My fanfictions

[KeeperOfCourage]

Hey so I joined awhile ago but didn't really do much, anyway I decided to post my fanfics on here. I'll admit, the beginning of my first one is kinda crappy, but it gets better, believe it!

I'll be posting a few chapters at a time so enjoy and please comment! Hmmm looks like the pics of my characters didnt work, oh well, maybe I'll get em up one of these days.

EDIT: Oh, I didn't add the ZGen or whatever thing to my title, can someone do that for if it's really all that important? thanks. Also, I didnt re split it into paragraphs once I posted it...so it might be tricky to read.


The Legend of Zelda: Tides of the Shadow



Forward: This story is based 5 years after Link sealed Ganondorf into the Shadow Realm. In Zelda Mythology there is a theory that when Zelda sent Link back in time, in order for him to have a childhood, she created a second world of Hyrule, one that was 7 years in the past. This story takes place in the original Hyrule, 5 years after Ganondorf’s reign.

Cast:
Link: He’s the main protagonist. Quiet and calm he saves world after world with his trusty arsenal of weapons. He is currently living the life in Hyrule Castle, until trouble arises.
Age: 22
Race: Hylian
Birthday: January 1st

Dark Link: This is Link’s evil clone. Although he’s only 5 years old he has the same abilities and strength as Link. Personality is a whole different issue. He is loud and tends to lose control but has a soft side.
Age: 5
Race: Shadows
Birthday: March 28th
Zant: Zant is the main antagonist of this story. He has just recently come to power in the shadow realm, and wants to try and take the rest of the world. Zant is the leader of a group of outcasts and villains that are fighting to take the world.
Age: 34
Race: Twili
Birthday: December 17th

Zelda: She’s the princess of Hyrule. She is said to have amazing combat skills. As the princess she works hard to make the people of Hyrule happy.
Age: 22
Race: Hylian
Birthday: January 2nd

Myren: Myren is the cruelest of the outcasts. She hates everyone and rarely shows mercy. She especially hates Erda and torments her often.
Age: 19
Race: Labrynnian
Birthday: June 1st
Saaden: With the power to control sand Saaden is the most adaptable of the outcasts. Using his power to defend or attack he is a dangerous foe. He is rather tardy and can be grumpy but he is genuinely kind and caring.
Age: 19-20 (ages towards end of story)
Race: Gerudo/Hylian
Birthday: September 21st


Erda: It’s rough being the newest outcast, especially when someone like Myren is hanging around. Erda has the power to control earth. She can create large boulders in minutes. She is insecure and quiet most of the time, but kind and amiable.
Age: 17
Race: Hylian
Birthday: April 19th

Ralph: He was raised in the Ember Fields were it easily exceeds 150 degrees Fahrenheit on hot days. Ralph accompanies Link throughout his journey. His fire abilities help out often. He has a horrible temper, keep him on your good side.
Age: 24
Race: Emberic
Birthday: July 22nd
Tralk: Tralk is the only Rito of the outcasts. He is the best scout due to his ability to fly. He has a grudge against Dark Link for falling asleep during one of the group’s attempts to revive their Wyrm.
Age: 29
Race: Rito
Birthday: October 14th

Raith: Raith is the creepiest of the outcasts. He is an older man that has the power to phase through things and levitate. He also carries the legendary blade GeistEdge. Like most of the group he dislikes Dark Link, mainly for his constant talking.
Age: 64
Race: Hylian
Birthday: October 31st

Vaati: Vaati joined the group right before the siege of Hyrule Castle. He has been friends with Zant for some time. With his power of the winds he is deadly in any scenario. His cool attitude makes it almost impossible for him to panic.
Age: 22
Race: People of the Winds (used to be Picori)
Birthday: May 30th
Captain Vincent: Captain Vincent is the best captain the Hylian army has to offer. He is a brilliant tactician and is extremely quick when it comes to swordplay. He hails from Clock Town.
Age: 42
Race: Terminian
Birthday: July 4th

