killing the Dark Sage was not even a thought in the King of Evil’s mind. At much length and much toil they reached the pyramid, made with gargantuan stones of black, designs and curses etched into the stone in the ancient Black Beyuntanian language. Whether the curses were real, or just an old trick to deter grave robbers, none knew, or quite frankly cared. What they were attempting could only be called insane anyway, never mind unsafe. The entire team stopped in front of the pyramid, some too tired to walk any farther, others bewildered at the fact that the pyramid lacked a visible entrance.
“So….w-who’s gonna use the sword?” Trunks asked, remembering that the decision had never been made.
“I think Jet should decide,” Captain Falcon called out.
“You guys-,” Jet tried to argue.
“All in favor of my dad making the decision, say I!!!” Gogetta yelled proudly, fist in the air. The entire team (excluding Jet of course) called out a cheerful “I!” With a sigh Jet stepped forward.
“I knew Link very well…and I know that he would want only the most trustworthy, noble, and inspired person to use this sword. For the good of the Gerudo, for the good of Hyrule, and for the death of the Dark Sages, I choose you to wield the Master sword, Lei,” Jet said, slowly handing the sheathed blade to Lei. He bowed down quickly.
“It is…an honor beyond anything to hold this blade, and an even greater honor to be chosen to wield it. You have my thanks your highness. It is a true honor,” Lei said.
“Rise. The honor is all mine brother. You took care of Link II…you gave us hope in a time of need. You won’t lead us into death. And you won’t lead your people into death either,” Jet said confidently, putting his hand on the Gerudo’s shoulder.
“But…your highness…the Hylians are my people,” Lei said quietly.
“No…the Hylians are Lei’s people…in my eyes you have passed that. The Gerudo…those are Akullodorf…the Gerudo prince’s people. We’re two together man. You care about the Hylians just like I care about the Gerudo…we won’t fail Hyrule,” Jet said. Lei nodded.
“You guys…how are we going to get in?” Zelda asked.
“I believe I can take care of that one,” Link II said with a smile. From his pocket he pulled a small bomb, lighting the fuse and lobbing it at the pyramid. Chunks of black rock and sand were blown into the air, and indeed there was now a hole in the side of the great pyramid. A very rough, large and debris-clogged hole, yet a hole nonetheless. Link II was becoming more and more like his late father with every day that passed. The team slowly walked into the pyramid’s new opening, the Master sword sheathed behind Lei’s back.
The pyramid was much like a maze, winding corridors where there was no sand, only a thick layer of dust and grime about the black stone ground. There were no torches, so the team relied heavily on light from Link II’s Deku sticks and Zelda’s Mystic Light magic. None of them knew how far Ganon had progressed, but they were willing to bet it couldn’t be too far into the pyramid. As non descript as every tunnel was they could swear that they had been certain places before, and feared they were now traveling in circles.
It was much different inside the pyramid than the desert also, the air cold and damp, and the sound of dripping water from far off quite audible, yet muffled. The small amount of light they had did a magnificent job at illuminating the catacombs, but it was little comfort, and the fire belonging to Link II was just barely being kept lit in the dankness of the pyramid.
They came finally to what appeared to be a door, veiled quite cleverly in a corner, where the shadow was the strongest. It was etched in many runes, most recognizable being the rune that represented the Black Beyuntanian spell of death, the same incantation that had revived the Aku-Mari and nearly laid ruin to Hyrule so long ago. Kafei stepped forward, trying to push the door, then trying to pull it when the first attempt failed.
“It’s no use,” Kafei said darkly.
“No…there’s one way…” Jet began quietly.
“No….” Zelda said in disbelief, painful memories flashing through her head.
“It’s okay…..it’ll all be okay. We have to do this, right?” Jet asked. A few people in the team said yes, but most were silent.
“Okay…” Zelda agreed quietly, a lump forming in her throat.
“Beyunte Beyunte Sha…Malenios Syentarios Sha…Beyunte Beyunte Sha…Syentocurious,” Jet said quietly, the words leaving a bitter taste in his mouth and a heavy feeling in his heart. He knew what would follow this, and he knew very well it was a trick put into place by the ancient ones who built the pyramid to protect the door. But Jet also knew that Hyrule was in grave danger, and if the only way to escape that danger was to first put the world in more peril, then peril he would put it in.
The black door slid below the ground, revealing a large chamber. There was a single wide crack in the north wall of this large room, and sunlight beamed in through this crack, hitting the floor and lighting the room enough to see without aid. The room was non descript, nothing on the walls or floor, and nothing of interest whatsoever, aside from the figure standing before them, as dead looking as a corpse.
The figure before them was humanoid in shape, a turban about its head, maggots writhing in his sinewy skin, its head withered away to the skull, which just barely clung to dead flesh, with dry blood about it, staining it a deep red. Its eye sockets were empty, aside from the worms that had made their home there. Its left arm was wrapped in bandage, and its bare right arm was nearly skeletal, clutching a blade in its hand. It’s legs were wrapped in bandages, and the rest of its blood stained corpse was bare aside from several belts that hung around its waist. All were deathly silent, so quiet that they could hear the winds howling outside, and the sounds of Guay crying out mournfully, hoping to find food before the day was out.
Suddenly the figure let out a shriek, raising its head and shifting its eyeless gaze from one side of the team to the other, then back again. It spoke, “I am the Dark Sage of Spirit. I am the one you seek to combat. But alas combat you I will not. I will play a different game…a very different game. I will speak a riddle…and I will pick who will answer…and answer you will. If you answer five of my riddles correctly, I will give you one last puzzle, and if you solve it, you can strike me down with your blade…but if you miss two riddles…then using my superior magic, I will lock you in here, while I go and do as I will outside,” the Dark Spirit Sage said quietly.
“This is a damn joke!” Lord Deimos yelled, running forward with his All Seeing blade in hand. He delivered a heavy blow to the Dark Sage, who parried with its bare hand, countering by touching his blade to Lord Deimos’ armor. There was a flash of emerald light, and Deimos was pummeled against a wall.
“Now…will you try your hand at my game…or do you wish to fight? I guarantee I will kill you all before you could possibly hit me with that blade,” the Dark Spirit Sage said.
“…Fine. But be warned. We don’t have time to mess around. If you don’t stick to your word…I will find other ways to kill you,” Jet warned.
“Do not worry, I will quite confidently stick to my word, your highness. If you complete the five riddles and the puzzle, you can kill me. Believe me…one thousand and forty-three have attempted it in my earlier days, before I was confined to this pyramid. Each of these courageous men died before their time. I have nothing to lose…and everything to gain,” the Dark Spirit Sage assured him.
“We’ll see,” Jet said, arms crossed.
“Indeed…my first riddle…dear foolish travelers…is simple enough. Are the Dark Sages weaker…or more powerful than the normal Sages? To answer this I pick…you!” the Dark Spirit Sage said, pointing at Impa.
Impa chuckled lightly to herself, then stepped forward, speaking, “That’s a trick question. The Dark Sages have more power in terms of physical strength, while the Light Sages have more power and skill magically, albeit on more of a persuasive level,” Impa answered.
“Very good…that is one correct answer. Now…my next riddle is again simple. What are the proper spell components for a fire spell? You will answer,” the Dark Spirit Sage said, pointing to Kafei. The Terminan swallowed hard, then stepped forward slowly.
“Beyunte……” Kafei began, trying desperately to find the rest in his head. He was skilled only in Ice and Water magic, and he could tell the Dark Sage knew this because of the weapon he had claimed from Shurutoken.
“You are running out of time…is Beyunte your answer?” the Dark Spirit Sage asked.
“Beyunte…Pyro…Sha…that’s my answer,” Kafei said slowly, hoping beyond all belief he was correct.
“Very well done…my next riddle is this…in order to stop the spell of death from taking effect, would you say each component to the incantation backwards, or would you find a reversal spell, or one that is equally powerful in the opposite form of magic? You, answer!” the Dark Spirit Sage said, pointing to Gogetta, who knew nothing of magic.
“Umm….you’d say it backwards…” Gogetta said quietly, completely guessing.
“Wrong! Heh…the score is two to one. Now, my next riddle is this…who is the Demon Lord of Hell? You, answer!” the Dark Sage of Spirit said to Jet. He confidently stepped forward.
“Asmodeus. Asmodeus was the Demon Lord until he was killed around twelve years ago. Now it’s the Aku-Mari who escaped around the same time,” Jet answered.
“Hmph…three to one it seems. Next riddle! How many Hell Lords have their been? You, answer me!” the Dark Spirit Sage yelled, pointing to Goku. It was his gut instinct to answer six, but he thought in his head for several moments, searching for an answer that he knew to be correct. One more wrong answer and things would get complicated. Devil had obviously been first he thought, then Ganon, and then Modeus. He thought of Hell Modeus and Apocalypse Modeus, but he hoped he was correct in assuming they were all Modeus at heart.
“…Three,” Goku answered slowly.
“…you are all too good at this. My next riddle! What is my name?” the Dark Spirit Sage asked.
“You’ve gotta be kiddin’ us!” Samson objected loudly.
“You! Answer me!” the Dark Sage yelled, pointing to Jet. He stepped forward slowly. It all depended on him. Hyrule’s fate was on his shoulders. It always was, but never before had he had such a great embodiment of what that kind of dependence was all about. He looked around the room for any clues at all. There was nothing on any of the walls, save the crack that let in the sunlight, which was slowly retreating behind the hills.
He then cycled through his memory. He tried to think of anything that would be useful, but it was very difficult to shove aside the dark thoughts. The death of Ingo and Talon. The death of Link. The death of Malon. Even the death of Jonphor to this day still gave him a sick feeling in his stomach. Then he remembered all of the trouble he had gone through to become allies with King Harkinarian. And of course he was then brought to memories of Harkinarian’s death of Hyrule field, and how it had came to be. How it was all his fault. After he had became a member of the Royal Family, he had read numerous books, books of death, of prophecy, of history, of Hylia lore and language. And then he picked it out. Hylia lore and language. He tried to think of everything he had learned from that book, and all the hours he had spent studying it.
In the ancient Hylia language Spirit translated to Lagun. And Sage was Asneoir. He thought to himself for several minutes about this. Asneoir was often shortened to Asne, and Lagun was from a time far before the Dark Sages were made, and the word was re-written in later tales and documents commonly as Laig, which would be pronounced Lag.
“Your name…is Lagasne….” Jet said slowly, confident in himself. A bewildered look crossed the Dark Spirit Sage’s face, and it firmly planted its sword in the ground.
“Fine. The riddles you have conquered. But the puzzle…the final puzzle…you will not,” Lagasne said angrily. He thrust his hand forward, and a gust of swirling sand appeared before him, and was then whisked away through the crack in the in the wall as quickly as it had came. There were six stone blocks and seven switches arranged in a square on the room’s floor. Two were black, two were red, two were white, and one was a regular, orange color. “Arrange these blocks on top of the proper switches. One switch is not used. If you pick the wrong switch, then you will all stay here with me while the world ends around you,” Lagasne said happily. The Triforce Team immediately pushed the blocks on all of the switches, except one of the red.
“Is that it? Are you finished?” Lagasne asked.
“No…we figured out why no one ever solved this puzzle of yours. It’s rigged. Seven switches, six blocks. Doesn’t sound too fair. Most people would think there’d be some kind of special sequence, and they’d believe you when you said that one switch didn’t belong, but no. We’re smart, and we’re equipped,” Jet said with a smile. Yoshimitsu stepped forward, unsheathing a cane in place of his regular katana. He struck the ground once, and a block appeared. Indeed Link was helping them, even though he was dead, his weapons were still of much use. Jet quickly pushed the block onto the last switch, and the walls of the chamber slid down around them, into the sand. They were once more in the open Haunted Wasteland, and the Dark Spirit Sage was now angered more than ever before. It stood speechless, but the Triforce Team knew not to waste this time. Lei ran forward as fast as his legs would carry him, unsheathing the Master sword and spinning around once, swiftly bringing the blade down, cutting the Sage’s head from his shoulders. It fell to the sandy ground, along with the rest of the corpse, and burst into orange flame.
“He was good…we were better,” Gogetta said with a smile.
“How ‘bout it!” Link II yelled proudly, giving Gogetta a high five. Away from the overjoyed children the adults spoke of more serious matter.
“Jet…you said the spell…in hours that Aku-Mari is going to come back…and then he’s going to take you again…” Zelda said darkly.
“Zel…I’m stronger now,” Jet said.
“And I’m willing to wager that he is too,” Zelda said quietly.
“She’s right Jet…we need you way too much right now for you to go engage in any life threatening battles aside from the one’s we have to face,” Impa said.
“Hmm…well the Dark Spirit Sage fought with its mind, with its ability to trick us. Speaking that spell to enter the door wasn’t a lock; it was its first move on us. Now, we countered every other move it made, so there must be something we can do about this,” Jet said.
“Hmmm…that isn’t too far from the truth. I had forgotten about this until now, but…” Lei began.
“But what?” Jet asked.
“But there is a very old Reversal spell,” Lei said.
“Good, we can just speed back to Hyrule castle, and I’ll look through one of the books there,” Jet said with a smile.
“No…it is far older than that…only a book that documented every piece of the Hylia’s history would have this,” Lei said darkly, eyes focused on the sandy ground.
“I think I have an idea of what you’re talking about,” Jet said with a large smile, slowly pulling the Book of Mudora from a pocket.
“The Book of Mudora! I thought for sure it had been destroyed!” Lei exclaimed with joy.
“No…Link had it,” Jet responded.
“Yes…the Hero of Time truly is watching over us in this moment…” Lei said, looking into the sky.
“Ah…here it is…Ash mo’or rein dey…Syentario-ye’yi….syentocurious,” Jet said slowly. There was a shining light above the Book of Mudora for several seconds, then it dissipated into nothing. Jet closed the book and put it back into his pocket.
“We’ve done it…and now there are only two left…but where to look,” Lei began.
“Why don’t we go back to Hyrule castle. We can eat and rest a bit, and we can look for some kinda clue,” Jet suggested. All in the team agreed whole heartedly, and had no trouble expressing the opinion. They quickly gathered their weapons and equipment and began to head in the direction of Hyrule field.
An Interupption of the Most Unexpected Sort by BOEG
Chapter Eight: An Interruption of the Most Unexpected Sort
The Triforce Team had exited the pyramid grounds, trudging slowly through the sands, the biting winds of the desert night lashing out at them, another ceaseless assault from a fiend they could not stop. By and by they all made it back to the Gerudo fortress, cold and tired. Jet had released the spell on the haunted Wasteland, and the sound of the swirling sands could once more be heard, the desert safe again behind the veil that had given the Spirit Temple shelter for so long.
The team had just barely made it through the gate to the Gerudo fortress however, when they were greeted by a company of Gerudo thieves, Saharna in front of them, wearing a short black skirt and a very low (and high at the same time) cut shirt. There was a black cape about her back, and her long hair flowed behind it, a golden scimitar sheathed at her right hip.
“You have been on a long journey…and there are things we all would wish to discuss with you all…and the Hylian nation in general. So please, come and stay with us for the night, you will be well fed and treated,” Saharna offered. The entire group looked at Jet, who gave a rather confused look, and after several nodded, Jet slowly turned to face them.
“Fine. But there are some things we wanna talk about to,” Jet said.
“Yes, yes, of course your highness…the night is young…come,” Saharna said, turning. Her and her company slowly made for one of the doors to the inner fortress, and the Triforce Team cautiously followed.
“Another one dead…four out of the six…we must form some sort of a distraction…something that will keep their eye focused elsewhere while I move to take what is rightfully mine,” Ganon said.
“Master…” a Stalfos knight said, bowing.
“Yes servant?” Ganon questioned.
“Send us to the castle…then…find….it…and make it fight the Triforce Team…then the Dark Sage will be yours for the taking….” The Stalfos knight suggested.
“Yes…it has been roaming free for many years now…I will summon it with my magic and send it to them…now, you, take one hundred of your kind and twenty Iron Knuckles and head for Hyrule castle,” Ganon ordered.
“Yes master,” the Stalfos knight agreed, bowing.
They had eaten a hearty meal, the best meat available for the hunt in all of the western hills of Hyrule. The fruits and vegetables were of a kind that only grew in the desert, even the rare coconuts from the Desert Colossus. There was plenty ale available, and all were fed and drank very well, even though Jet and Zelda preferred water themselves.
“Now…if you don’t mind…I would like to get to the heart of this matter,” Saharna began.
“Yes?” Jet asked.
“You know something of the Gerudo army correct?” Saharna asked.
“I know that Ganondorf was the last king, and since he became corrupted by greed and transformed into Ganon, your race has been dwindling on the edge of extinction,” Jet said. Several of the Gerudos were taken aback by his amount of knowledge in the matter, but as always, Saharna kept her cool.
“It was not the man’s greed that turned him evil. Let us all be honest in this moment of fellowship. If it was greed that turned one evil, there would not be a good soul seated at this table,” Saharna responded.
“You can come to Ganon’s defense all you want, but the fact remains, he is evil,” Zelda said, in a case closed tone.
“Yes, and only after he acquired the Triforce,” Saharna said.
“The Triforce was a relic made by the very Goddesses of Hyrule to represent the peace and prosperity of the world. It’s foolish to say that the Triforce is what made him evil,” Lei said.
“No, it is correct. Before he had heard of the relic he was a grand king, the best thief in the known world. But after that item came into his power, then he became evil,” Saharna said darkly.
“Why did he want it so bad? Was it his greed?” Gogetta said, making quite a point among the table of adults.
“Still your tongue child, these are important matters that you are not involved in,” Saharna said, glaring at Gogetta.
“This boy is a member of the Triforce Team, and able bodied fighter and the prince of Hyrule. He is as much a part of this as I am,” Shinota said.
“So be it. But greed means nothing. After acquiring the Triforce-,” Saharna began.
“What? What happened? Zelda, Shinota and I all have pieces of the Triforce. And are we evil?” Jet asked.
“I believe the Goddesses are slowly destroying this world, and they pick and choose the roles. In order to cover their actions there needs to be the heroes, and the great villain. And into Ganondorf they put their evil will because of the power and potential he had,” Saharna said darkly.
“Fine. It is useless to discuss a matter with someone who has locked their mind to all reason, so I believe we should all stop attempting. The fact still stands. Ganon is pure evil. There is not an ounce of good left in his soul, and until we eradicate that evil from Hyrule, then you Gerudo will continue to weaken, and it will only be a matter of time until you all die out,” Lei said.
“We are stronger than that,” Saharna disagreed.
“If you are all so strong, and intelligent, then why don’t you let down your pride a little?” Kafei asked angrily.
“Excuse me Magnum?” Saharna asked, making it a point to use the name.
“You wouldn’t even admit to Hyrule your problem until we discovered it ourselves! You were so proud that you would all die before asking for help from an allied nation! You won’t admit that Ganon is evil, even after he has disgraced your nation for all these years, simply because long ago you declared him a great king! And I’m willing to bet if it came to changing the tradition of one king every hundred years or death, you would die before you adopted new ways!” Kafei said darkly.
“You are right about that, but you have no room to speak, you are not even a Hylian! Why don’t you just leave the team now? Spare them the fakeness. The Dark Knight is dead now, so your troubles here are over. You don’t have to pretend to care about this. Or is your pride to great to admit that joining the team in the first place was for personal gain, and not for Link at all?” Saharna asked. Kafei said nothing, but slowly stood and left.
“If you’d be so kind as to excuse me for just a second,” Shinota said with a scowl, running out of the chamber to find Kafei.
“Now, as we were discussing,” Saharna began.
“No. that was really uncalled for, and it had nothing to do with the matter at hand,” Jet said angrily.
“The truth hurts. And you all had a right to know. Now, as we were discussing,” Saharna continued.
Shinota’s fears were relieved as soon as he left the room where the meeting was being held. Kafei sat slumped against the right wall of the stone hallway, eyes on the ground. He had been thinking the entire journey about Saharna’s words, and how he really was becoming more and more like Magnum, and less and less like himself. Anju herself must have noticed it. Shinota kneeled down next to him slowly.
“Hey man, none of us think badly about you-,” Shinota was cut off.
“Well maybe you should,” Kafei said quietly.
“Kafei…why?” Shinota asked.
“She’s right. About everything,” Kafei said slowly.
“Tomorrow, before we all leave, just tell us what happened. No one’s gonna be mad or reject you. You have a place here man. Now I’ve gotta get back there. Maybe you should take a rest,” Shinota said, patting Kafei on the shoulder and striding back into the meeting room.
“Kafei has a place on the team…but…what about me?” Kafei asked to himself silently.
Morning had rolled by, and no one in the fortress had had a peaceful sleep. They had all tossed and turned and dreamt of dark things. There was a heavy feeling of dread on their hearts, and they all knew that no matter how close to saving Hyrule they were, the last leg of the journey would be the most terrible. The Triforce Team had their gear and weaponry gathered, including the Dark Sage weapons, the most recent being Lagasne’s sword, which was now in Al’Rashid’s hand. Shinota gave Kafei the go ahead sign, and very reluctantly he made his way to the front of the team.
“I…would like a chance to explain everything that Saharna said last night,” Kafei said, eyes on the ground.
“You don’t need to man,” Jet told him.
“I know, but…I feel like I owe it to you all. When I first joined your team, I had told those of you that were here…including Link…that it was to pay him off for saving Termina so long ago…but…if I were to keep saying that to this day I would be lying,” Kafei began.
“Why?” Goku asked.
“After Link had saved Termina I wasn’t grateful…I was young and selfish…I always wanted to be like him in the respect of his skills and the respect given to him…but the real reason I joined with you guys was because of Link’s father…in his many long years of conquering small armies and plundering poor towns with his magic he came to Clocktown…and he used the Mystic Fire to try to steal from the richest place in town…the Mayor’s Residence…my home. My entire family hid in the backroom, ready to give him anything he wanted, but not my brother…no. my brother De’kaf…he stood before that black armor armed with nothing but a dagger…and he told the Dark Knight to leave…that was the last thing he ever said…he didn’t even cry out when he was killed…thanks to him the Dark Knight left our town, figuring it wouldn’t be worth it if we were so poor we had to have unarmed teenagers defend our rupees…” Kafei said slowly.
“And so what?” Jet asked, not seeing the big deal.
“Shortly after I took my brother’s dagger…and I trained hour after hour…day after day…I studied the most elusive and effective art I could think of in combat…the Sheikah arts…and I became a master. The dagger was almost an extension of my hand. Then it happened all at once. More chaos. Sakon turned me into a child, my wedding mask was stolen, I was too embarrassed to confront my fiancé Anju, that horrible moon appeared in the sky…so I had to look for help. I started contacting Anju through letters, and she mentioned Link. I met him, and sure enough he solved everything…but when he left, and I was once more my adult self…I ventured out to Ikana, with nothing but my dagger and The Couple’s mask to conceal who I was…and I killed Sakon. I gave away the location of his hideout for millions of rupees, and I returned home, telling Anju some wonderful lie about how I had found the cash so suddenly,” Kafei continued.
“Letters were written all over and posters were hung all talking about the great and mighty Magnum. In the Terminan language it means “The Swift Shadow That Steals The Light”. I became a renowned bounty hunter in my spare time, spending more and more time away from my wife, telling lies to keep the part of my life a secret…and when I finally found the gateway into Hyrule…I was in awe. I studied and read and plotted…and found that the magic that had helped make the Dark Knight so powerful…was locked in Hyrule. So I made it my goal to find Link and get his help once more. And when I learned that the Dark Knight was in Hyrule also…I now had two goals to accomplish. But finding Link and the Dark Knight both engaged in combat? It was like my luck couldn’t get any better…so what it all comes down to…is that I’m not a great person…and I was using all of you…I was using you until I made sure the Dark Knight was dead…but recently I’ve started to see it…to see that we’re a family…and that I have a place…” Kafei said quietly. No one spoke a word, and at length Kafei quietly turned and began to walk away.
“Kafei!” Jet yelled. The Terminan slowly turned. “You still have that place…everyone has a past they can’t escape…but now that we’re all together…let’s try to make a future that’s worth living, huh?” Jet said.
“Thank you…all of you,” Kafei said.
“Heh….let’s go…we’ve got a lot of ground to cover if we wanna make it to Hyrule castle yet,” Jet said. The team quickly began to head in the direction of the Hylian kingdom.
They moved past the deadened fields, through the ruins that used to be the lush forest, and eventually past what was Lon Lon Ranch, now an abandoned area of dark memories. They had nearly made it the castle when they all noticed the same thing: the strong smell of smoke and distant sound of swords clanging in the distance.
“The castle,” Jet said in disbelief, running quickly. The entire team followed, but all were then stopped by the same monstrous thing that they had encountered so long ago.
Before them was a tall monstrous shape, muscles that were like ropes tightly bound together. Fierce red eyes amidst fur as black as night. There was a golden chain around its neck, and its arm had been sewn to its body. It had a large thrashing tail, and it had claws as sharp as blades. There was an x carved into its forehead, and several scars on its body, and most peculiar, two rows of teeth. Despite its changes, most noticeably and size and appearance, the team still instantly knew what it was they faced. Hell Hound had returned.
The last battle they had engaged in a decade ago went well for the most part, but they knew the biggest mistake was to let the creature get away. It was a product of Ganon and Agahnim the wizard’s evil, and its life should have ended long ago, but it had survived, and now it was back. It remembered Jet, and wanted revenge. Almost instantly it pounced on top of him, clawing at his body.
“Mystic Light!!!” Zelda called out, the blast searing the creature’s flesh. He ran at Zelda, but was distracted quickly by a crack of Ogre’s whip. He lashed the weapon against Hell Hound’s body, and its skin was torn and ripped, bleed dripping from its body. Lei unsheathed the Master sword and ran at the creature, and at the sight of the blade, Hell Hound growled loudly, and from his back came two dripping black tentacles, formed from what the Triforce Team now knew as Dark Matter, the tool Ganon had used against them.
Hell Hound shot the tentacles in Lei’s way, and he barely parried them, delivering a slash of his own. The Dark Matter moved over Hell Hound’s chest, gripping the blade and throwing it back, then striking Lei hard in the chest. He flew backwards, and the executioner moved in his place, launching several heads at the beast, then throwing the lower portion of his axe like a spear. It stuck in the Hell Hound’s flesh, and he ripped it out angrily, throwing it to the side, blood spurting from the wound.
Samus now attacked, pelting him with several shots of the Light Beam, searing through his flesh and deterring the Dark Matter. It backed away, screaming in pain, then bolted forward, dark matter covering its hands and extending its claws. It slashed at Samus, knocking her to the ground. She went into Morph Ball mode, laying several bombs then boosting a safe distance away, taking her regular form once more. Goku charged to a super saiya-jin, flying into Hell Hound and taking him to the ground. He delivered several punches, then was thrown to the side by the Dark Matter’s powerful tentacles.
Kafei ran at Hell Hound, the dagger of Shurutoken drawn. He hacked away at the creature’s chest, blood splattering against Kafei’s face as the sickening sound of tearing flesh grew louder with every heavy slash he delivered. Hell Hound was bleeding all over the field, angered and hurt. It shot a tentacle of Dark Matter around Kafei’s wrist, and slowly began siphoning his strength. He was slowly becoming weak, and Hell Hound knew this. The energy continued to flow from Kafei to Hell Hound, and just as the Terminan neared unconsciousness, Yoshimitsu ran forward, stabbing Hell Hound in the throat with his katana.
It released its grip on Kafei, who fell to the dirty ground, weakened but alive. Blood spilled to the ground quickly, the mass of broken nerves and veins that used to be Hell Hound’s innards hanging loosely from its body and spurting blood everywhere. It stood still suddenly, rearing its head back and howling loudly in its demonic voice. From all of its wounds burst forth Dark Matter, the dripping black tendrils reaching out for any life they could find, desperate to keep the Hell Hound alive. Samus dived in front of the creature quickly, and the tentacles grabbed onto her, drawing her in slowly.
“Samus! No! what are you doing?!” Shinota yelled, terrified that his wife might die. She continued to be drawn in toward the Hell Hound’s body, and she slowly pointed her arm cannon in front of her face. She switched the beams carefully, and began charging energy into her cannon. Just when she was about to get absorbed into Hell Hound, she stuck her canon into the bleeding ebbing mass of Dark Matter that was Hell Hounds chest and released a powerful Sunburst attack. The Dark Matter was destroyed completely and thoroughly, and Hell Hound fell to the ground, bursting into green flame. Samus kneeled down, removing her helmet. Shinota quickly ran to her.
“I’m sorry…but it was the only thing I could think of,” she said, apologizing to her husband. He kissed her on the lips, a smile on his face.
“As long as you’re safe,” he said happily.
“After almost fifteen years…that thing is finally dead…I dunno whether to hate it…or feel bad for it,” Jet said with a sigh.
“We don’t have time to think about it. Have you forgotten about the castle?” Zelda asked.
“Of course not…but…I don’t quite think we have to worry about that…our soldiers are strong…look,” Jet answered, pointing toward the drawbridge. The last remaining Stalfos of the legion Ganon had sent ran quickly out of the drawbridge, and each were speared through by the Hylian soldiers pursuing them. They burst into blue flame quickly, and the Triforce Team quickly ran to the castle gate to meet the soldiers.
“What is going on?” Zelda asked, looking at each of the soldiers.
“Ganon invaded just hours ago…he brought with him a group of Stalfos knights. We took care of them with ease, and Ganon left,” a soldier answered.
“He wanted us to tell you that number five is all yours, because number six is the one he’s after. He said this as he left the Temple of Time,” another soldier said.
“…I think we know where to look for our Sage you guys,” Jet said quietly. They all bolted off quickly past the soldiers and in the direction of the Temple of Time. If they understood Ganon’s message correctly, there they would find another battle, and there would they come one step closer to saving Hyrule.
The Gates Are Opened by BOEG
Chapter Nine: The Gates Are Opened
They ran into the castle quickly. As Jet passed, he assessed the damage quickly. Only one house had been burned, and it was just a gaming shop, which was only open at night as it was. Jet smiled. No lives had been lost.
They continued to run, past the market and into the calm field in front of the Temple of Time. There was a loud booming noise inside, but the Triforce Team took no time to think about it. They rushed inside as quickly as possible, and were all daunted by what they found inside.
There was the Dark Sage of Light standing before him. He was near to fifteen feet in height, and about a quarter of that in width. He had a long white beard and mustache, with serrated teeth from a small mouth. His eyes were simply the sockets of his skull surrounded by skin, a glowing blue light bursting forth from where most had eyeballs. He had the ears of a Hylian, long and pointed, and muscles as wide around as tree trunks. He didn’t wear a shirt, but had an iron shield about his right shoulder. He wore crimson pants latched by a belt of the same color with a golden medallion on it. There was metal armor strapped to his legs from his knee to his foot, and he wore boots that were spiked on the bottom. He had dark navy blue colored wings, feathered like that of an angel. He had a golden sheathe on his left hip, and a blade in his right hand, etched with Hylia markings, the hilt of gold, the blade of silver. The weapon was nearly nine feet in length, and at least a yard wide.
“You guys…I don’t think we can do this,” Shinota said darkly.
“Don’t talk like that or you’ll curse our luck dad!” Samson said, unsheathing his sword.
“You all…are the Triforce Team I have heard so much about?!” his voice boomed.
“Yeah, that’s right. And who are you?” Jet asked, unsheathing his sword.
“I am Manik Kanon. The Dark Sage of Light. It is my job to ruin the diseased world, and make my beauty where I will,” Manik answered.
“I’ll tell you what. You wanna ruin Hyrule, you have to get past us!” Jet yelled. The entire team showed their agreement to this by readying their weapons.
“Ha…you challenge me?! You maggots wish to kill me?! Surely this a joke!” Manik said.
“Are we laughing?” Jet asked, a look of dead seriousness covering his every expression.
“Very well your highness. I will dispose of you and your friends in the most painful way possible,” Manik said, swinging his gargantuan sword. Without any more delay Jet took the initiative, running at Manik and stabbing at his leg. He made a small rip in the fabric, and an even smaller cut on Manik’s leg, and the Dark Sage angrily kicked in his direction. Jet floated above the range of the kick, performing a jump attack in the air , his blade slicing through Manik’s leg yet again. Manik grabbed Jet, lobbing him into the air. He crashed into the high roof of the Temple of Time, and began to plummet downwards. Trunks just barely caught him in time, putting him gently on the stone ground.
The saiya-jin charged his Ki energy into his blade, running at Manik and cutting several marking into his leg, the saiya-jin energy adding an extra sting to the attacks. Manik kicked Trunks, and he was knocked back, but caught his body in flight before he hit the ground. He shot forward, flying into Manik, the attack doing little.
“Now you gnats have to resort to running into me? Haha…you are all very skilled,” Manik said with a laugh. He stood still while Trunks repeatedly flew into him. For his last attempt he turned super saiya-jin, and stuck his blade in front of his face. This time he planted his blade into Manik’s chest, and the Dark Sage bled. Angrily, Manik planted his blade into the ground of the temple (bringing down several large chunks of the roof in the process) and grabbed Trunks by the legs, slamming him into the hilt of his massive sword, the saiya-jin’s back cracking.
Jet returned the favor in catching Trunks before he hit the ground, then turned saiya-jin himself, blasting Manik with a Kame Hame Ha wave. Manik put his closed fist in front of his body, and the attack bounced off and into a nearby wall, leaving a smoking hole in the foundation. Manik slowly got on one knee, slamming his closed fist into the ground, knocking Jet off of his feet. He did a back roll, launching many ki blasts at Manik, each one bouncing off of his body, some hitting team members.
“Enough of letting them fight alone,” Kafei said, unsheathing Blackfin’s dagger and running forward. He ran forward, stabbing Manik in the foot. The Dark Sage stumbled backwards, kicking Kafei across the room and into a wall.