Glossary:
Locations-
Hyrule- Link’s native nation; known for its large plains and thick forests.
Labrynnia- Next door to Holodrum is Labrynna. Labrynna is known for its hilly and mountainous regions.
Holodrum- Holodrum is one of the larger nations. Holodrum is known for its diverse terrain, ranging from snowy mountains to vast deserts.
Termina- Termina is one of the smaller nations. It, like Holodrum, has diverse terrain. Its capital, Clock Town, is famous for its carnivals.
Forest Temple- The Forest Temple is in the Sacred Meadow that looms over the Master Sword. Link battled Phantom Ganon in this temple 5 years ago.
Water Temple- This temple is located at the bottom of Lake Hylia. Dark Link and Saaden discovered the Maelstrom here. Link defeated Morphia in this temple 5 years back.
MountainSide Temple: The MountainSide Temple is one of the lesser known temples. The Outcasts stole its treasure, the Orb of Shadows, from here during their preparations for the usurp of Hyrule.
Magma Temple: Like the MountainSide Temple it is one of the lesser known temples. Brasena protected Flareblitz here until she was killed by Myren.
Hyrule Castle: Hyrule Castle is the capital of Hyrule. It has never failed in combat, and has walls made of the strongest stone.
Horon Village: Horon Village is the capital of Holodrum. It is large and spacious, designed for cavalry charges.
NightFall Province: The NightFall province is a group of small countryside villages. They are located near DeadWater Bay.
DeadWater Bay and city: DeadWater city is the city built right on DeadWater Bay. The bay separates Holodrum from Hyrule and smells of rotting corpses.
DeadWater Cemetery: DeadWater Cemetery is an island connected to the main city by a small bridge. The large crypt in it is said to house a treasure of the dead.
NightShade Village: One of the small villages in the NightFall province is NightShade. It is the right hand neighbor of NightFall village.
NightFall Village: The capital of the NightFall province is NightFall village. It’s a small and cramped village with less than kind inhabitants.
Wiggin’s Woods: Wiggin’s Woods is a small forest where Hylian lumberjacks get their finest wood. The first skirmish of the war of Hyrule happened here.
Horack Mountain: Horack Mountain is located in the Northern parts of Hyrule. Dark Link and his comrades set up base deep in the mountain range.
Mountain Spring Village: Located on the North most part of the Horack Mountains, this village is rather small. They have a spring near by which Dark Link and his friends call home.
Mountain Spring Forest: This forest has more scrubs than trees, but it has enough trees to be considered a forest. A courageous tribe of Deku scrubs live in this forest.
Lake Hylia: Hyrule’s biggest lake is Lake Hylia. It has clean waters and houses the Water Temple.
Karkariko Village: Karkariko village has two large plateaus which they use as their main defense. It is one of the larger villages in Hyrule.
Hyrule Fields: Hyrule Fields cover most of Hyrule. Tall green grass and scrubs cover these plains.
Lost Woods: The Lost Woods are the habitat of the Skullkids. They say lost children are turned into monsters in these woods.
Brown Grass Hill: Brown Grass Hill is less than a mile outside of Hyrule Castle. The Hylians defended the hill and set traps as they retreated during the war of Hyrule.
The Hinterlands: The Hinterlands are north of Hyrule Castle, and are one of the ways to access Holodrum. They are uncharted and uncivilized.
The Ruined Hill: This hill was once an advanced village in Hyrule. It was finally crushed by monsters and weather.
The Ember Fields: The Ember fields are the magma plains surrounding Death Mountain. Volcanoes are very active in this area.
Death Mountains: Death Mountain is the southern mountain range in Hyrule. Gorons thrive in this area.
Sunken City: The Sunken City was once one of Holodrum’s greatest industrial cities…until an overflow of water from the local waterfall flooded the city. Now only a few people inhabit this moist and humid city.
The Sunken Forges: The Sunken Forges are a group of old smithies that sank in the flooding of the Sunken City. They still contain useful materials and weapons.
Halo Point: Halo Point is the tip of Holodrum beach closest to DeadWater City. A long wall stretches from this point along most of the shore line.
The Halo Wall: This wall was made only a few years ago to stop invaders from getting into the mainland of Holodrum.

Items-

The Master Sword: The Master Sword is the legendary sword of evil’s bane. Link used it 5 years ago to seal away Ganondorf. Link is once again its wielder.
The Maelstrom: The legendary sword of the storm was locked away in the Water Temple. Dark Link is now its wielder.
Flareblitz: Flareblitz is the legendary sword of fire. It was sealed in the Magma temple for its destructive powers. Zant is now its wielder.
GeistEdge: GeistEdge is the legendary sword of death. It can be wielded by human and Poe alike, and can hurt both as well. Raith is now its wielder.