“Indeed…we all fight!” Ogre yelled, running forward, whip at the ready. He swung it at Manik, and the blade wrapped around his leg, tearing his flesh. Blood splattered to the floor of the temple, and Manik attempted to attack Ogre, who flew to the side, floating to Manik’s face, then bashing his shield into the Dark Sage’s skull. Manik angrily spun around, whipping Ogre to the ground with his wings. The Dark Sage did not intend to let someone get away with something such as that though, and stepped on Ogre with his spiked foot. The team looked away, and all were saddened in this moment, but they soon found there fears were without reason.
Ogre had transformed into his true form, demonic wings and horns, claws and a snake for a right arm, whip clutched tightly. Ogre flew upwards, the snake biting a small hole into Manik’s skin. He lashed the whip around to tear the wound, and he then proceeded to breath fire into the bleeding wound. Manik grunted in pain, grabbing Ogre with both hands and slamming him against a wall. Ogre began to drop, but managed to stay afloat, rushing at Manik and biting his arm as hard as possible.
“Fine! I did not intend such a thing, but you have asked for it!” Manik yelled, retrieving his blade from the ground. He bashed his arm against a wall, freeing the limb of Ogre’s bite and in the process knocking a hole in the wall of the temple. Manik brought his blade down upon Jet, who attempted to parry with his own small sword. He exerted all of his strength to parry a single blow, and backed then backed away, not wanting to try again. He sheathed his blade, and readied his hands.
“Tetraforce Power!!!!” he yelled, the golden light flying into Manik’s chest. Blood spurted from the wound, and Manik fell to the ground in pain, destroying the pedestal of time and the spiritual stones in the process.
Manik yelled in rage, extending his hand and blasting Jet with a beam of light ten feet around at least. He flew into the air and through the temple wall. Several seconds later he burst back in through the same hole, a super saiya-jin. He launched at least a hundred ki blasts at Manik, and the Dark Sage again blasted him with a beam of searing hot light. This time he flew into the floor, tearing the stones apart. Shinota turned super saiya-jin, charging his Ki energy into a blast of the Temple Link. It did the same to Manik as the Tetraforce had.
“Triforce of Wisdom!!!” Zelda yelled, blasting the triangle’s light at Manik also. He stood slowly, surrounded in an unnatural light. He walked slowly to Zelda, and picked her up, smashing her into the wall repeatedly.
“Let her go!!!!” Gotet screamed.
“What? Did you speak to me?” Manik asked, turning to face Gotet, still holding Zelda’s bruised and bleeding body tightly.
“I said…let her go,” Gotet repeated. Manik slammed her into the wall once more, then threw her to the ground. Gotet dived to catch her, placing her on the ground a safe distance away. That was it. No one hurt Zelda and got away with it in his head. He was surrounded by a golden aura that burst forth powerfully, and he began to scream loudly. Manik turned to watch, entertained. After several minutes of this, the light slowly faded, and Gotet stood tall. His muscles were much larger, and the spikes emerging from his body were longer and sharper. His hair was down to his knees, spiked and golden, and his eyebrows were gone, the same white gaze in his eyes. Gotet had achieved the third level of super saiya-jin power.
Gotet launched a searing hot blast of Ki energy at Manik, then flew into the air, proceeding to pummel him with several hand to hand attacks that were quicker than the eye could catch. One move after another he delivered, each punch or kick carrying more force than the last. Manik was almost at the end of the temple’s lobby, and Gotet delivered one final spin kick to the Dark Sage’s face with all the force he could muster. Blood splattered out of the Manik’s mouth and he spun into the air, crashing through the Door of Time and collapsing the entire wall.
Lei, finally seeing his opportunity, ran to the collapsed Manik, unsheathing the Master sword and planting it into the Dark Sage’s skull. A massive amount of blood spurted onto the Gerudo’s face, and he was slightly disgusted, but had no time to contemplate it. a beam of light shot out from the profusely bleeding wound, piercing the ceiling. The temple began to rumble, and without having to be told, the entire team ran from the Temple of Time. They watched from the market as the entire structure slowly fell in a cloud of dust. The most ancient building in Hyrule had been torn asunder in less than an hour. The Dark Sage was dead, but they all had to wonder at what cost, as the gates were now opened. Anything could get in…or out of the Sacred Realm. They knew that they had to find and kill the Dark Sage of Shadow, and they knew they had to do it soon.
Ma'Reemba The Lord of Shadows by BOEG
Chapter Ten: Ma’Reemba The Lord of The Shadow
“I can’t believe it,” Zelda said, shaking her head at the situation which they themselves had made.
“We’ll just…have to tell them the destruction of the temple was our fault,” Captain Falcon said.
“The temple they’ll understand…what may come from the temple…or what may go into the ruins of the temple…that is what they will hate,” Dregan said, wholly understanding the problem.
“Yeah…if the Dark Shadow Sage were to get into the Sacred Realm…then he could fill the entire place with darkness….a darkness the likes of which men have never seen. We have to prevent that at all costs,” Jet said.
“That means we need to get the last Sage right?” Link II asked.
“Exactly,” Lei answered.
“Where do we look?” Marth questioned.
“Good question….” Shinota said, thinking about the possible answer.
“Would the graveyard work?” Samson asked.
“Yeah, there’s lots of gross dead stuff at graveyards!” Gogetta exclaimed.
“No…considering the current overdose of energy the final Dark Sage gained I doubt it would be waiting around in a graveyard. It’s probably actively moving,” Impa said.
“Where in the world are we going to find it then?” Al’Rashid asked. No sooner than he stated the question was he met by a group of Hylian soldiers, sweating and out of breath, swords drawn.
“Your highness,” the first spoke.
“What’s wrong?” Jet asked, a concerned look about his face.
“We were trying to clear away the debris of the burned house in the market…and then we heard something coming from the field. We sent a few men to investigate, and we heard screams, then their bodies were flung helplessly back to us. None of us wasted any time in seeing what it was, for we figured you could handle it,” the second soldier answered.
“You guys…I think we have our Sage,” Roy said. Without another word the entire Triforce Team ran for Hyrule field.
They exited the safety of the castle, and emerged in the darkness that was Hyrule field. the land was still in ruins, and the sky was a sickly grey color, as if rain could fall at any second. It was cool out, and there was a slight breeze, but none of this caught their attention.
Before them was a black sphere of Dark Matter, nearly twenty feet in diameter, and ten feet high. The team approached it slowly, and out of the Dark Matter rose a shape ever so slowly. It was of demonic form, with black wings and tightly bound muscle on its arms and chest. It had long black claws and its face was like a skull with a razor-toothed maw, two horns emerging from the side of its head. It carried no weapon. Slowly it spoke, in a dark, evil tone, the feeling of dread each word portrayed second only to Modeus the Lord of Hell.
“You are the Triforce Team. You are the ones who gave me my strength by killing the others. But you have done something that cannot be forgiven. You have killed the order of Dark Sages. I am the only left, and I will crush you all and then destroy Hyrule. All of the world will remember my name, Ma’Reemba, the Lord of Shadow!” The Dark Sage rumbled angrily.
“We will kill you and bring peace to Hyrule!” Zelda protested angrily.
“All of your powers against me are attempts in vain to keep alive a dead light. Just let your world fade quietly, and all will hurt less. Do not make this an unnecessary power struggle,” Ma’Reemba warned.
“Apparently the deaths of your fellow Dark Sages aren’t enough to convince you of our power. But the power distribution is over, and now you possess the strength of all of the Dark Sages. And believe me when I say I am wholly confident that we have defeated the strength of these Dark Sages five times before, and we will not fail for the sixth. We can’t,” Jet said, without a single hint of fear or doubt in his voice.
“Very well. If a battle is what you wish to have then I will feed all of your expectations, although I do hope you are ready to die,” Ma’Reemba said darkly, thrusting his fist forward, tendrils of Dark Matter whipping out at the Triforce Team, hitting mostly Jet and Shinota, who had been in enough of a fight just minutes ago. The attack was not powerful enough to knock either off their feet, but both were hit to their knees, and the will to get up was not as noticeably present as it should be in a moment such as this. But such was the power of the Dark Matter. It drained one’s energies both physically and mentally, taking the will to fight.
Jet unsheathed his Royal Family’s blade, rushing at Ma’Reemba, clutching the hilt tightly with both hands. He took a mighty swing that would cleave any lowly soldier in half, but not Ma’Reemba. The Dark Matter that made up the Dark Sage’s body opened up like a massive maw, swallowing the blade, then spitting it back out, point first. Jet just barely stepped to the side of his own sword, and it fell stiffly to the ground, sticking in the dry soil. He removed the sword from the earth and got into a ready stance once more, determined to not let his blade be stolen again.
Shinota readied his Twin Diamond sword in his right hand and the blade of Golem the Dark Sage of Fire in his left, and went at Ma’Reemba, hacking and slicing away at the Dark Matter. The small pieces he managed to hack off scuttled away, hoping to poison weaker creatures, as opposed to being controlled. The black oozing tentacles gripped tightly to the Twin Diamond sword, but could not get hold of a weapon belonging to a fellow Dark Sage, and Shinota used this fact to his advantage, slicing through the tentacles clutching his blade and stabbing Ma’Reemba in the process.
Angrily the Dark Sage extended a large amount of Dark Matter from the side of its body, and from it formed a skeletal form with what appeared to be blades in place of fingers, seven on each hand. It slashed at Shinota, and even with two blades the Zedusrian had an immense amount of trouble parrying the blows, and was cut very often, blood running down his arms and staining his fabric in the process. The skeletal form took a swing with both of its hands, in opposite directions, and Shinota parried, but was pushed back, giving the skeletal form plenty of time to attack once more, a chance which it took. It stabbed Shinota in the chest, and with a slight grunt of pain he stumbled backwards, four of the seven blades piercing through his flesh. Ma’Reemba laughed, and Samson took his father’s place.
“N-no…not alone,” Shinota said to Samson in as powerful a voice as he could manage from the blood loss.
“He isn’t alone!” Gogetta said with a smirk.
“Yeah, how’re we gonna learn if we never try?” Link II asked, the Kokiri sword in his left hand. Gogetta pounced at Ma’Reemba, and the Dark Sage shot its tentacles forth, latching onto the child.
“Now you guys!” Gogetta yelled, and the two remaining children wasted no time in cutting the Dark Matter from Gogetta. Ma’Reemba let out a groan of what might have been pain, but was more likely annoyance. It had always hated children. The Dark Sage let a glob of Dark Matter fall to the ground, and from it formed the shape of a ravenous wolf, razor sharp teeth and two legs, the second half of its body one with Ma’Reemba. It leapt up, clawing Samson to the ground, ready to devour the boy. It opened its mouth and bore its teeth, Dark Matter flying wildly from its open maw like saliva. A spinning shape cut through the air in this moment, piercing the wolf’s throat and allowing Samson the time to escape. All looked over to see Jet, chakram in hand.
Yoshimitsu and Roy ran at the Dark Sage now, and it angrily shot out three tentacles of Dark Matter which lashed at them and slammed into the dirt repeatedly, tearing the land asunder with each powerful blow delivered. The two men cleverly evaded the tentacles, Roy slashing at Ma’Reemba with one of his many flaring blade techniques, Yoshimitsu stepping on top of one of the tentacles, then leaping from it and planting his katana in Ma’Reemba’s side. He landed on the ground nearby and held out his open palm. Several seconds later his katana met his open hand, and he spun around, ready to face more attacks from the Dark Sage.
Ma’Reemba gripped Roy, throwing him in the air, into a fall that would spell certain doom, had he hit the ground that is. Goku’s super saiya-jin shape caught him in the air, and Roy whispered several words into his ear. Goku nodded, hoisting Roy on his shoulders then throwing him into the air. With a cry Roy held his flaming blade in front of him as he fell, slicing through the Dark Sage’s body in a very deep and deadly fashion. It cried out in pain for the first time in its life, then pummeled Roy to the side. He was in pain, but still smiled at the damage he had done.
“Can’t let him get away with something great like that,” Marth said with a slight smirk, unsheathing his Falchion and running full speed for the Dark Sage. The Dark Sage formed two globs of Dark Matter in the form of wild boars, each rearing back and hitting Marth hard with their horns. He was stunned and knocked backwards, performing several backrolls yet landing on his feet, Falchion still tight in hand. He swung the blade swiftly and held it in his outstretched right arm, then ran at Ma’Reemba and the boars once more. The first tried to smash into him once more with its horns, and he blocked the blow and performed his stunning shield breaker move, dazing the artificial beast. His luck was not so great with the second boar, who head butted him into the distance once more.
Ma’Reemba laughed, shooting out a large tentacle of Dark Matter. Marth, a new look of anger and determination in his eyes, rolled to the side and onto his feet, his right foot skidding against the dirt, then readied his blade. He delivered six lightning fast slashes, then rolled to the side once more, avoiding the large tentacle, delivering six more moves that were much quicker than the eye could see. Finally he performed a swift uppercut on the massive tentacle.
“Is that it? You did nothing…wait…” Ma’Reemba said in a shocked tone. Quite suddenly, without the victim even noticing at first, the boars fell into six pieces each on the ground, and the tentacle fell to the dead dirt. Such was the way Marth fought. Such was the way he had been trained to fight from birth, and would continue to practice ‘till death. Goku ran at the Dark Sage, letting loose his classic Kame Hame Ha Wave attack, blasting apart several chunks of Dark Matter. With a look of anger that could only be portrayed properly by such a creature as a Dark Sage of Shadow, the evil Ma’Reemba formed a face in the midst of the Dark Matter, and two whip-like tentacles.
One of these tentacles latched onto Goku’s foot, and another latched onto Marth’s and both were slowly being drawn into the massive mouth of the face, into the Dark Sage himself. Zelda stepped forward, reading a small boy she always carried just in case. She strung an arrow, then spoke the words “Arrow of Light!!!” To her dismay, a regular shaft flew through the air, disappearing into the mass of Dark Matter that was Ma’Reemba. She had forgotten the first rule in fighting the Dark Sages. After destroying a Sage of a certain element the magic of that said element cannot be used again until the balance is restored. Right now that element was Light, one of the few things that could likely end the battle before it had a chance to begin.
Marth and Goku were drawn in closer and closer, each desperately trying to sort through in their heads a brilliant plan of escape, each coming up empty handed. Captain Falcon readied his laser, knowing it would likely do little, but ready to attempt it nonetheless. He charged a large blast, almost to the point that his gun overheated, knowing that he had but one shot. He slowly pulled the trigger, and a blast of sizzling hot energy whizzed through the air, piercing the tentacle that bound Marth. He quickly sliced Goku free was his Falchion, and the two backed away a safe distance.
“You are all fools and your end is now!” Ma’Reemba said angrily, simultaneously forming nearly fifteen figures out of the Dark Matter, creatures both humanoid in shape and otherwise, all with the deadly power of the Dark Matter. None on the team stood dormant now, each attacking actively to save fellow members of their team. The sounds of battle could indeed be heard now from some parts of Hyrule castle, and the soldiers could only pray the Triforce Team would win the battle against evil yet again.
Finally after a struggle that last much longer than an hour, the figures were gone, and much of the Dark Matter had disappeared from the Dark Sage, save for the massive ebbing ball that made up his lower half and the top part of his body, demonic in shape and appearance. At this time, the Triforce Team cursed their luck, as the vile form of Ganon appeared, but he did not attack them, no. He instead attacked the Dark Sage, just as he said he would. He reached both of his hands out, and uttered several incantations, and an amazing thing then happened. Amazing, yet all too terrible. The King of Evil, without a single word, began to siphon the Dark Matter from Ma’Reemba, who seemed helpless despite the attacks against Ganon he was making. After what seemed like an eternity of waiting in fear, Ganon warped away with naught but a laugh, his plan completed, and much easier than he thought. What was left before them was the top portion of Ma’Reemba, his grand sphere of Dark Matter depleted. The Dark Sage looked very weak, and Lei wasted no time.
He stepped forward, unsheathing the Master sword. He stood and stared down the floating form of Ma’Reemba for several seconds, able to sense something was not right. He began to rear the Master sword back into a stabbing position, but then quickly shifted the metal in front of him defensively, a smart move. The arrow Zelda had attacked Ma’Reemba with bounced harmlessly off of the sword and onto the ground, the shaft broken in half from the close collision. Ma’Reemba’s last trick was gone. With a smile like one wouldn’t believe unless they personally were to witness, Lei stabbed Ma’Reemba in the throat, then removed the blade, piercing the vile beast’s heart, blood spilling from the wounds. With an inhuman cry of pain so loud it shook the mountains the final Dark Sage died, its body falling to the ground of the deadened field, lifeless. It slowly burst into green flame, and all let out a sigh of relief, but their victory was all too short lived. Out of the exit to Kakariko came a Darknut soldier covered in Dark Matter. It had been wounded and was near to death.
“The King of Evil says….congratulations…but Hyrule…is not…safe. He wishes for you to meet him…on….on….Death Mountain,” the Darknut said quietly, falling to the ground and bursting into blue flame.
“You heard the thing…let’s go,” Jet said, disappointed beyond what words could describe. They had saved Hyrule from the Dark Sages, but Ganon was still a threat, one that did not have a problem making itself known.
The Death of a King and the Birth of a Man by BOEG
Chapter Eleven: The Death of a King and the Rebirth of a Man
The Triforce Team was worn now to a point where few would still be able to function, let alone climb a mountain, but that was the situation they were now faced with. Not a single person had escaped being hurt, and all had torn clothing and flesh, blood staining their outfits as well as their weapons. The ones who had seen more combat than others such as Goku and Roy dripped blood as they walked, and not in small amount either.
Their bodies and spirits were weary, the weather in Hyrule a perfect reflection of this, to all except Jet most likely. The skies were a horrid blackish-grey, and cold drops of rain fell from the sky and pummeled the defenseless ground, which was void even of the green grass after the Dark Sages war on the world. The drops fell harder and faster, and lightning flashed through the sky. The sound of rumbling thunder could be heard from miles away, as if the Goddesses themselves were above them, pounding war drums to signal the battle for the world that would soon be at hand.
The dying Darknut had said Ganon wished to see them, and if the Triforce Team knew anything about Ganon at this point (and they did) then they would not sit down and discuss things when they reached the top of the mountain. Ganon had appeared quite suddenly, drained the Dark Sage of nearly all of its energy, then left. Worse yet, all knew how powerful and swift Ganon was when it came to combat with Dark Matter, and how he had nearly defeated them several times with a tiny amount.
Now the King of Evil had as much Dark Matter at the Dark Sage of Shadow. That paired with the Triforce of Power and his already terrible Black magic would be enough to kill them if they didn’t put up the greatest fight ever. The storm continued to rage through Hyrule’s lands as they thought of these matters, and by and by they stopped, just before entering the Death Mountain foothills. All turned to face their leader.
“Alright you guys…you did great back there…I was proud of everyone of ya’ but I’m afraid I can’t give you as much of a congratulation speech as I’d like right now. Now…I think you all know that we’re gonna be in another fight. I dunno how…but we have to kill him. He absorbed all of Ma’Reemba’s Dark Matter…which means he must have an immense amount of power right now. So we’re gonna have to be careful…the one perk to this fight is that the Dark Sage’s are dead. That means all of our magic is back. I’m sure you all felt power returning to you, no matter how subtly,” Jet said.
“Yes. We must finish this Jet. It’s now or never. Ganon has grown too powerful. The Dark Matter and the Triforce of Power paired with his army in the mountains will kill the Gerudo and the rest of Hyrule. Even if he does revive himself he will still be back to his regular weak form…so we have to kill him,” Lei said.
“Right. With that…let’s get going. Trunks, Goku, Shinota, Ogre and I will carry all of you up…we’re gonna have to make two trips, but it’ll be quicker than walking…then we go into the crater, and we kill Ganon,” Jet said. The team nodded in agreement, and they all entered the foothills of the evil mountain, ready for what would hopefully be the last battle they engaged in for awhile at least.
Ogre and the saiya-jins stood with their plan, carrying it out quick and efficiently, and when all were at last on top of the mountain, they readied their blood drenched weaponry and headed into the mouth of the smoldering crater. The cloud around Death Mountain was flaming and lashing out at the sky, and black smoke rose out of the crater, polluting the air. Evil was obviously at work here, in great amounts.
They were greeted by emptiness. There was nothing visible in the crater aside from them. Jet took a step forward, and suddenly two black tentacles sprung out from over the cliff’s edge, plastering themselves to the ground and pulling up a terrible shape with them. Standing before them all now was Ganon, but not Ganon as they knew him. He stood somewhere around eight feet tall, his armor cracked and broken from the increase in his size. He had large muscles, and his veins were bulbous, sticking out of his arms and hands and even his chest, pulsating with each breath he took. What shocked them more was the fact that it was Dark Matter that was visibly flowing through his veins. His skin was a dark grey now, his eyes a fiery red (excluding his third eye, which shone the regular yellow). Surrounding his eyes his skin had been cracked, and his skull was exposed, small streams of blood dripping from the wound, being covered by Dark Matter. He had wings shaped of Dark Matter, dripping the black oozing globs of the evil substance. His fingers were long and spidery, extended by the evil Dark Matter. His hair was much longer, swaying in the breeze above his head, still spiked high. He had a long ebbing cape formed from the Dark Matter, and the Triforce of Power fought to make its power known amidst the Dark Matter flowing all through Ganon’s body. All of the armor he had been wearing that was damaged was now replaced by Dark Matter, the substance forming a shell around his body harder than metal, and unbreakable spikes emerging from his back, shoulders, elbows, and knees. He began to speak, Dark Matter oozing from his mouth, another demonic voice heard along with his own, proof that the Dark Matter was entering his brain and slowly taking over crucial parts of his mind. His own voice was much deeper now, as the effects of the substance had elongated his neck slightly, thus stretching his vocal cords even more.
“Thank you for coming today, almighty Triforce Team. Now that you know what my plan was, to gain all the power I would ever need, I can allow you to bear witness to a day that will be remembered in Hyrule’s history forever! The day I, Mandrag Ganon, killed the entire Triforce Team, stole the rest of the Sacred relic, and declared myself Lord of Shadow! Alas, my old title was not fitting anymore, as I am no longer a lowly king such as yourself Jet, but I am a mighty Lord over all evil,” Ganon boomed Dark Matter and blood spilling from his mouth.
“You’re sick,” Link II said angrily.
“Ahahaha such an open child in regard to opinions and feelings! I’m sure your boldness will make you taste delicious!” Ganon said with a smile, showing the Dark Matter had quite obviously altered his maw as well. He now at least three rows of teeth that were as sharp as swords and long as daggers.
“Ganon, the Dark Matter’s poisoned your mind. It’s too much power, you can’t handle it,” Jet warned.
“Too much power? For me? Heh heh heh,” Ganon boomed loudly.
“Too much of a good thing Mandrag, too much of a good thing,” the executioner warned.
“Too much of a good thing? Pah. No such thing, especially not to one such as I, the Lord of Shadow,” Ganon said happily.
“It’s really a pity you’re the only one who will ever use that title in regard to yourself,” Al’Rashid said, shaking his head.
“And what do you mean by that, desert rat?” Ganon asked, taking slight offense.
“I mean…we will kill you before you have a chance to disease Hyrule anymore,” Al’Rashid said. A look of disgust came over Ganon’s face. Without moving a single muscle, or even blinking for that matter, the Lord of Shadow shot a tentacle of Dark Matter at Al’Rashid, gripping him tightly and flinging him into a pillar that rose out of the lava. He began to plummet toward the magma, and Goku quickly used his instant transmission technique to catch him. Ganon, with his newfound power, could sense the saiya-jin behind him, and he shot a torrent of razor sharp needles composed of Dark Matter his way. He quickly flew above the attack, being hit by only seven or eight.
Jet wasted no more time, kicking Ganon in the face. The abomination did not even budge, and simply slapped the King of Hyrule against a wall with one of his many tentacles.
“I wonder…” Ogre began in a small whisper.
“I think I know what you’re thinking,” Kafei said with a smirk. They nodded to each other and rushed at Ganon, the weapons of the Dark Sages in their hands. Ogre wrapped his whip around Ganon’s arm, and Kafei stabbed him in the wrist. Dark Matter burst from the wound and covered it, effectively healing Ganon.
“Mystic Ice Attack!” Kafei yelled, backing away and hitting the Evil King with the magic he had not used in so long. Ganon was caught off guard and frozen for a second.
“Shinota, follow my lead!” Jet yelled.
“Right!” Shinota called back.
“Mystic Sand Attack!!!” Jet yelled, blasting his magic at the lava.
“Mystic Fire Attack!!!” Shinota yelled, pummeling the same spot. A piece of rock covered in magma rose from the craters bottom, and the two warriors flung it at Ganon. The Dark being caught it with two Dark Matter tentacles, spinning it around and throwing it back at Shinota and Jet, who just barely destroyed it with a barrage of Ki blasts before it hit them. Lei unsheathed the Master sword and ran at Ganon, delivering several blows that would easily kill anyone else. Ganon was wounded only once, and it was healed quickly by the Dark Matter. He shot a tentacle at Lei, who parried with the ancient blade, then he proceeded to plant the sword in Ganon’s shoulder. Dark Matter spurted from the wound, covering his shoulder, and for the first time in the entire fight, Ganon attacked with his own body (or what was left of it, considering how much the Dark Matter had taken over). He punched Lei hard, sending him spiraling to the floor. The King of Evil then pulled a broadsword of Dark Matter out of his cape, and slammed it into the ground. Lei had just barely rolled out of the way and onto his feet.
Creeping tendrils of Dark Matter came out of the blade and burrowed into the ground, bursting out in other places and attacking the others. Trunks had unsheathed his blade and charged it full of saiya-jin energy, and was attacking Ganon relentlessly, the Dark Matter tentacles putting up a grand fight, parrying every blow he delivered with his sword. Indeed Ganon’s defense had gone up ten fold.
Jet was now a super saiya-jin, attacking with every move he knew, especially the Spirit Ki, an attack he had not gotten a chance to use since the imbalance in Hyrule. This seemed to be an effective method of attack, and it gave Goku an even greater idea. Quickly the saiya-jin quietly convinced the Triforce Team members to give him strength, and he stood secluded in a corner, arms raised to the sky, building energy, ever so slowly.
Lord Deimos and the executioner were attacking with their weapons, Deimos using both his all-seeing blade and the Mace of Tannis in an attempt to outdo the tentacles and get a shot at Ganon himself.
“Mystic Light!!!” Zelda yelled, and a beam of incredible radiance shot through the dark mountain crater, burning a sizzling hole in Ganon’s back. He screamed loudly, and quickly Samus followed up with a Sunburst from her arm cannon.
“Tetraforce Power!!!” Gotet yelled, aiming the blast at Ganon’s exposed back. His skin was pierced, and more Dark Matter shot outwards, forming two massive bladed staffs that he quickly grabbed a hold of.
“Triforce of Power!!!” he yelled in an evil voice, blasting the magic through his staffs and at the weaker members of the team. Marth and Roy decided to double team the tentacles, and were convinced that Roy’s Flare techniques, along with Marth’s Shadow Flare techniques would be able to put a dent in the forces of the Dark Matter. One fiery hit and then three or four invisibly fast ones. They were decimating tentacles quicker than the Dark Matter could keep up, yet still there was always one they didn’t see, stabbing or tripping or siphoning their very life.
Dregan and Yoshimitsu stayed together, Dregan blasting the tentacles with his spirits (a technique he was very glad to have back) an Yoshimitsu attacking Ganon, who was so overpowered he barely noticed the pain. Yoshimitsu was smacked to the side by the Dark Matter, and in anger he threw his machete at Ganon’s side. With a cry of pain and surprise the Evil King turned to face Yoshimtsu, throwing one of his staffs. It pierced Yoshimitsu’s armor and flesh, and he quickly removed it, throwing it into the lava with a smirk behind his helmet.
“You fool! That is mine to do what I will with!” Ganon screamed.
“Not anymore if I am correct in my assumptions,” Yoshimitsu said in a sarcastic tone, his free hand clutching his bleeding wound tightly. All of the mortal god’s tentacles flared in one direction, toward the wounded Yoshimitsu, and Ganon stepped forward slowly, speaking.
“How about I take that small hole in your chest and make it a great deal larger!” Ganon said, rearing the tentacles backward.
“Or I could just club you in the head!” Lord Deimos yelled happily, taking the moment of distraction to do his trade mark home run swing attack, hitting Ganon with both his all-seeing blade and the Mace of Tannis. The Shadow Lord flew into the lava of the crater quickly, and for a moment there was a cry of pain, the most evil sound any present had ever heard, then there was silence. For a moment they all sighed in relief, believing that it was over. Their beliefs were shattered.
An immense amount of Dark Matter shot onto a nearby pillar of stone sticking out of the magma, tearing it down. The stone slab smashed onto the land, creating a crude bridge of sorts, and Ganon slowly hoisted himself onto this stone. Portions of his body has been burned away, and almost all of the skin on his face was reduced to charred skull, but the Dark Matter slowly moved to replace the lost flesh. He angrily shot three dark orbs at the Triforce Team, Captain Falcon shooting one of them and Samson and Trunks dispatching the others with their blades.
“Mystic Light!!!” Zelda cried out, shooting the beam of Light at Ganon once more.
“Tetraforce Power!” Gotet followed up, pummeling the King of Evil.
“Temple Link Blast!!!” Shinota cried, his golden piece shining forth.
“Spirit Bomb!!!” Goku yelled, finally having gathered enough energy. Ganon was pummeled against a nearby wall, the explosion of attacks creating a large smoking mass that clogged everyone’s vision. In that single moment almost every hope of victory they had was shattered. The smoke cleared, and before them was Ganon with his outstretched hand, unharmed. He had absorbed the Spirit bomb into his Dark Matter. The entire team braced themselves for the following attack, but no defense was strong enough. Ganon blasted the Spirit bomb into a nearby wall, causing a massive explosion and collapsing the wall, chunks of rock, flame, and energy flying all about. By and by the black smoke faded from the battlefield, and Ganon saw the extent of damage he had done. No one had escaped the attack unarmed, all were bleeding, bruised, and weak on the ground, desperately trying to gather their strength to make another stand.
“Heh heh heh…your powers are weak. From that single attack you lay sprawled about my mountain kingdom, divided and bleeding. What does this mean? Does it mean that you have won? Why do I think otherwise? Why do I doubt that you are hiding some instrument of death? Why do I think, that finally, I have pulled out all the stops, and the Triforce Team lies before my feet, at my mercy, in my kingdom? Oh what a predicament you have all gotten yourselves into. But alas, now I will finish you all off,” Ganon said, smiling.
Ganon stepped forward slowly, picking up Dregan by the neck. With a scowl he severed the warrior’s head from his shoulders with his bare hand, throwing it against a nearby wall. He threw the lifeless body in the same direction. Dregan quietly feigned death, amazed at the stupidity of the Lord of Shadows. Samus stood, not willing to admit defeat, although her life systems were failing and her ammo was running on empty. She strained every single muscle in her body to lift her cannon arm, and pointed it at Ganon. He reared his hand back, charging the familiar fireball into his outstretched palm. Samus pointed her gun to the King of Evil’s chest, unloading her lost cartridge of Light ammo. To her dismay, the King of Evil had anticipated such a move, and smacked her cannon to the side at the last second, the shot of Light careening harmlessly into a wall far in the distance.
Ganon put his closed palm to Samus’ chest, letting the fireball explode there. She was knocked back at least seven feet, but she braced herself, fully aware that if she fell to the ground again she would not have the strength to rise again. She lifted her cannon with her left hand, charging as much emergency Light energy into her arm cannon as possible. With the one shot she knew she had left, she unleashed the attack from her cannon, and it hit Ganon in the chest, knocking him back. She fell to the ground, weak and tired.
Marth ran at the King of Evil now, whipping his blade around but twice, for it was all the strength he had left in his arms. Several globs of Dark Matter were cut from Ganon, and he pelted the weak fighter to the side with a tentacle of Dark Matter, but not before forming a blade out of the substance. All of the able fighters in the art of the sword stepped forward with their last amount of strength, Roy, Yoshimitsu, Trunks and Link II among them. They all ran at the Lord of Shadows, parrying only one or two blows each before getting pushed aside by the King of Evil, who was obviously after but one person at the current moment: the King of Hyrule.
Jet staggered to his feet slowly, his fabric torn in all places, his shirt long ago removed and thrown to the side, as it was so frayed it covered little. There were burns all about his body, and long gashes and stab wounds marking his chest, blood running down his body and onto the ground, mixing in with the thick layer of dirt covering his body from the numerous battles. He readied his sword that he had crafted in this very part of Death Mountain, and stood carefully, ready to meet Ganon in combat.
Ganon brought his blade down hard upon Jet, a move the man had not expected. He stepped to the side, the blade skinning part of his arm, but not inflicting the amount of damage originally intended. Jet slashed at Ganon, seeing this as a perfect shot. The Dark Matter caught and stuck to the blade, and Jet quickly charged the metal full of saiya-jin power, the Dark Matter frying in the process. Ganon sidestepped behind Jet, his blade now free, and smashed the hilt into the King’s back. Jet was knocked to his knees, coughing up blood. Ganon reared his blade back, and Jet quickly threw himself on his back, holding his blade out horizontally in front of him, just barely blocking the stab.
He kicked Ganon with all of the might he had left, then rolled to the side, planting his blade in the Shadow Lord’s leg, bringing him to one knee, at least until the Dark Matter moved to repair the wound. Using this time wisely, Jet sliced the Evil King’s throat, then kicked him to the ground, stabbing him in the chest. Dark Matter shot out, forcing Jet backward, and healing the wounds in the process. Jet had to wonder how much punishment a body could take.