Chapter 1: Wiggins’ Woods



Angelica Wiggins strolled from her house and down the forest path. She was going to the woods again, Wiggins’ Woods. The woods didn’t actually belong to her, but the locals named it after her because of her frequent visits. The quiet village on the Zora’s River was home to lumberjacks, fishers, and many other artisans, including bug collectors.
Angelica passed over the peaceful brook leading into the woods. It was quiet, save for the whistling of the wind in the tall evergreens. A calm fog had settled in after the night’s light rain. The green ferns dripped with generous dew which splattered as Angelica scurried through them. She was on a mission…for bugs. She was a bug collector, and a little crazy. All the townsfolk gossiped about how her children would be just as crazy about bugs as she, and they were probably right. She didn’t mind though. She wanted to spread the love of these “cute” little critters.
In her arsenal she carried: bottles, strange herbs, and some bait for bigger bugs. The excitement of finding bugs made her quicken her pace. She giggled uncontrollably as she ran. Soon she was at the lumberjacks’ work area, the best place for bugs. The Master Lumberjack was a large man. He had grown to expect Angelica every morning, and greeted her. “Looking for bugs again this morning?” asked the Master. “You got it!” replied Angelica gaily.
She went to work immediately, turning over logs, peeling bark, doing the entire bug collector’s basics. The lumberjacks continued their chopping with glee. These were the jolliest men in all of Hyrule, and also the strongest. The sound of early morning thunder in distance saddened the happy mood. “Pssh, half an hour after we start working!” complained one of the lumberjacks. “I’m not sure about this, that didn’t sound like thunder.” replied his comrade. No sooner had those words left the lumberjack’s chapped lips an arrow whizzed by and struck one of the lumberjacks in the chest. “Boblins!!” shouted the Master Lumberjack, as he picked up his great ax. Boblin boar riders poured from out of the dense forest. The lumberjacks grabbed their hatchets and ran into the fray. The Master swung his ax hewing a boar and its rider in two. Boblins and lumberjacks fell alike across the dirt covered clearing. Two nimble lumberjacks managed to break off and run for help.
“Well hello there Mr. Centipede!” shouted Angelica with glee, as she let it crawl around in her hands. Just then a Boblin came charging through on his mount. Angelica looked in terror as it drew nearer and nearer. “Goodbye Mr. Centipede.” said Angelica with a tear falling from her eye, as the Boblin removed her head with his war ax.
The Boblins marched into the clearing triumphantly, followed by two dark figures sitting side by side on large brown horses. “Your senseless chatter made us late, Link.” said a voice so cold that the very temperature around the figure seemed to drop. “Don’t worry my good friend,” said the other figure with a cruel smile. “I have many more toys. We can play tomorrow.”

Chapter 2: And the Cry Rose Near and Far

“What in the name of Hyrule happened here?!” shouted one of the guard captains. Two companies of Hylian guards occupied the clearing where the battle had taken place. Three wounded lumberjacks were being treated and interrogated. “We were ambushed, Boblins came from everywhere,” said one of the lumberjacks, “and two cloaked figures were with them. They looked powerful…” The lumberjack slipped into unconsciousness. “Bah! Get him to the village.” ordered the captain.
“Goodness,” said Link when he had heard of the news, “I’m heading there right now.”
“Alright, be careful master.” said his servant. Link saddled up Epona, grabbed his sword and shield, and headed out. It had been five long happy years since Link had need of such weapons. Hyrule flourished under the rule of the Lord Protector. The king of Hyrule had died four years earlier of old age, and his young nephew had taken the throne. Immigration had doubled, people from Termina, Holodrum, and even the far off Labrynnia had come to repopulate the war tore landscape. Even the crop had been better than normal this year.
As Link drew near to the small village he was greeted by one of the guards. “G’day, Sir Link! We’re glad you could make it.”
“Thank you. Where can I find your captain?” questioned Link.
“Back in the woods, follow the stench.” replied the guard.
Link nodded thanks and headed into the woods. He soon found the clearing and the captain. “Finally, you’re here.” barked the captain, obviously distraught. “It was just a Boblin raid from what we can tell; they didn’t get lucky this time, Ran right into the lumberjacks, stupid flesh bags. “
“I see do you plan on leaving a guard in the village?” inquired Link.
“Of course, we’re placing a company in each outskirt city, and we’ve sent a warning out across the entire kingdom. We also are gathering a search party, we’re gonna crush these monsters before they can do anymore damage. Would you like to lead one of the parties?”
“I suppose.” replied Link.
“Wonderful!” replied the captain, obviously relieved. “With you on our side those monsters won’t stand a chance.” By nightfall three parties were formed. Each had ten spearmen, five bowmen, and a handful of swordsmen. Link lead the party searching the southern part of Wiggin’s Woods. The parties searched the entire forest during the night. The only thing found was a band of Boblins, which surrendered after a few volleys of arrows.
Once dawn broke the parties headed home. “Thanks for your help Link.” said the captain, “Really perked the boys’ spirits.”
“Anytime.” said Link with a small smile. He was tired; he hadn’t used that much energy in years. He rode back home and collapsed onto a sofa.
The two shadowy figures rode through the field at the southern end of Wiggin’s Woods. “Humph, who would have expected the real Link to show?” said the figure with the cold voice. “Me.” replied his comrade. “After all, I am his shadow.” He grinned mischievously.
“They got our scout troop too.” said the old man. The two continued riding in relative silence until they reached a rocky hill, laden with ruined towers and other large rocky objects. “We’re home!” shouted Dark Link.
“Must you be so loud?” asked his old comrade.
“You’re such a bore, Raith.” replied Dark Link dryly.
“Don’t you start, you’re the one that never shuts up.” countered Raith. “Nayru’s Love be with the poor soul that has to travel with you.”