The Dark Matter pushed Ganon to his feet, and he punched Jet in the face, more blood spilling from his mouth. Jet took the next move, holding his blade to the side of him and charging it with magic, the area around the two fighters grew even darker than before, and with a flashing golden light and several large whirls, Jet had performed a perfect spin attack on the King of Evil, who retaliated with a torrent of Black magic which sent Jet spiraling to the ground.
Zelda, some of her former energy having returned to her, now took her wounded husband’s place. She readied her double daggers, flipping them around hilt-side up. She bashed Ganon in the forehead several times until he was in a slight daze, then she flipped the daggers around, stabbing him once in the chest, and once in the forehead, the two most effective places she could think of. Ganon howled out in pain, spinning around and kicking the Queen of Hyrule in the face. She spun to the ground and with an explosion disappeared. There was another flash and she reappeared behind the Shadow Lord, blasting him in the back with her Mystic Light. He stumbled forward in immense pain, the Dark Matter slowly covering the wound.
Lei, determined to finally put an end to the fight and seeing his chance to do so, ran forward, Master Sword in hand. He nodded at Zelda, and she blasted her Mystic Light at his blade, charging the sword with the energy. Lei quickly stabbed Ganon as close to the heart as he could calculate, and beams of intense light shot out of all parts of his body, from his cracked face and mouth and eyes, to all the portions of the Dark Matter, which quickly dissentegrated against the force of the powerful light. There was a blinding flash, and for several minutes, a loud rumbling sounded through the entire mountain, and for a moment the Triforce Team thought there chance for escape had evaded them, and the battle had been too much for the mountain.
But to their relief, the light subsided, and as did the rumbling, and before them, collapsed in a heap on the dirt and blood covered ground was the shape of Ganondorf Dragmire, unscathed and unharmed as he was now in his mortal Gerudo form, and free of the Dark Matter.
“What should we do with him?” Samson asked.
“Should we eh…stab him in the head?!” Gogetta asked happily.
“No, no, no! We should cut the head off and hang it on the castle wall! Ya’ know, like a warning. “We’re the big bad Triforce Team, mess with us, and you’ll be like him!” Heh, it’d be a hit,” Link II suggested happily.
“Yeah, definitely,” Gogetta agreed.
“You three…silence. This is a very important matter,” Lei said. The children were immediately hushed, and somewhat embarrassed.
“First and foremost the saiya-jins should carry out the unconscious. Like Shinota, Captain Falcon and the executioner. And then, ah….Dregan!” Jet yelled, noticing the decapitated corpse. Quickly but not too skillfully the body sat up, searched around on the floor for its head for several minutes, then with a sickening crack, snapped his head back into place.
“I was waiting to get him right where I wanted him for a headless sneak attack, and I guess I fell asleep,” Dregan said in an embarrassed tone. He may have even blushed at his bout of stupidity had he any blood. The ones strong enough to do so laughed.
“Alright, and what about Ganondorf?” Zelda asked.
“We need to arrest him. He’s far too useful to Hyrule considering the knowledge he has. When he wakes up he will try everything to escape though, so we’re gonna have to cart him outta here before he goes and wakes up on us,” Jet began.
“And remember….we need to do it all in an hours time. We have an important obligation at the castle yet to meet,” Lei reminded them. They all nodded, and got to work.
It was in the sanctuary on the second floor of the castle. People from all over Hyrule from the market to Lake Hylia and otherwise had congregated in the area, and it was the first time in years every pew had been filled. The amount was hard to believe. And it wasn’t just Hylians. There were Gorons, Zora, Gerudo, Kaporea Gaborea was even present. The Kokiri were likely there in spirit as well, happy and merry as could be.
Those seated below were quite the opposite, sobbing loudly, holding each other, thinking to themselves it had to get better than this. There was a long line assembled at the front of the altar, where a large space had been cleared out. There four caskets of shining black wood, the rarest in Hyrule, sat one by another. Malon, Ingo, Talon and Link resting in said coffins, peaceful looks about their faces. The line of viewers ranged from Link the Goron to Link II, to Mammamu Yan and others of all shapes and sorts. An aged man with unsteady hands robed in black with a small cap of the same color about his bald head stepped behind the podium in front of the caskets, and spoke slowly.
“Their time on this land was much too short, and in such grave times they went. I truly deeply regret the state Hyrule was left in when these peoples departed, and I also truly regret the manner in which they left this land. But to know they are all at peace, is a blessing beyond anything thaty the great Goddesses have ever given to us before. To think that no matter how great the ranch owners and hired hands were, no matter how beautiful and fair the young Malon was, or how valiant and brave Link was, they all suffered, and now they are free from that feeling which…describes the living in almost every way. Let us not…cry over their deaths, but let us smile and rejoice in the deeds which they accomplished in their time here, and let us wish them good luck and immense happiness in their afterlives. For the services they have done for us and for our land, let us now commemorate these fallen Hylians,” the man said. There was a round of applause.
“Now, the king had requested to speak,” the man said, stepping to the side. There was a loud clapping and cheering, most were overjoyed just to see Jet in an able condition.
“Thanks, all of you. Following in Harkinarian’s footsteps is incredibly hard, and at first, I really doubted I’d be able to do it. But with the help of this great nation, and the other races, I came to be a seasoned warrior, and I rose to the challenge, and I am incredibly overjoyed to announce that the Dark Sages have been killed, and the scourge of Hyrule, Ganon the Evil King, is in our custody,” Jet said with a bright smile. He raised his fist into the air. People were screaming and jumping up and down, cheering loudly and clapping. Jet was honored to make such an announcement in front of Link, as it was a goal the Hero of Time had been trying to accomplish for years uncounted. He knew Link was watching over them all, as well as the Godesses of Hyrule, and God himself. Jet looked toward the sky, silently uttering his thank you’s to the air. Hyrule was safe, for now at least, and the sacrifices made to bring the world to peace would not be forgotten. Not now, not ever.
Part III: The Long Deserved Return Home by BOEG
Part III
Chapter One: The Long Deserved Return Home
The funeral to remember those who had fell during the struggle against the Dark Sages had come and gone, and Jet had to admit he didn’t feel entirely good about the way things had gone. The Hylian priest had said his words, then left Jet to announce the capture of Ganondorf. From there the funeral had basically become a rally of happy spirits, and Jet feared he had taken the focus off the ones who had died and put it on himself. Either way he wasn’t used to being in charge of such decisions, and doubted he would be even in the years to come. All of these fears and doubts he had conveyed to Kenji for near to an hour as they sat on an empty grass field, nothing but non-descript land for miles and miles in all directions.
“Yes…as you know, my opinion of Link is already low as it is however, but not because of what he failed to do. Because of what I failed to do,” Kenji said, black eyes fixed on the ground.
“I wish you would tell me what happened,” Jet said.
“You know the basic layout of the story. In the Dreamshrine the Nightmares came and set ruin upon my village and its people. I tried to stop, but was powerless, and the Hero of Time singlehandedly defeated them all and saved Kohnolint,” Kenji said in a disappointed tone.
“That can’t be it,” Jet said quietly.
“It isn’t it. Just…be careful of what kind of memories you hold for the Hylian,” Kenji said.
“What do you mean?” Jet asked.
“I know things you will not understand for many a long year yet…just heed my words. Now it is time for you to go. Awaken,” Kenji said. Jet, unable to argue, slowly did so.
It was well into the day when Jet awoke, the wounded man sleeping straight through the night and into the afternoon. He slowly strode out of his room to look for the other Triforce Team members, and discovered that most of them were still asleep in the training unit. It figured. Jet had never been much for sleep, even when he greatly needed it.
The lights in his house were out, and there was a light sprinkling outside, the sky a dark blue with grey clouds flowing swiftly through it. There was a rather strong breeze, and it was cool considering the time of year it was. Jet lived for these kinds of days, and it showed by the smile he wore on his face now, the kind of smile that only his son and wife could give him. The real kind.
Jet was ready to go out for a walk, but before he could open his front door there came a knocking about it. Ever so cautiously he opened it, and was amazed at the sight he saw. For the first time in nearly seven years he saw Kazuya Mishima standing before him. The man wore black dress shoes and pants of the same color with a tight belt, and a blue button-up shirt tucked neatly into his pants, the sleeves rolled up past his elbows, gauntlets about his hands. He wore sunglasses, even though there was no light, and there was a scar running down his eye. Jet slowly looked down from Kazuya, and saw a boy standing next to him also. He looked to be the same age as the other boys, and had hair similar to Kazuya’s. The boy wore no shirt, and had a design tattooed in black on his left arm. He wore baggy black pants tied tightly by a white sash, and wore no shoes, but had red training weights below his feet and around his ankles. He wore red gauntlets also, and his hair was a jet black.
“Long time no see, man,” Jet said with a smile.
“Yes, too long I fear. But forgive me, I had…business to attend to. Important business,” Kazuya said.
“Of course,” Jet said, nodding.
“This is my son…Jin Kazama,” Kazuya said, patting the boy’s head.
“Have you come to return to the team?” Jet asked.
“Yes. I felt I was needed. This certain gut instinct told me so,” Kazuya said.
“Well, oddly enough, things are pretty calm right now, but a lot has happened. Any help is great right now. Which of course includes your son,” Jet said.
“Thank you,” Kazuya said, removing his sunglasses and folding them, placing them in his side pocket. Kazuya’s left eye shone brightly red, and there was a scar about his forehead, a narrow vertical slit, an obvious give away that he had been in his Devil form recently.
“What happened?” Jet asked.
“The war with my father Heihachi and the Mishima conglomerate as a whole took a very interedting turn to say the least. I was killed…and then revived…by the very thing that I wanted to die to get rid of in the first place. I was revived by the Devil gene. The same gene that has been inside of my son since birth. But the force is now more powerful than it was before, as the gene is what is keeping me alive. By rights, I should be dead. In return for this… “gift” I become the Devil again during the most inconvenient of times, but as long as I manage to retain my own thoughts, I am fine,” Kazuya explained.
“Wow…come in. It’s my turn to tell you some things,” Jet said, motioning the two inward. They followed, and Jet closed the door behind them.
“So…we let the others sleep while you and I go and see how Hyrule is doing?” Kazuya asked.
“Yeah, exactly,” Jet answered.
“Can I come father?” Jin aksed.
“Yes, that would be a good idea,” Kazuya answered.
“Digi….Port…Open!” Jet yelled, thrusting his digivice into the air, opening the warp portal to Hyrule. The three made their way into the vortex of spinning light.
Hyrule was still as damaged as before, save for another reconstruction project that had started a few days before. There was little progress thus far, but it would take a long while to restore the land to its former glory. Kazuya had missed the land, no matter how it looked, although he was shocked to learn that Link was no longer among the living. He was even more shocked to learn that Link II was alive however. Obviously he had missed out on much, a mistake he did not intend to make again.
The sun was out in Hyrule, quite different from Earth on this day. The three slowly made their way into the market, Jin amazed at everything, just as Jet had been when he first stepped into Hyrule field. He wished the boy could have seen it in its full glory, but even when the land was ravaged, it was a sight to behold. The market was in fine condition, posters plastered on the walls saying “The scourge has been captured!” and “Justice will be done to the thief of the west!”
Indeed all were excited by the recent news of Ganondorf’s arrest, and they had no trouble whatsoever expressing their joy when it came to the matter. The trading stands were bustling, and people were dancing and singing, the Hylian soldiers even joining in some of the festivities. The townspeople were overjoyed to see their king on such a grand day, and made sure to let him know.
Jet was greeted and cheered on, and the crowds chanted his name, saying he was one of the best things ever to happen to Hyrule, and praising the new Royal Family. Jet smiled and replied to the greetings, and at length the three made it to the castle. On through the hallways they traveled, through doors and up stairways, and they had almost reached the throne room, when they were stopped by three Hylian soldiers, two in standard armor, one general.
“Sir,” the general spoke, bowing.
“Rise. What’s the problem?” Jet asked.
“Sir. It’s Ganondorf,” the general answered.
“What about him?” Jet asked quickly, nervous the King of Evil might have escaped.
“He wishes to speak to you sir,” another soldier said.
“Me? Very well. Thank you,” Jet said.
“Might I advise you be careful sir. There is no way to remove the Triforce of Power from his body and keep him alive. He is still the King of Evil, be he in custody or not,” the third soldier said.
“Yes, thank you,” Jet said. The three bowed, then quickly left.
“Maybe it would be best if you stayed here. Go to the throne room and wait for me,” Jet instructed.
“Alright,” Kazuya agreed, heading through the large double doors with his son. Jet slowly headed in the direction of the familiar dungeon.
The dungeon was dank, and water dripped from the ceiling in several places. It was very cold down here, the ground very dirty, the scent of blood and death present and very strong. Jet made his way past the prisoners and slaves, the wounded and the dying, all of them crying out in pain, slamming agains the locked gates, begging to be free. Jet at length found Ganon’s cell, and he sat against the metal chair, legs and hands bound, his arms behind the chair, his eyes on the ground. To Jet’s shock, the Gerudo had tears streaming from his eyes.
“You wanted to speak to me?” Jet asked in a cold tone.
“I…don’t even know how to say this,” Ganondorf began.
“Try me. This place can bring out a lot of truths,” Jet said.
“So I’ve been told,” Ganondorf said.
“Well?” Jet asked impatiently.
“Yesterday at Death Mountain, I saw something. I saw your child, on the ground and bleeding. And I…lost the will to fight against you. I remembered something from my past…I remembered what I hated about myself the most…what had made me as I am now,” Ganondorf explained.
“And that is?” Jet asked.
“Long ago…when I was a small child in the Gerudo fortress, only about nine or ten…I awoke in the night. I heard cries…familiar cries. They were from my mother, my real mother. A noble woman named Borboonu. I followed the sound, and found the King of the Gerudo at that time…a man named Beliandorf…beating my mother. Horribly…horribly beating her. She was bleeding, but it wasn’t enough. He lashed at her with weaponry, all because of his sick desires that she refused to fulfill. It always happened…but until then she always lied. Saying she got the wounds in battles or raids…but I knew the truth then…it was my king, the man I had admired and swore allegiance to. I tried to forget it, tried to put my faith in the king…and then he murdered my mother. From there I was raised by Koume and Kotake, and I knew what I had to do. They secretly taught me Black magic in the Spirit Temple, and when I got enough power, I killed the king, and took the throne. And it was a great feeling, all the power…so great that I could think only of getting more and more to make the hurt go away…but…when I saw Gogetta laying there…I lost the hate,” Ganondorf finished.
“Congratulations. It won’t save you. You’ve committed so many crimes there’s no chance you’ll live,” Jet said darkly.
“Please…I’ve changed. I don’t even care about living…I just wish to have a chance to make it up to Hyrule…” Ganondorf began.
“And how do you plan on doing that?” Jet asked.
“I plan to start by saving the Gerudo. By laying down my rule over them…and giving it to Akullodorf,” Ganondorf answered. Jet was taken aback.
“And if you turn against us…you know you aren’t immortal. It isn’t a chance worth taking, and I think you know it,” Jet warned.
“Of course…which must mean I am being truthful,” Ganondorf said. Jet didn’t speak, but unsheathed his blade, and kneeled down, cutting the bonds on Ganondorf’s feet.
“I’ll keep your weapons, and your hands stay bound. Now get up, we’re heading for the Gerudo Fortress. I’ll make sure you’re safe. But one false move, and I won’t hesitate to kill you,” Jet warned.
“What if I prove myself useful?” Ganondorf asked.
“How else would you do that? We were going to force you to lay down your command over the Gerudos whether you wished to or not,” Jet said.
“I know a gift truly worthy of a new king…the Triforce of Courage. Akullodorf deserves it,” Ganondorf answered.
“But…the Triforce of Courage isn’t in the Sacred Realm anymore…” Jet said.
“I know…and I also know where it is,” Ganondorf said.
“Where?” Jet asked.
“I will tell you on one condition,” Ganondorf said.
“I don’t think you’re in the place to be setting conditions!” Jet said angrily.
“You can kill me, and you’ll never know. All I ask is to be a part of the Triforce Team. You can have all of my knowledge and strength, and one false move, and you can all kill me. You know my strengths now, and they are few. Everything is out on the table…so…please. Trust me,” Ganondorf pleaded. Jet turned Ganondorf around, and readied his blade. The King of Evil knew not what Jet planned, and closed his eyes, fearing his moment had come. To his shock, Jet cut the bonds on his hands. He slowly handed him his scabbard and dagger, and his Gerudo blade, and he quickly armored up.
“Everyone…and I mean everyone…deserves a second chance. Don’t waste it,” Jet warned, pointing his sword to the Gerudo’s throat. Ganondorf nodded, and the two slowly headed up the stairs.
Akullodorf the King by BOEG
Chapter Two: Akullodorf the King
Jet and Ganondorf Dragmire, the two most opposite people in the world at the moment, strode slowly out of the dank cold dungeon of the Hylian castle and up the many stairways and past the numerous hallways to the double doors that led to the throne room. No matter who they were or from what background they came everyone who saw Ganondorf free and armed on the way to the throne room had scoffed at him, muttering to their friends quietly or speaking their opinions openly. Ganondorf couldn’t argue.
Jet slowly pushed open the double doors and entered the throne room, followed by Ganondorf, whos eyes had been plastered about the stone ground the entire trip up. Kazuya and Jin were seated at a small square table set to the side of the throne room against the wall, talking of events in Hyrule’s past, and guessing as to what they didn’t know about the things they had missed out on as of late. Kazuya stood to meet Jet, but readied himself into a fighting stance instantly at the sight of the King of Evil. Jin slowly did the same, knowing not to trust someone who put his powerful father on edge.
“What dark trick has he cast on you to get you to take him up here-and completely armed?” Kazuya asked, half sarcastically.
“He’s offered to do something for us. Apparently he’s had a change of heart. We were just comin’ to get you two,” Jet explained.
“And what is he planning on doing?” Kazuya asked.
“He’s going to lay down his power among the Gerudo and give the reign to Akullodorf. Then he’s going to lead us to the Triforce of Courage. There was just one little detail,” Jet hesitated.
“And what’s that?” Kazuya asked, having trouble stomaching the decisions Jet was making.
“In return we let him join the Triforce Team to prove he’s changed,” Jet answered.
“…I am going to go against my gut instinct and trust you here, Jet,” Kazuya said slowly.
“What’s the big problem?” Jet asked, slightly vexed.
“He’s the King of Evil!” Kazuya yelled.
“The last time I checked, you were a Hell Lord!” Jet pointed out. Kazuya nodded, turning and striding out of the throne room, purposefully plowing past Ganondorf as he walked.
“Let’s just go,” Jet suggested.
“Okay,” Ganondorf agreed. The three slowly followed Kazuya outside of the throne room.
The sun shone down brightly, the sky a soft blue. The desert air was extremely hot on this day, and few people were foolish enough to venture out into the open on such a day, but duty called for the Triforce Team, and the four slowly made their way through the valley into the massive fortress. They had not made it far at all when seven armed Gerudo guards stepped forward hastily, their spears pointed toward Ganondorf.
“Why have you brought him here?!” one of the Gerudo asked to Jet.
“Yes, you are our ally, so why do you bring such evil here? He has already poisoned our tribe, take him somewhere else and let him do his damage there,” another Gerudo said.
“Listen, listen, listen. We need to talk with Saharna,” Jet said.
“Fine. But keep him under control. One false move on his part, and I can guarantee the alliance with Hyrule will be broken,” the third Gerudo spoke. They all nodded, and followed behind the seven. Jet had been down those same corridors so many times just recently, but today for some reason it seemed to take forever to reach Saharna. He wasn’t exactly nervous about the way things would go, but he knew there was much at stake, and he was still getting used to being responsible for an entire nation.
When at last they reached Saharna they found her seated in front of a table, her chair turned to face them. She wore a red veil, and several necklaces of the same color. Her hair was down, and she wore a thin black shirt, her stomach exposed, a red piercing through her naval. She wore nothing but a black sash on the lower portion of her body, a long golden scimitar on her lap. She stroked the blade lightly, shifting her gaze from the four there to the blade and back again.
“You wanted to speak to me your highness?” Saharna asked.
“Yeah. I’ve brought someone with me who has a few things to say,” Jet answered, stepping to the side. Saharna let out a stifled gasp when she saw Ganondorf standing before her. No matter evil he had been, and what kind of ruin he had set upon Hyrule in the past, he was still one of the most renowned Gerudo kings in the history of the tribe.
“Saharna…when last I was here as myself you were naught but a gate guard. Ah…how refreshingly different things are now,” Ganondorf said.
“Yes my lord, many…many things have changed since then,” Saharna said slowly.
“Mhmm…what I needed to say was…I am laying down my rule over the Gerudo, and giving it to another. To an exile, one who was supposed to be king before me,” Ganondorf said.
“Oh? Who is this…exile?” Saharna asked.
“Akullodorf,” Ganondorf answered.
“Akullodorf? Hasn’t he been dead for years?” Saharna asked.
“No, he was traveling with us when we last passed through this area. He was going by the name Lei. He didn’t wanna reveal his identity to avoid trouble,” Jet pointed out.
“Ah…I should have known. There was something…oddly familiar about him. You wish to make him the King of the Gerudo?” Saharna asked.
“Yes. It is my decision, and one I am quite sure of,” Ganondorf answered.
“Very well…you are relieved of your reign Ganondorf Dragmire. But until Akullodorf comes here himself, he is not king,” Saharna said quietly.
“Well then…let’s go find ourselves the king, shall we?” Jet asked with a smile.
“Sounds like the logical thing to do,” Kazuya said with a smirk.
“I’ll be waiting outside,” Ganondorf said, bowing to Saharna and leaving.
“Jin, go and wait with Ganondorf for a minute, okay?” Jet asked.
“Yes,” Jin nodded, leaving.
“Kaz…I came across kinda harsh back at the castle,” Jet began.
“You were trying to make a point. In order for a point to be effective it needs to be harsh. I am what you said, so I find no offense. I am not ashamed of what I am, no matter how much I hate it, I won’t try to hide it,” Kazuya said.
“Good….good. No matter what you are…to hide it is an evil,” Jet said.
“Let’s go,” Kazuya said quietly.
“Yeah,” Jet agreed. The two slowly made for the exit.
The entire team was outraged for a good half hour after Jet had returned with the three new members to the Triforce Team. They had no clue how he would come to make such a decision. Some had pulled their weapons on Ganondorf, others had cursed, but all had great doubts. Ganondorf had been evil, and still knew all of the dark arts and Black magics. He still possessed the Triforce of Power, and had the memories and knowledge to kill them. They knew this, and they didn’t trust Ganondorf at all. After much reasoning, Jet had calmed them all down enough to give his idea a try, but the fact remained; Ganondorf was not liked by the team. Indeed he was hated.
Through the Digital Portal they traveled, all wanting to be present for Lei’s crowning. They arrived after what seemed a long while in the Gerudo Fortress. Lei was without his armor, baring his Star and Crescent tattoo proudly. He walked slowly with Jet and Ganondorf into Saharna’s chamber. She stood quickly at the sight of the prince, and slowly spoke.
“So…you are to be the king? You look fitting of the role. Young…powerful…a hero. You remind me of someone,” Saharna said, smiling behind her veil.
“Don’t say that. I’m not worthy of Link in any way,” Lei protested.
“As you wish…come with me,” Saharna instructed. He complied, and Jet quickly motioned for the rest of the team to follow. Saharna led them down a series of tunnels, most of which Jet had not known existed. At length they came to a stone wall, what would seem a dead end. Saharna pulled out a fragment of stone and placed it in a portion of the wall. It fit perfectly in place. She twisted the stone, and removed it, the wall slowly sliding to the side. Past it was a narrow staircase cut from jagged stone, each step an unequal length and height from the last.
Small torches the hung from the walls lit the way down, and the Triforce Team slowly made their way down the staircase, down and down until it seemed they could go down no more, then down farther. At long last they reached the bottom, and found the staircase led to an opening that emptied out into a massive sanctuary. The entire Gerudo tribe was in this room, on either side, an aisle opened in the middle, leading to a raised section of stone floor in the front of the room. There were lines and lines of chained Gibdos crying out in anger and rage on the farther sides of the room.
“These are our troubled dead. The ones who were murdered come down here, and are brought to life. We use these as our night guards. When things get too dangerous, we send them out,” Saharna answered pre-emptively, sensing the question.
“The life given by the desert’s breath,” Al’Rashid mused to himself.
“Indeed. Now…we have something important to get to. Akullodorf, come with me,” Saharna instructed. He did so, following her slowly to the front of the room. The Gerudos cheered their approval at the sight of Lei, laying down their weapons and bowing. “Tonight we will see the Gerudo tribe rise once more! Ganondorf has put down his rule over us, and given it to another. This is our new king! By the rights given to me as second in command to the king, and with my fellow Gerudos as witness, I crown Akullodorf of the Gerudo tribe, king of the land!” Saharna yelled. Everyone present stood, cheering and clapping, jumping up and down on the stone floor.
“My people,” Lei began, putting his fist into the air. The cheering and clapping died down slowly, until all lent their ears to Lei. “Hyrule has been in a difficult time lately, and the Gerudo have felt it just as powerfully as the Gorons, or the Zora, or the Hylians. But believe me when I say that now, I will do what I can for this kingdom, and our allies, the Hylian nation and the Triforce Team, will also not give up in doing what is the best for our kingdom! So you can rest easy tonight my people, you can know that although the worst is not past us, the future is indeed bright!” Lei yelled. More cheering sounded from the excited Gerudo. After numerous minutes the Gerudo were dismissed and headed back up into the parts of the fortress closer to land. They had never been much for celebrations, and the ceremony of the king was no exception.
“Akullodorf,” Ganondorf said, stopping the Gerudo from exiting. He turned. “I wanted to tell you…that I can see your determination, and I know you will not let this tribe down…as I have,” Ganondorf said quietly. Lei nodded slightly.
“Let’s go…you’re a part of the team now. And…you’re also a Gerudo,” Lei said.
“You seem to have changed your mind about me then?” Ganondorf asked.
“I can see your determination too…you still hold darkness…but I believe that all tools can be used for good. And you’re face has changed. You don’t have that hate about you anymore…that gives me hope. You have your second chance…prove to us you are worthy of it…and you will find in us all a sort of bond that you could never have found in Death Mountain with your army of demons,” Lei said.
“Thank you…my lord,” Ganondorf said, bowing.
“Let us go,” Lei said slowly. The two left, the chamber dark and quiet, aside from the sounds of the Gibdos who resided there. It was a good time for the Gerudo indeed. They had a new king, and thus had now hope for many things. But as Lei had said, the worst was not behind them. If only the Gerudo had known how right he was.
A Taste of the Power I Wield by BOEG
Chapter Three: A Taste of the Power I Wield
“Are the armies properly formed and ready?” the figure asked from the shadows.
“Yes lord,” the Demon lord answered. The Aku-Mari who had killed Harkniarian was long ago appointed to Asmodeus old position as Lord of the Demons, a title he relished.
“Good, good. There is but one minor detail to attend to before we can take over the world,” the figure responded.
“And what detail is that my lord?” the Aku-Mari asked.
“The Triforce Team must die. They are the only ones protecting the realms aside from the weak kingdoms and their frail armies. We can crush soldiers…but the Triforce Team…they are not soldiers…though they are lesser in numbers they possess something greater,” the figure mused to itself.
“The weaponry perhaps?” the Aku-Mari asked.
“If that is it then our problems are already solved,” the figure said.
“But how…if they possess their weapons?” the Aku-Mari asked, confused.
“Because of the last transformation I took on…I have acquired many abilities that others do not possess,” the figure answered.
“Like what my lord? Excuse my ignorance but I know not of what you speak,” the Aku-Mari said. Out of the shadows came the Hell Lord Modeus, but he was different. So different in fact that the Demon Lord Aku-Mari stepped back momentarily in fear. He stood now seven feet tall, in humanoid shape, a long red cape flowing behind him. He wore spiked shoulder armor, linked together by a Skull necklace, the likes of which the Moblin ranks wear. His lower arms were wrapped in bandages, and he had gold claws extending from where his real fingers ended. He wore no shirt or breastplate of any kind, his muscles large and his skin as thick as metal armor as it was. His nipples were pierced through with golden rings, a tradition Demons had always been fond of, although the origin of the art was unknown. His skin was a red color where it was exposed, and quite muscular. He wore the skull of a human for a helmet, his glowing yellow eyes shining from the eye sockets. His teeth were long and sharp, and two long horns extended at least two feet on either side of the skull helmet horizontally, curving downward at the tip. He wore several belts linked by chains, and a black sash with evil runes down the front covered most of his legs to the knee, where he wore golden capped armor. His lower legs were also wrapped in bandage, and he wore slender fitting black armor on his feet. The Hell Lord had no weapons.
“What…has happened to you master? I thought you would only grow larger with time, but with this new transformation you are slender, and I must say, much more frightening to look upon, at least in this set of eyes,” the Aku-Mari said.
“I went into meditation, looking for a method I could use to truly defeat those I hated. I emerged as this, the new Hell Lord, Warrior Modeus you will call me, as will the rest of Hell, a realm which will soon extend beyond this…cavern, and into the rest of the universe. And when at last it does, we will claim all lands, and weapons, and magics…and claim Heaven as our own, just as it should be,” Warrior Modeus answered.
“Hehe…wonderful my lord. Now, what of the weapons if I may ask?” the Aku-Mari questioned.
“With this new body…one of the skills I have gained…is to mimic any weapon used against me. Which automatically gives me knowledge as to how to properly defeat my foe. But believe me, I have powers far greater than that. Another skill I am much proud of is my infinite supply of Dark Matter. I am now the source of such a substance. It exists nowhere else except in my hands, when I wish it,” Warrior Modeus explained.
“Incredible…shall I go fight them my lord?” the Aku-Mari asked.
“No…in fact, I think I will go myself today…though I will take no lives. I am in the mood for a game, and I am most sure they can provide me with the entertainment I seek. They do not know what I wish to do, therefore they will fight as if their lives depended on it, but no…they will know when I want them dead…because then it will be a short fight. I have assessed their strengths, which are few. That mixed in with the death of the Hero of Time will leave them even more defensless. Now, watch after my realm while I am gone,” Warrior Modeus instructed, warping quickly away. The Aku-Mari smiled. It was a good time indeed.
Why? The question had been in his head, repeating over and over for all of the days, months, years, maybe minutes he had been locked up in the dungeon of Hell. He couldn’t tell. Time eluded him. The throbbing pain that was now quite literally his entire existence kept him from thinking much. His armor and clothing and weaponry had been broken, burned, or destroyed. His skin had been flayed, his hair torn out, his flesh eaten. He was thrown onto a stone slab, his pathetic bleeding excuses for limbs chained down onto said slab, and then he had been locked behind a rusted gate in the dark.
Maggots now ate away at his flesh, flies bursting from his eyes, and mouth and nostrils, hundreds a day. He had been the most powerful knight in Hyrule, the Dark Knight, and now he was a vessel for flies. A rotting, dying home for creatures who were not much different than him in this moment. He reconsidered the thought. They were different. They were more powerful than he. For they flew away, they were free, and unscathed. They were even safe from the danger of Demons. Demons ate men and women, biting and gnashing at the Damned with every chance they got.
He got no meals period, although he wouldn’t be able to swallow or chew anyway. He tasted only his blood, constantly. He had no clue one could bleed so much, but he was, and he continued to do so. There had to be a way out. He knew in fact, he could make a way out, if only he had the strength to break the bonds, or even move his arm for that matter. Then he thought of it. Modeus had one flaw. Once he defeated a foe, in his mind, the threat was gone. Indeed he had likely forgotten about the Dark Knight the day he threw him into the dungeon. To some, this seemed useless knowledge, but to one in a position such as the Dark Knight in this moment, it was a fountain of hope.
All he needed to do was find enough demons who hated Modeus (and it would not be hard, the numbers were great, although those who spoke their thoughts were few) and gather energy from those demons. When his wounds had healed enough, he would lead a secret revolt, and he would be free. He knew of one tool right away that would keep him safe from Modeus once he was free. A weapon Modeus feared, to the point he wouldn’t it. The staff of Khmer, an ancient demon who created the Mystic Magics. The staff was long and pointed, made out of the oldest wood in Hyrule at the time, which was indeed many times stronger than the most powerful metal known. It had a small broken off branch near the top pointing towards the ground, and most used this as the handle. What made Khmer most renowned however, was the finishing touch he added to the weapon: the skull of an Aku-Mari he had killed as a mortal was placed on top of the staff, the pointed end jutting out through a fracture in the great bone. The staff was indeed great for magical attacks, and Black magic flowed so well through it, that a man with no experience in the arts could cast a spell powerful enough to kill a man with it. His thoughts were broken suddenly when he heard chittering. A Black Boe bounced slowly on, and stopped momentarily to look in the Dark Knight’s cell.
“…Y-you,” the Dark Knight called out with as much power as he could muster.
“Reerugh?” the Black Boe asked, slipping in between the bars.
“Do….d-do you…oppose M-Modeus?” he asked.
“Ruga ruga rawr,” the Black Boe said, an angered look on his face.
“Good…f-find me seven demons…w-who…….oppose Modeus as you do…and bring them here,” the Dark Knight instructed.
“Rag rug warg,” the Black Boe agreed, happily scuttling past the bars to find his fellow Seperatists. The Dark Knight would have smiled had he enough power. It had begun, and soon he would be free.
“You have a bad feeling about it too?” Akullodorf asked Ganondorf in the dark metal confines of the training unit in Jet’s house.
“Yes, I believe that leaving those gates open for too long will give the Darklings an opportunity they will not pass up,” Ganondorf answered.
“But with the death of the Dark Sages Hyrule is safe,” Akullodorf said.
“For the moment, but we all know that before you have a chance to even think about the present it has become the past. A very elusive thing indeed. The Dark Sages have fallen, but the army of Hell has not. And my old army still thrives somewhere below Death Mountain,” Ganondorf said.