Chapter 3: The Creeping Shadow

“So is everyone here?” asked Zant. He was in a big tent with a large table, and many cloaked figures.
“Just take roll.” said Raith.
“Fair enough.” replied Zant. “Raith?”
“What do you think?”
“Yeah, yeah shut up. Link, you here?”
“Hello.” answered the smooth voice of Dark Link.
“Myren?”
“Here.” answered a harsh voice from a small woman with long black hair.
“Erda?”
“Present.” said a soft voice from an average sized girl with shoulder length brown hair. She had only been with the group for a month or so.
“Wonderful, Saaden?” there was no response. “Saaden?” repeated Zant.
“Give the man a break, he lives all the way in Gerudo Desert.” answered Myren coolly.
“Good point, Tralk you here?” inquired Zant.
“Yes.” replied a squawky voice from a Rito sitting at the far end of the room. His magnificent wings were hidden in the sleeves of his cloak.
“Excellent! So all that’s missing is Saaden. We can continue without him.” said Zant enthusiastically.
“What is today’s business?” asked Erda.
“We’re going to revive it….” answered Raith.
“Splendid! Shall we begin?” said Dark Link.
“Hasty as always Link. Whatever let’s go to the Ruined Temple.” ordered Zant.
The group headed towards a small broken down building about one hundred yards from their tent. Once inside, they all took a seat inside a circle of large rocks.
“I hope you all know what you’re doing….I don’t want a repeat of last time.” said Tralk, glaring strongly at Dark Link.
“So I feel asleep, deal with it bird brain.”
“Alright brats, let’s get this over with.” barked Myren, ending the argument. Then all placed their hands on the ground and began sending energy into the earth. Soon the ground began cracking, and groans could be heard from beneath the ground. The six cloaked figures continued sending energy into the ground. With a resounding crack the ground split and a large Wyrm burst from the earth.
“Oh ho ho! Say hello to my new toy!” yelled Dark Link.
Link awoke after a very restful sleep, and walked towards the door. Before he could even open it Captain Vincent plowed through.
“Terribly sorry there bud, but this is really bad! I just got word that the two cloaked figures are only two of seven. They’re all extremely powerful warriors! They want to try and filch the Master Sword in order to take over Holodrum! One of the Boblins told us!” Vincent was out of breath when he finished the news.
“So they’re going to try to beat us into telling them where the sword is?” asked Link. Vincent nodded.
“Do you know the whereabouts of these seven warriors?” asked Link.
“Boblin told us that they’re in the plains south of Wiggin’s Woods. They have at least two hundred Boblins with them as well.”
Link thought for a moment. “Alert the troops, I’ll need five hundred elite. I’m bringing the fight to them.”

Chapter 4: Preparations
“Alright men let’s move!” shouted a commanding officer. Five hundred elite soldiers from Hyrule Castle marched from their barracks and onto the road leading the Wiggin’s Woods and the enemy camp beyond. Their swords, shields, pikes and armor shone in the early morning sunlight.
“We need double time men!” shouted Link. He rode around the column encouraging the men to hustle up.
“We need to be ready to attack by mid-day!” ordered Captain Vincent.

“Get off of that creature you senseless fool!” shouted Raith.
“Whoo hoo! You guys have no idea how fun this is!” yelled Dark Link as the Wyrm flailed around attempting to dislodge him from its head. “This is my favorite toy!” Dark Link now was laughing hysterically and crying tears of unimaginable pleasure.
“Idiot…let’s just get on with the plan. Erda, get control of that thing, we need it for our trip to the MountainSide Temple.” ordered Zant.
“Which thing? Link or the Wyrm…?” replied Erda attempting a joke. Tralk snorted in amusement.
“The Wyrm, although I do admit that was a clever comment, just speak with more confidence.” said Zant.
Once Dark Link had been detained and the Wyrm controlled, Zant continued.
“Link stay behind and watch the camp. If you’re attacked do what you can, but don’t do anything foolish.”
“Gotcha.” replied the still giggling troublemaker.
“Good, we’re off. Everyone, make sure that Wyrm stays alive; we’ll need it to defend us while we seal the temple. This seal will take much longer than the revitalization one.” commanded Tralk.
“Have a safe trip.” said Dark Link.
“Safety is one of our lowest priorities.” answered Raith.
“We’re now half way through the woods!” shouted one of the company sergeants. The soldiers cheered, they were eager to get revenge for the massacre the day earlier. It was a good day for marching, clear skies, cool breeze and plenty of shade. Moral was also exceptionally high.
“About three hours and we’ll be at our destination. We should be fine if what the Boblin said was true.” said Link confidently.
“Aye.” responded Vincent.

The cloaked comrades reached the foothills of Horack Mountain. The terrain became much more rocky and craggy.
“This is my turf.” said Erda, happy to be back at her stomping grounds.
“Now maybe you can be of some use.” jabbed Myren. Erda was the youngest of the group, and was usually picked on for being unreliable and weak. Unlike Dark Link, who was picked on for being himself. Erda didn’t respond she was used to the insults; they made her want to try even harder to prove herself.
“How’s it look Tralk?” inquired Raith in his usual icy cold fashion.
“Fine, nothing in sight.” shouted the Rito, who was now soaring high above his comrades on his powerful wings.
“Alright, keep moving guys.” ordered Zant.

“Skirmishers!” shouted a Hylain trooper. The clash of arms rang throughout the forest, and arrows soared through the air.
“Get em’ boys!” shouted Link as he gored a Boblin. One trooper fell with an arrow stuck in his eye, while a two Boblins met their gory end at the point of a pike. Both were skewered by a pike and pinned to a tree. The Boblin skirmish line soon broke and the creatures ran back to camp.
“Only 1 dead sir, another 3 wounded.” said one of the soldiers.
“Good work.” replied Vincent. “Keep moving men! We’re getting close!”
The columns instantly formed and moved at a rapid pace, they could smell the enemy now, Boblins don’t bathe.

“We’re here. The MountainSide Temple.” said Zant.
“Finally.” whined Myren “Open it kid.”
Erda followed the order and approached the large stone door. She had the power to control earth.* With one motion of her hand the large door sank into the ground, and the company entered into a dark brownstone building.
“Greetings friends.” said a cool voice.
“Ah, Saaden. Good to see you’re here.” said Zant.
“I thought ahead this time. Figured I’d just come here instead of meeting at the camp.”
“Smart choice.” replied Tralk.
The six walked into a large room made out of obsidian. In the center of the room was a pedestal made out of pure amethyst. On top of the pedestal was purple orb.
“What’s that?” asked Erda.
“Orb of Shadows.” replied Saaden. “The user can absorb the orb into their hand, giving them immense power at night, or in dark places.”
“Which one of us in the insomniac?” inquired Myren.
“Raith, but he can’t absorb the orb. So I figured we’d let Link have it, he’s always keeping us up at night with his talk.” answered Zant.
“Sounds good to me. This seal will take us about six hours, so make sure you really don’t screw anything up when we extract the orb from the pedestal. “ ordered Tralk.
“And if we do?” asked Erda.
“Boom.” said Saaden.

[KeeperOfCourage]

Ok next set of chapters. PLEASE COMMENT!

Chapter 5: The Assault

“Charge!!!” screamed Link, as the first company of Hylian troopers ran up the hill. Arrows whizzed everywhere, and many men fell. Link was the first to hit the enemy line. He swung his blade left and right, cutting spears and flesh. He was followed by a handful of other men, who did likewise. The next company backed up the first, and soon the Boblins were falling back to their secondary defenses.
“34 causalities! We need medics!” screamed one of the commanding officers. Medics soon arrived on the hill and began helping the wounded.
“Volley!” cried an archer. A horde of silver arrows rained onto the Boblin defenses with deadly efficiency.
“Oh, is it play time already?!” yelled Dark Link as he came out of his tent. Just then a Hylian soldier with a large mace came screaming towards him. Dark Link moved as quickly as the wind and stabbed the poor soldier through with his knives. Link glanced towards the tent and froze. He had not expected to see his face starring back at him, especially not with such a queer smile. Dark Link zipped over to Link and began stabbing at him with his knives. Link parried knocking Dark Link back.
“What happened to your sword?” inquired Link.
“Oh, that old piece of junk? I gave it up for these beauties.” he said as he held up both his dark, curved knives. “I’m much faster this way.” Dark Link jumped everywhere while stabbing and cutting at Link. He was so fast the Link had no time to counter, only defend. A quick kick to the face sent Link spiraling backwards.
“Slacked off a bit eh?” asked Dark Link. “I’ve been doing nothing but training since I’ve been free. Ganondorf was a real jerk and filched my powers once I lost to you.” He gave a generous stab with his knife cutting Link’s arm. Link replied with a quick jab to Dark Link’s stomach, but to no avail. Dark Link quickly blocked with his knives.
“Tsk tsk tsk, you really need to brush up on your skills.” taunted Dark Link. Just then Link gave him a solid kick to the ribs. Dark Link staggered back coughing and dodging Link’s barrage of sword swipes.
“Whew! Maybe I spoke too soon.” said Dark Link.
“You sure are talkative.” said Link, continuing his barrage.
“What do you expect? I’m your shadow.” retorted Link’s shadowy twin.
It was perfectly quiet in the obsidian room. All were concentrating on their energy. One mistake and the orb would burst causing a fairly decent amount of damage to the temple and the group. The dark light around the orb slowly grew fainter and fainter as the time flew by.
“Two hours remain.” announced Tralk, as if he was a clock.
“Do we get to rest after this?” asked Erda, hoping she could take a good nap after all the hard work.
“Tired already whelp?” mocked Myren.
“Give the poor girl a break, she’s new.” countered Saaden giving Myren a harsh glare. Myren just sneered and looked at her hands. They were quivering as the energy passed through.
“Since we all seem a little talkative I’ll go over my next plan.” said Zant. “We will head back to camp that hopefully is still intact and let Link absorb the Orb of Shadows. Then we travel to Karkariko Village and raid the library. We need to find the location of the Master Sword.”
“You do realize Karkariko has about a fifty soldier garrison, right?” asked Raith.
“Yes, that’s why we’ll need to be sneaky about this.” responded Zant. No one responded.
The Boblins were running now. They didn’t have enough numbers to hold out against the troops of Hyrule Castle.
“Good work boys. We’ve got em’ on the run!” congratulated Captain Vincent.
“Sir we’ve taken 45% casualties.” announced one of the runners.
“Get the medics working harder, and call in some more from the castle.” replied the captain.
Link’s sword sliced through the air only to be stopped by Dark Link’s knives. Both combatants were growing weary. Dark Link gave one last thrust lightly cutting Link’s fingers and stomach. Link responded with a vicious slash at Dark Link’s right hand, cutting it off completely. Dark Link jumped backwards. He looked at his bloody stump of an arm, and then towards his hand lying on the ground.
“Good thing I’m a lefty!” he exclaimed. “We’ll Link it’s been fun, promise me you’ll get some new play things for the next time we meet. Okay? Bye!” before Link could respond Dark Link had disappeared in puff of smoke.

Chapter 6: Search for the Master Sword

“Done!” announced Tralk.
“Good, now let’s not tarry any longer.” said Zant “Saaden. You and Erda go back to camp and give the orb to Link. Raith and I will take the mountain road to Karkariko, while Myren and Tralk take the field road.”
“Sounds good, let’s move out!” yelled Saaden.
“The princess is here!” yelled one of the soldiers. Princess Zelda had traveled with the medics in order to talk with Link.
“Hello Link. We need to discuss the Master Sword. Do you have a moment?” Link nodded and the two walked off a small distance. Zelda turned to Link
“You have to reawaken the Master Sword.” she said.
“What? Why can’t we just leave it where it is? Nobody can find it.” exclaimed Link.
“We need it to combat the enemy. Without it we cannot get victory. Yes, we do run the risk of them stealing it, but they will find it either way.” after more discussion they agreed on sending a small team of exceptionally strong fighters to retrieve the sword.
“Ralph, Captain Vincent, Captain Elrik, and Helvar will accompany you on the journey.” said Zelda. “Move quickly, and use this to find the Sacred Meadow.” she handed him a decrepit green book.
“Page five hundred and ninety-one will explain the secrets of the forest.” she explained.
Link thanked her and went off to assemble the team.
“Great, it’s in ancient Hylian makes everything twice as hard to understand.” said Ralph sarcastically as he looked over the book. With the battlefield behind them, the five headed towards the Lost Woods.
Saaden and Erda sailed quickly down the mountain path. Erda used her earth powers to make the rocks move them down the trail at an amazing speed.
“How handy.” said Saaden with a smile. Erda smiled back. Saaden was the only other member of the group that really appreciated her, other than Dark Link, but his opinion never really mattered.
Myren and Tralk soared across the skies. Myren was a small person, which made it easy for Tralk to carry her through the air.
“We’ll be there by nightfall.” announced Tralk.
“Good. I wanna get this over with and move on to bigger things, like Holodrum.” replied the small cloaked figure.
“Why Holodrum? All that’s there is a puny Maku Tree.” inquired Tralk.
“Maybe Zant wants its seeds. We could corrupt it and make an evil tree, which would give us a lot of power.”
“Maybe.”
Zant and Raith trudged down the mountain side. They didn’t need get to Karkariko until nightfall.
“What are we looking for in the library?” asked Raith.
“A book.” responded Zant.
“How helpful.” hissed the old man. They walked on in silence.
“When should we reach the woods?” asked Captain Elrik. The team had been walking for a few hours now but had been stopped by the overflowing of the Hylia River.
“Well we could’ve been there in about an hour, but the rains from the other day have swelled the river causing the bridge to flood.” said Link bitterly.
“So we’ll have to wait for it to recede…” said Helvar. He was tall gaunt soldier with a large pike.
“Is there a way around the river?” asked Vincent.
“Not one that’s worth the trip.” answered Link. “Closest is all the way in Karkariko village.”
Dark Link was sleeping peacefully in the grass when Erda and Saaden walked up to him.
“Why aren’t you at camp?” questioned Saaden.
Dark Link yawned. “Hylains beat us out of there. See my hand is gone!” yelled Dark Link. Erda grimaced.
“Zant’ll have to do something about that.” she said. “Anyway here, absorb this into your hand. I guess you could call it your new toy.”
“Oh goodie!” shouted Dark Link as he allowed the orb to be sucked into his left palm.
“Come guys, we have work to do. I’ll explain on the way Link.” ordered Saaden. The three walked off towards Karkariko village.
“Alright, how about Helvar and I head to Karkariko, maybe we can find some supplies.” suggested Elrik, a stout and strong captain.
“It should only take us about two or three hours to get there.” announced Helvar.
“Ok, that’s fine, we’ll meet up at the entrance to the forest.” said Link.
“Sounds great! See you soon.” said Elrik as he and Helvar marched southwards.
Myren and Tralk could now see Karkariko village clearly.
“Finally, you sure are slow for a bird.” jabbed Myren.
“If I didn’t have such a HEAVY load, maybe I could fly faster.” countered Tralk.
“Shut it bird brain!” yelled Myren bitterly. Tralk was content with his former insult and remained silent. They flew for a few more minutes then landed in from of the exit of a small thicket, about half a mile from the entrance of the village.
“Well, well, well. Look what we’ve stumbled upon.” barked Elrik.
“This’ll be fun.” said Helvar with a large grin.

Chapter 7: Troubles
The four combatants stared at each other for a few minutes as a cool breeze passed through the field. Myren was the first to move. She slowly drew a compact repeating crossbow from her cloak while Tralk slid his wings into his sleeves. Helvar leveled his pike and Elrik drew his sword and readied his shield. The four continued glancing from one to another. After a few minutes Myren was the first to act, firing her crossbow at Helvar. Helvar spun to the right and caught the arrow mid-flight. He grinned as he snapped the bolt like a twig with his thumb and pointer finger. Tralk lunged at Elrik, two large katanas emerging from his sleeves. Elrik’s shield took the blow as he countered with his thick broad sword. Helvar stabbed healthily at Myren. She evaded his jab and kicked towards his face. Helvar caught her kick and flung her through the air, preparing to smash her into the ground. Myren broke her fall at the expense of snapping her wrist. She quickly regained balance on both her arms and kicked Helvar in the face with her free leg.
Elrik and Tralk were hacking away at each other. Tralk treated the katanas as extensions of his own arms. He could use them with devastating effectiveness. After taking a shield bash to his beak he wheeled around and tore away at Elrik’s blind spots. Elrik concentrated all his energy to one single slash. With expert timing he gave one smooth cut with his sword, catching both of Tralk’s in a deadlock. The two began the staring contest again.
Helvar and Myren continued their close-combat tussles until Myren managed to disarm her opponent. Once un-armed, Helvar lunged at Myren punching left and right. Myren bobbed to avoid the punches than came in with an uppercut. Helvar took the blow in order to get a solid stomp on Myren’s tiny foot. There was a crack and pop as Helvar’s large booted foot met Myren’s small sandaled foot at a high speed. Myren wrestled her foot free and fired her crossbow blindly. Helvar took the blow square in the shoulder, but he quickly pulled out the arrow and continued fighting.
Tralk and Elrik had quit staring and continued their swordplay. Tralk swept at Elrik’s feet catching his armored foot causing him to fall. Tralk then proceeded to stab away at Elrik. The latter defending with shield and sword as best he could, but took many wounds. Tralk made one sloppy stab which allowed Elrik to leap forward, and hit Tralk in the side with his tower shield. Tralk staggered back coughing and cursing, but Elrik wouldn’t let up. He tore through the air knocking away one of Tralk’s swords.
“Well here we are.” said Ralph. The three had decided to fight through the water to get to the woods. Ralph had been carried, he hated water.
“Good, the other two shouldn’t be far behind.” said Vincent. The three soldiers waited in front of the forest. Evening was slipping away.
“Link, let’s read the try to read the book so we don’t lose anytime.” suggested Ralph.
“Okay, page five hundred ninety-one.” answered Link. The page revealed some complicated writing and a small map. The map was easy enough to decipher, but the text was extremely complex.
“Why couldn’t the princess have just left the Master Sword in the Temple of Time?” asked Vincent, quite irritated.
“Too easy for the enemy to find.” replied Link. They continued translating the text.
“So that’s why chu-chu aren’t supposed to be eaten on the spot!” exclaimed Dark Link. He had been talking for hours about the most useless information.
“We’ll have to remember that.” sighed Saaden. There were a few more minutes of complete silence before Dark Link began talking again.
“So where’s Wyrmy been?” inquired Dark Link. Erda stopped and closed her eyes while placing her palm on the ground.
“He’s heading to Karkariko also, he’ll be there in a few minutes.” answered Erda.
“Alright! I get to see Wyrmy again!” exclaimed Dark Link. Saaden rolled his eyes and laughed. Erda, Saaden and Dark Link were the only ones that got along. Most of the time interaction with the others ended up in hurt feelings and hurt body parts.
Myren slammed into the dirt road again. She had screwed up. She underestimated this gallant looking soldier. She barely dodged a stab from Helvar’s pike. She leapt up and kicked furiously. Helvar blocked each kick until she managed to pull off a fake stagger and get him in the leg. He tripped forward but managed to pound Myren’s face into the ground on his way down. Myren was unconscious, so he headed over to help Elrik.
Tralk swung at Elrik tearing into his arm. Elrik was getting on in years, and couldn’t keep up. He swung his sword obnoxiously trying to ward off his foe. Tralk grinned and flew towards Elrik with amazing speed. He grabbed onto Elrik’s shoulders with his talons and plunged his katana through Elrik’s throat. Helvar froze in his tracks, it had happened so fast. His shock turned to rage. He screamed as he hurled his pike at Tralk. Tralk managed to block the pike’s tip from stabbing him, but the impact was so great he sailed through the air and hit the hard dirt.
“You two were much more powerful than we thought.” complimented Tralk. “But we really should be going.” He flew over and picked up Myren. “’Til next time.” And with that, he soared away towards Karkariko village. Helvar had to find the others. He remembered the flare he had in his pack. He choose the green one. It stood for “trouble, I’ll be late, move on without me.”
“Flare!” shouted Link.
“Crap, they’ve reached trouble.” said Ralph, fumbling through his bag for an orange response flare.
“What a pain.” complained Vincent.
“Let’s just hope they’re both still alive.” said Link with a grim look on his face which disappeared when the world exploded into darkness