“But the team destroyed Apocalypse Modeus and the last we heard of the army of Hell was the revival of the Dark Knight at the beginning of this whole mess,” Akullodorf argued.
“You may try to believe the world is safe in your mind, but arguing an invalid point will not change reality. If darkness is coming, then it will come. I for one do not fear the shadow,” Ganondorf said, turning and walking slowly away.
“Sometimes I wish I wish like you,” Akullodorf said to himself. Link II and Jin quickly ran up to the Gerudo as he sat in thought.
“Hey! Hey! Hey! Lei!” Link II yelled loudly, his shrill voice echoing throughout the entire length of the training unit.
“I would’ve answered you on the first “hey!” you know?” Akullodorf asked.
“Sorry, but I’m learning some really awesome stuff! Jin is teaching me how to fight with my hands!” Link II said happily.
“And Link II is teaching me how to fight with a sword!” Jin chimed in, a smile about his face.
“Haha, congratulations…you two seem to make good partners, and I’ll bet you can learn something valuable from each other,” Akullodorf said. Thw two nodded, then ran off to train more. The lights flickered for a second, then the entire room was veiled in complete black. Several more seconds afterward the light returned.
“Sorry about that!” Kazuya yelled to whomever cared. He was the official maintenance man when it came to the training unit, as he knew the Mishima technology in and out, and nearly the entirety of the training unit was composed of said technology, even the indestructible metal frame of the room itself.
“It’s fine…wait, what are you doing anyway?” Akullodorf asked, standing and walking toward Kazuya. He had removed a portion of the metal wall near the control panel closest to the exit, and was now laying down on the floor, inside of the wall, doing wire work.
“I’m adding the newest, and I mean about a week old, technology to the training unit,” Kazuya answered.
“What kind of technology?” Akullodorf questioned.
“Area simulators, teleporters, and mind input scanners,” Kazuya answered.
“What does all of that mean?” Akullodorf asked.
“It means….ah, I’ll tell you all when it’s finished,” Kazuya answered. Just then (as usually happened when they were finally well rested and happy) the alarm rang. Kazuya hit his head, then slowly slid out from under the wall, standing. With a sigh he put on his coat and sunglasses, and went upstairs to meet Jet and the rest of the team. Akullodorf shook his head and slowly followed him.
“Alright you guys…you know the drill. We get in, attack, do as little damage to the land as possible, and get out,” Jet said. The team agreed, and Jet opened the warp portal. Tey shot quickly through the streams of time and data, and everything was flowing normally, for a moment at least. The warp portal suddenly changed from a bright blue light to a horrible black shadow, and with a surge of electricity, the team stopped flowing through the stream of time and space, and began instead to fall. Hundreds of thousands of feet it seemed, then into what seemed like a liquid, as there was a loud splash. But it was not water, no. It was thick and gritty, a mix of slime and blood to be best desribed in feeling.
They couldn’t breathe, couldn’t move, they could do nothing. Panic took over. They had so much they needed to do, and because of a glitch in the digivice, they would all now die, and the world would be at risk. It couldn’t end like this, it couldn’t. Just as the weaker of the team were ready to give up fighting, they all landed dry and unharmed on their feet in a non-descript black floor. There were no walls, or ceiling, just shadow, yet they could all see. An evil laugh sounded among the shadows, and the entire team readied their weapons. Ever so slowly from the shadows emerged Warrior Modeus.
“What are you?” Zelda asked.
“I am your foe,” Warrior Modeus answered.
“What have done to you?” Gogetta asked.
“Aside from the few new faces I see…you all defeated me…twice now,” Warrior Modeus answered.
“I don’t recall fighting you before,” Trunks said.
“Oh you did saiya-jin, you did. I am the new Lord of Hell, Warrior Modeus,” Warrior Modeus said with a smile. The Triforce Team was taken aback. How could the Hell Lord have survived the fall into the crevice in Zedusria?
“I killed you myself!” Shinota yelled, stepped forward.
“Haha, no, you killed my body, I fear you were not swift enough to purge my spirit from the universe however,” Warrior Modeus said with a laugh, raising his arm and pointing his golden index finger at Shinota. He flew back instantly, hitting the hard floor.
“Dad!!!” Samson yelled, rushing toward the wicked Hell Lord, blade in hand. He sliced at Warrior Modeus’ leg, the sword bouncing off of the demon’s thick skin. A tentacle of Dark Matter shot out from Warrior Modeus’ extended palm, striking Samson to the ground beside his father.
“You must be…Samson? Ah yes, and your friends Gogetta, Link II, and Jin Kazama. I’ve heard a great deal about all of you,” Warrior Modeus said with a smile.
“How?” Kazuya asked.
“Don’t dissapoint me now. Tell me the mighty Triforce Team knows enough about lore and Hylian mythology to know the apparent destiny of their own children,” Warrior Modeus said.
“We’ve heard nothing,” Samus said.
“Very well. The children that were born into the Triforce Team were supposedly the Chosen Children, refered to in all the ancient Hylia records simply as The Next Generation, a group of children that, when paired together, we’re destined to bring down a great threat to the universe. It would seem part of the legacy has already come true, as I see the King of Evil standing with you, because of Gogetta,” Warrior Modeus answered. The team was in awe. Their children were part of an ancient Hylia prophecy?
“So…your days are numbered, eh?” Roy asked.
“If it is others destinies to make prophecies come true, then it should surely be a duty of a select few to make sure prophecies do not come true. I believe I am now one of those few. I shall rewrite Hylia history, beginning with the deaths of these children. Indeed, the Next Generation will stand as nothing more than a story,” Warrior Modeus said darkly, approaching Gogetta. The child readied his sword cautiously. The Hell Lord raised his fist into the air before the child, but before he could strike, he was attacked with Kafei’s Mystic Ice. The Hell Lord was not wounded, but annoyed. He kicked Gogetta in the chest, then flung his arm toward Kafei, sending him sprawling to the ground.
Goku blasted a Kame Hame Ha Wave at the Hell Lord and he shot a beam of darkness to counter the attack, and it effectively did so, slamming into Goku’s body and throwing him far into the shadowy distance. Ogre ran at the demon now, aiming a punch with his shield. Warrior Modeus caught the punch with his own fist, flinging his arm to the side then punching him in the face. He hit the floor as well, bleeding and in pain. Lord Deimos tried his hand now, impaling the black ground with his All-Seeing Blade, a wall of fire lashing out at the Hell Lord. Warrior Modeus leapt high over the flames, then held in his fist a ball of Dark Matter. He formed it slowly into an exact copy of Lord Deimos’ All-Seeing Blade, then performed Deimos’ trademark Home Run Swing attack, knocking the knight far back. The blade dissolved into Dark Matter which the demon threw to the side.
“I will let you all live…but be warned…you have had just a taste of the power I wield…and when the real fight begins…you will be well aware,” Warrior Modeus said, warping away. A door finally appeared in the void of blackness, and the team all took it, quite quickly, but their spirits were in this moment shot down, for they all knew where they were. Warrior Modeus had taken them to Hell.
Truths Revealed Through the Flame and Foes Exposed Through the Shadows by BOEG
Chapter Four: Truths Revealed Through The Flame and Foes Exposed Through the Shadow
The heat was intense, and all too familiar to the older members of the team, terrifying to the newer, the children especially. They were in a large cavernous room, with sloped rock walls extending upwards into another cave-like tunnel, blacker than black. It was the only visible way to head, and so without wasting much time on words, they headed slowly up the wall. There were few footholds, and it was a steep climb indeed. They at length made it to the top of the next tunnel, and Ganondorf spoke.
“We can’t leave yet,” he said.
“Why not?” Marth asked, not much liking the idea of putting his and his allies lives in any more danger.
“Because of a small detail I left out about the location of the Triforce of Courage,” Ganondorf answered.
“You mean it’s here?!” Akullodorf asked angrily.
“…in a way,” Ganondorf answered, his eyes shifting.
“In what way?” Akullodorf questioned.
“A demon by the name of Orkie’mun stumbled across it. He resides on the ninety-eighth level,” Ganondorf answered.
“Well then…that should be somewhere through this cave right?” Akullodorf asked.
“Yes,” Ganondorf answered.
“Let’s go,” Akullodorf said with a confident look. The team headed forward.
“Reeg!” the Black Boe said happily.
“Keep your voice down or they’ll find us,” a Mighty Darknut said angrily.
“There’s little they’d do,” an Aku-Mari said.
“They’d tell you to get back to work and leave the prisoners alone. Now can we get on with business before it happens?” the Dark Knight asked.
“As you wish,” the Mighty Darknut answered.
“You all hate Modeus as I do…now…I ask all of you and your Seperatists allies go out in small numbers at different intervals…and kill creatures, people, Loyalist Demons, anything…and channel the life energy to me. When my power is strong enough, I will claim the staff of Khmer, and we will rule Hell as it should be ruled, by the demons, and for the demons, not under the rule of a foolish demon who cares only for his own title and reputation, and who fails miserably at retaining both,” the Dark Knight said.
“Yes, yes, I like it! Do you all agree?” the Aku-Mari asked. The other demons present called out their approval.
“Very well, we will follow through with this plan eh…what’s your name?” the Mighty Darknut asked.
“I was the Dark Knight…but the name seems no longer fitting…suggest for me something better,” the Dark Knight said.
“Hmm…Modeus in the Black language means He Who Destroys. So…how about Mordeus?” the Aku-Mari suggested.
“What does that mean?” the Dark Knight asked.
“He Who Destroys The Destroyer,” the Aku-Mari answered.
“Heh heh heh…I like it. I will be known from now on as Mordeus…now, get a move on, kill, and enjoy it, for every murder you commit will bring us closer to freedom, freedom from he who knows only how to destroy the hope we have to overthrow Heaven!” Mordeus yelled. The demons slowly turned and left the chamber.
“I can’t do this,” Lord Deimos said slowly.
“Do what?” Impa asked.
“I can’t fight this…man,” Lord Deimos said.
“It’s a demon man, not a guy,” Jet said.
“No…it’s a man. And I just…can’t battle it,” Lord Deimos said.
“Why not?” Shinota asked.
“Each of you have pieces of your past you’ve forgotten, or have tried very hard to, and I guess at last my time to show to you my past has come. Orkie’Mun was the demon name given to Kailos, my brother. He was a warrior striving to become something more powerful, and when he heard of the Mace of Tannis, it was too much for him to pass up. He knew he had to find it. He, like all who searched for the weapon at the time, myself included, were deceived by Asmodeus. He appeared as a man in black robes, young and seasoned in the arts of combat, with a great army at his beckoned call. It was too perfect to think that defeating him in a battle would grant us all the power we could want. And as things that seem to good to be true usually turn out, it was. My brother reached the Earth gate to Hell, defeated Grendel, and made it to Asmodeus’ chamber. He lost the fight, and was on the brink of death, when he cried out his allegiance to Asmodeus. The demon, amused, told him he would not suffer eternally on one condition. That condition would be that he would become a demon of Hell, and it would be his duty to flay the skin of the Damned when they arrived from the Drifter’s boat. He took this job gladly, and was grateful for the power he gained, and the weaponry he had. He was a master in his art, yet I still refuse to call him Orkie’Mun, or a demon,” Lord Deimos explained.
“Wait, he flays people’s skin?” Kafei asked.
“Correct,” Lord Deimos answered.
“Hell, can he be my brother too just so I don’t have to fight him?” Kafei questioned.
“Shut up you dimwit,” Jet said.
“Tch, fine, fine. But do you at least know where he is Deimos?” Kafei asked, unsheathing his dagger.
“The chamber through the next,” Lord Deimos answered.
“Let’s go,” Jet said. The team traveled through the cave and made it into a large, circular chamber. There was a door at the other end of the room, and Akullodorf and Ganondorf quickly ran to the other end, but before the others could make it, they were all halted by the Demon Lord Aku-Mari, armored in gold, his long claws at the floor, wings and tail tense. Zelda backed away, tears in her eyes.
“Wasn’t it enough the first time I killed you?” the Aku-Mari asked Jet.
“Heh, funny, I was about to say the same thing to you,” Jet said with a smirk.
“Be careful Jet,” Zelda said quietly. Jet nodded, taking off his shirt.
“Your confidence offends my senses, saiya-jin,” the Aku-Mari said, lashing out at Jet with his left claw. He leapt over the attack, landing to the left several feet and launching his chakram at the demon. It bounced off of the Demon Lord’s armor, and flew towards the expansive ceiling, and for a moment the Aku-Mari smiled at Jet’s foolishness, but then he realized it was not a wasted attack. The metal disc bounced from wall to wall, descending downward quickly, until it pierced the back of the demon, black blood spilling to the ground. With a shriek the Aku-Mari flew forward, beating Jet in the face. Jet flew toward the ground, performing a back hand spring and landing on his feet, launching numerous ki blasts at the demon, covering the battlefield in a haze of smoke.
“Your movements are quicker than when we last met,” the Aku-Mari noted.
“I’ve learned not to fuck around with you,” Jet said, rushing at the demon quickly and punching it in the face. The force of the hit caused the demon to bleed from the mouth, and it angrily punched at Jet, who blocked the blow with his hand and parried with a kick to the demon’s chest. It did little, and the Aku-Mari stabbed Jet in the chest with its tail, and the King of Hyrule backed away slowly, bleeding. Zelda cried out, all too afraid the same fate would befall Jet as did her father.
“You know…when you’re in Hell, whether you died or not, you’re no longer among the living until you escape through the gates,” the Aku-Mari explained, stepping on Jet’s chest and applying just enough pressure to make him cough up blood.
“So…what?” Jet asked angrily. The demon lifted its foot momentarily, then stepped on Jet’s chest twice as hard, making him cough up more blood.
“So…do you know what happens when someone who is already dead dies?” the Aku-Mari asked. Jet didn’t answer. The Aku-Mari stepped on his chest again, harder this time. “Do you?!” it asked again.
“N-no…” Jet answered slowly.
“They’re spirits are erased from the universe, and sent to a different plane of existence…quite effectively ridding them of any chance of ever…ever coming back. That, my friend, is what I…am about to do to you,” the Aku-Mari explained, reaching its outstretched claw towards Jet’s chest with lightning fast speed. The demon smiled, then realized he did not puncture flesh. He looked down slowly, and was shocked. Jet had caught his claw. With all of the strength he had he struggled to his feet.
“You two, go fight Orkie’Mun!” Jet called. Akullodorf and Ganon nodded, heading quickly through the door. Angrily the Aku-Mari punched Jet in the face, and he stumbled backwards, launching numerous finger blasts at the demon. Most were absorbed by the demons armor, but one pierced his flesh, and he angrily yelled, extending his mighty claw toward Jet. He unsheathed his blade with lightning speed and blocked the claw, countering with a slash to the demon’s hand. More black blood spurted onto the cavern’s ground, and another inhuman shriek came from the demon.
“Is that all ya’ got?” Jet taunted.
“Hardly,” the Aku-Mari said between heavy breaths, rushing forward.
They stepped into the room slowly, and saw before them their foe. There was a table in the middle of the room of wood, and chains hanging from the ceiling, some empty, some adorned with hanging human skin, blood still dripping from the macabre decorations. The demon was working on a body, its bleeding corpse on the table. Orkie’Mun was cutting into it roughly with a large meat cleaver. He looked up suddenly, glaring at the two. He stepped out from behind the table, weapon in hand.
He was bald, his skin a pale green. He had a scar running down his lip, and his left eye had been gouged out. His left ear was pierced through several times with black rings, as had his nipples. He had a large stomach, and wore no shirt, thick muscular arms about his otherwise fat body. He had short legs with brown leather pants tightly about them, and he wore black combat boots.
“I did not say….next!!!” Orkie’Mun said slowly.
“We aren’t here to be skinned, Orkie’Mun,” Akullodorf said.
“Are you here to watch then? You look quite healthy and alive, so until your skin is off your bones, in this room, you shall stay,” Orkie’Mun said angrily, slamming his meat cleaver into the ground.
“I think not. Your bizarre practice will have to be taken over by another after we leave, I’m afraid,” Ganondorf said with a smile.
“Is that a threat?” Orkie’Mun asked.
“No. A threat is verbal. This will be an action, and a quick one,” Akullodorf answered. Orkie’Mun waisted no more time with words. He rushed forward, pulling a large knife from his blet and slashing at Ganondorf. The King of Evil grabbed his wrist, cracking it and subsequently making the demon drop the knife. Angrily, he punched Ganon in the face, and the Gerudo was knocked back. Giving Lei the time to kick the demon in the face. Blood spurted from his nose, and he picked up his meat cleaver, throwing it at Lei. It pierced the Gerudo’s chest, and he backed against the wall, bleeding.
“I…r-really….don’t like it when people do that to me!” Lei yelled, pulling the cleaver from his chest and throwing it to the side, tightly clutching the wound. Ganondorf rushed forward, angrily unsheathing his blade. He spun around, and then with one precise move, the battle was over, Orkie’Mun on the ground in two halves.
“Akullodorf….step forward,” Ganondorf said slowly. Lei did so, and a golden light shot forth from the corpse of the demon. Out of the bleeding mass of flesh emerged a golden triangle, the Triforce of Courage.
“Take the power before you…use it to the same end the Hero of Time used it…end the reign of darkness in your world…there is always hope,” the essence of the Triforce spoke. Akullodorf nodded, then touched the triangle. The Triforce of Power resonated on Ganon’s hand, and with a blinding flash of golden light, the Triforce of Courage was gone from the room, the glowing triangle etched into Lei’s skin.
“Now…let’s go back there and help Jet,” Akullodorf said.
“Right,” Ganondorf agreed, and the two headed back out of the morbid room with haste.
Jet was on the brink of defeat, holding his own but weakening by the moment. The Demon Lord was powerful, indeed much greater in strength than he was in Hyrule, but it was a fact that demons were incredibly powerful on their own plane of existence, a fact that greatly put Jet at a disadvantage. Jet saw Akullodorf and Ganondorf exit through the chamber slowly, the new Gerudo king flashing the golden light on his hands at Jet and winking. Luckily the others caught onto Akullodorf’s plan, and followed.
“Triforce of Wisdom!!!” Zelda yelled, her Triforce piece blasting through the Aku-Mari’s skin.
“Triforce of Courage!!!” Akullodorf yelled, thrusting his right hand into the air then pressing it against his left, the golden light blasting forth from the back of his hand and piercing the Aku-Mari’s skin in a different spot.
“Tetraforce Power!!!” Jet yelled, blasting the demon at point blank range.
“Triforce of Power!!!” Ganondorf yelled, the shimmering light of his piece searing the demon’s flesh yet again.
“Temple Link Blast!!!” Shinota yelled, and at last, the entire Triforce was working together, its power combined into one again. And before this blinding and searing light even the Demon Lord Aku-Mari cowered before the Triforce Team, black blood dissolving into steam before it even hit the ground.
“Fine! But that light will only defend you for so long!” the Demon Lord yelled angrily, warping away.
“So you killed Orkie’Mun?” Jet asked.
“No….I simply touched the Triforce. Ganon saved me,” Akullodorf answered.
“It was my duty as a member of this team,” Ganondorf said.
“Heh….so it was. Let’s get going,” Jet said with a smile. The team slowly headed off. The rest of the trip was extremely non-descript and simple for a realm as dark as Hell. They ran into a minimal amount of demons, and fights broke out only once or twice, and at that, the creature at hand was quickly dispatched. Through fire lit caverns they traveled, and through shadowy tunnels also. At length, they made it to the giant maw of Turtle Rock, and escaped into the open daylight of Hyrule. They had done it. they had escaped Hell successfully for the third time. Little did they all know that they had pushed the limits of Hell, and that by stealing a sacred relic and defeating the Demon Lord they had broken the final straw. They were out of Hell, but the Lord of the realm waited for them on the fields of Hyrule, the only thing keeping them from a battle against Warrior Modeus a few thousand feet of solid rock and steep drop offs.
The Battle For Revenge Begins by BOEG
Chapter Five: The Battle For Revenge Begins
They had begun their journey down the mountain slow and steadily, the journey into Hell taking its toll on their bodies. The battles they had engaged in inside the realm of fire had given them all wounds they were having trouble dealing with, Akullodorf and Jet especially. Their slow trip downward was disturbed however, by the most demonic cry all had heard in a long while, the screams of Golem pathetic in comparison.
“That’s not good…we’d better get down quick,” Impa said.
“Right, Hyrule’s safety is our number one priority,” Trunks agreed. They all abandoned their slow careful steps, and likewise their safety, running and sliding down the mountain side. Rocks caught under their feet and began sliding down with them, dislodging larger rocks and causing the entire hill to move with them. When at last they hit the bottom they carried off at a full run, back on the main mountain path.
They bolted in the direction of Kakariko Village, running around tight corners and leaping gaps of open space. Quickly they made it through the gate at the foot of the mountain, leaping off of the staircase in Kakariko village and making for a full run the rest of the way to Hyrule field.
They all stopped, backed away, and then readied their weapons. Warrior Modeus stood before them, a grim smile on his morbid face. He thrust his hand into the air, and dark clouds swarmed over the field, covering the land in shadow as dark as night. The Triforce Team stepped forward, ready for battle, just as the last thin rays of light were swallowed by the shadow, and the entire land was engulfed in the dark.
“This is a fitting setting for what the world should be like for the rest of its days, don’t you think so?” Warrior Modeus asked.
“I think for the final time, you’re going to die,” Shinota warned.
“Haha, do not act so hurt, what have I ever done to any of you?” Warrior Modeus asked.
“It isn’t about what you’ve done to us. It’s about what you’ve done to others, and if we leave you alive, it’s about what you’ll potentially do. And we can’t allow you to harm the land or its people,” Zelda answered.
“You can’t allow? Allow?! You are the Queen of Hyrule, but let it be known that in no way, shape or form do you have more power than I. I am the Lord of Hell! And soon, my reach will extend here, and to all areas!” Warrior Modeus yelled.
“Tell me, why did you even come up here. This is pretty early for a fight after you just revealed yourself don’t you think?” Jet asked.
“You wounded the Lord of Demons,” Warrior Modeus answered.
“So what? Have him come up here and do something about that himself,” Jet said.
“No, he’s too weak. We have the entire Triforce now, he knows he’d die,” Kafei said. Jet nodded, a smile crossing his lips. He could tell he was vexing the Hell Lord, and therefore, things couldn’t be going more his way if he tried.
“Yeah, you’re right Kafei. There’s nothing the Aku-Mari could do. There’s nothing either of these two bumbling morons could do,” Jet said. At that the Hell Lord rushed forward, punching at Jet. He backed away quickly, countering with a strike of his hand crafted sword against the Hell Lord’s chest. The attack did nothing, and Warrior Modeus pelted Jet with Dark Matter. It began to siphon out his power ever so slowly, and he was weakened. The Hell Lord punched him in the face, and blood ran quickly from his nose.
Angered, Jet kneed the Hell Lord, slicing through the Dark Matter with his Royal Family’s Sword. He stabbed the Hell Lord in the chest, and black blood spilled to the ground. The demon backed away, raising his fist. Dark Matter came slowly into his hands, and in seconds, he carried with him an exact copy of the Royal Family’s Sword.
“What do you think of my new technique?” Warrior Modeus asked.
“I think…it’s cheap,” Jet answered with a smirk. The Hell Lord smiled, then threw it with all of his might. The blade pierced Jet straight through the chest, and he hit the ground, bleeding. Shinota and Zelda took his place. The Zedusrian charged immediately to a super saiya-jin, running at Warrior Modeus with his Twin Diamond Sword. He spun around, slashing at the demon, but to his surprise, the blade hit nothing but air. He turned slowly, and Warrior Modeus was there behind them. The Hell Lord punched in his direction, but he flew quickly above the attack, blasting the demon with a Spirit Ki. He caught the attack with his hands and threw it back at the Zedusrian, who in turn caught it again, charging it full of energy and sending it spinning back at the Hell Lord. He was hit, and the field was covered in a grey smoke for several seconds.
Zelda blasted the demon with her Mystic Light, and the sound of sizzling flesh was loud. He formed another copy of the Royal Family’s sword, throwing the blade at Zelda. She batted it to the side with her daggers quickly, then placed them in her scabbard, reaching behind her back. She ran at the Hell Lord, then launched ten razor sharp needles into his skin. With a grunt of pain and annoyance he kicked Zelda in the stomach. She was on the ground instantly, blood running from her mouth.
Shinota ran forward now, determined to get the demon back for the wounds he had already caused to the team. His blade was tight in hand, but he was stopped by a sudden attack from the Hell Lord. Warrior Modeus angrily lifted his hands into the air, and formed at least thrity needles from the Dark Matter, launching them all at Shinota. The Zedusrian’s skin was pierced by at least fifteen, and he fell to his knees. With a flick of the demon’s wrist the needles formed back into Dark Matter inside of Shinota’s skin, and he rolled over onto the ground in unbearable pain. Indeed he would have cried out in this moment had he the energy.
“That’s not playing nicely,” Dregan said angrily, lobbing numerous spirits at the Hell Lord. They swarmed around, biting at the demon’s skin and eventually burning his skin before dispersing from the realm of the living. Warrior Modeus blasted Dregan with several needles, which did nothing, considering he was already dead. He shot more spirits at the demon, all while Samus unleashed a Sunburst attack. The demon was pummeled in the back heavily, and flew forward onto the ground, a smoking hole in his back. He stood angrily, tearing off his cape and throwing it onto the ground.
“Die bounty hunter!!!” Warrior Modeus yelled, blasting her with Dark Matter. She caught the substance in her cannon, charging into a Darkburst attack and releasing it into the sky. The demon then launched another replica of the Royal Family’s blade at her, and it pierced her armor. Electricity surged throughout her Varia suit, and she fell to the ground, her armor wounding her more and more with every move she attempted to make. Shinota angrily struggled to his feet at this.
“You will not…touch her…again,” Shinota said, sticking a handful of his poisoned powder into the demon’s open wound and punching him in the face with his spiked gauntlet. The Hell Lord quickly spun around, elbowing Shinota in the face. He then continued forward toward the rest of the team. Trunks ran at him next, blasting him with ki blasts and hitting him with heavy strokes of his blade. He was bleeding and wounded, but not anywhere close to defeat. The Hell Lord held his palm in front of Trunk’s chest, and an explosion of poisoned powder sent the saiya-jin sprawling to the ground, crying out in agony from his burning flesh.
“Thanks for that weapon you foolish Zedusrian,” Warrior Modeus boomed happily. Their numbers were quickly lowering, all at the hands of a demon who possessed no weaponry. They had to win, no matter what. And they would find a way. Or die trying.
Chapter Six: The Gamble
The shadow that had swarmed into Hyrule’s skies and blotted out the sun carried with it the same fearful feeling as the dreaded mist that the Aku-Mari of Hell carried so long ago when he killed King Harkinarian in the same field. They all fought with as much ferocity as possible and yet they all still felt it, that immense fear, drawing away at their energy and feeding the Hell Lord. The demon bled black blood onto the already rotted away ground, and most of the rest of the team was not faring well.
Jet, Shinota, and Samus were all greatly wounded, and it was left to the rest of the team to combat the powerful demon. It was like no fight any of them had ever engaged in before, the Hell Lord on a much higher level of power than them. Indeed their options were limited, but none were willing to give up, at least not yet.
Ogre rushed forward, punching at the demon. Warrior Modeus blocked the blow with a smile, cracking Ogre’s wrist and kicking him in the chest. Angered, Ogre pummeled Warrior Modeus with his shield repeatedly, the Hell Lord laughing at his stupidity. The demon held out his hand, and out of the mass of Dark Matter in his palm formed a copy of Ogre’s shield. He smashed the shield against Ogre’s head, then spun it in Marth’s direction. The shield hit the prince in the face as well, and both fighters were on the ground in pain.
Jet quietly struggled to his feet, an idea in his head. He hobbled slowly over to where Shinota lay, and then kneeled down next to the fallen Zedusrian. He fumbled around inside a pocket in his pants for several seconds, then slowly pulled out a flask made of Dodongo stomach. He poured the flask on Shinota’s head, the last amount of red potion Jet had now given to the Zedusrian. He coughed loudly, and was then roused from unconsciousness, still wounded, but much stronger.
“Here’s the plan….we’ll pull off the fusion….then,” Jet began.
“Then what?” Shinota asked quietly. Jet motioned the children over. Gogetta, Samson, Link II, and Jin all ran quickly over, kneeling before the two warriors.
“You guys…when we distract Warrior Modeus…you need to attack him…you need to stab him, punch him, anything….just aim for his heart…we’ve only got one shot at this,” Jet said.
“Quite a gamble isn’t it?” Shinota asked.
“If the prophecy Warrior Modeus talked about is true, we don’t have a thing to worry about…but you guys have only got one window of opportunity…so aim well, and make it count,” Jet instructed.
“Yep, you got it dad,” Gogetta said with a smile.
“And I got it too,” Samson said with a smile. The other two children were quiet, only nodding. Gogetta, Samson and Link II readied their swords, and Shinota and Jet slowly stood. This was it. their final shot at defeating the Hell Lord with their lives intact.
The Next Generation by BOEG
Chapter Seven: The Next Generation
“Fu,” Jet said, performing the steps in exact time to Shinota’s.
“Sion,” Shinota continued.
“Ha!!!” they both called. There was a blinding flash of light amidst the horrid darkness covering the land, and when it cleared the familiar form of Shinotet was before Warrior Modeus. He got into a ready fighting stance, and beckoned the Hell Lord forward.
“You think that foolish trick will work twice?” Warrior Modeus asked angrily.
“Worth a shot, eh?” Shinotet asked sarcastically, cracking his neck.
“We shall see,” Warrior Modeus said, rushing forward and punching Shinotet. He grabbed the demon’s fist with both hands, trying desperately to lift it. The children saw their opportunity now, and rushed forward. Warrior Modeus, suddenly sensing this, warped away quickly, attacking all of the children with Dark Matter. Link II was whipped to the side while the other three tried their best to combat the evil substance. Shinotet angrily launched a Spirit Ki at the demon, and the Dark Matter retreated. Samson ran forward now, spinning around and slamming his blade down hard upon what was intended to be the Hell Lord’s chest. It was instead the demon’s palm.
“Foolish child,” Warrior Modeus said, smacking Samson to the side with a brush of his fist. Ganondorf and Akullodorf ran forward, eager to give the children time to attack. Ganon cut into the Hell Lord’s shoulder with his blade, while Akullodorf stabbed the demon in the back of the knee with his Master sword. The demon angrily rushed around, forming an imitation of Ganon’s blade and Ogre’s shield, one in each hand. He bashed Akullodorf in the face with the shield and swung angrily at Ganon, who jumped backwards, then brought the blade down upon the fake.
He then stabbed forward and up, and Warrior Modeus’ blade dropped to the ground, dispersing into a pool of Dark Matter. The demon was about to make another move, when an incredible piercing pain entered his chest. He looked to his stomach, and in horror, found a small blade sticking through his flesh, black blood spurting from the wound. He cried out in anger and pain, whipping his fist around and knocking Gogetta to the ground.
“No…it’s time to end this!” Link II yelled, rushing forward. The demon took a swing, and the Hylian boy ducked, then placed his blade into a sheathe of flesh next to Gogetta’s, more black blood flying from the new wound and splattering against Link II’s face. The Hell Lord was in immense pain, and angered beyond any feeling he had ever had before.
“Ah, no! I will not fall so easily!!!” the Hell Lord yelled out, another blade piercing his flesh, this time from Samson. He thrust his fist high into the air, and lightning swarmed about it. With a horrible scream he thrust the lightning to the ground and it traveled along the earth, shocking each and every member of the Triforce Team who bore any sort of metal, which was of course all of them. Angered, Jin struggled to his feet.
Angrily, the boy struck a hard, precise punch into one of Warrior Modeus’ wounds and quickly yanked it back out, black blood covering his fist. With an angered cry the demon turned, and slowly spoke.
“Do….do you have any idea…what you have just done?!” Warrior Modeus asked.
“I’ve just shown you my skill,” Jin answered.
“Without me the army of Hell will topple! I cannot believe the prophecy proved to be true! It isn’t right! Believe me….you…foolish….mortals. The Demon Lord will avenge…me,” Warrior Modeus warned, falling to the ground. After what seemed many long minutes, the demon’s corpse burst into bright green flame, and the earth shook as the dark clouds parted and the rays of light shot down upon the land once more.
“Congratulations you guys…you did great,” Shinotet said.
“Is it over now?” Gogetta asked.
“Define over,” Yoshimitsu said.
“Are we gonna have to fight anymore?” Gogetta asked.
“The battle is over…but the army of Hell is still there. That is our goal. Until that entire army is dead…we will fight. I’m afraid it’s nowhere near over yet Gogetta…but as long as we still keep hope…then I doubt we’ll lose,” Shinotet answered.
“So…what do we do now then?” Samson asked.
“Now…we go to Earth, and then we go out to dinner, and then around the town, and then to sleep!” Goku answered.
“But there’s an evil army trying to kill us!” Gogetta protested in a worried tone.
“Yeah…but we’ve won one. And they’ve lost one. So we should celebrate, as opposed to beat ourselves up over a victory. I know you’re worried, I was too the first time. But things aren’t so bad…in fact, I’m kinda lookin’ forward to tonight,” Shinotet said with a smile. The team slowly departed for Earth. Shinotet was correct. They had won a battle, but the army of Hell was not thwarted, and indeed they plotted in the deepest caverns of the realm of fire and brimstone as the Triforce Team celebrated. They would not let the death of their lord go lightly. But tonight the Triforce Team cared not. They would celebrate and be happy, and forget all that was behind them, however difficult the path ahead was about to become.
The End
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and settings are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended.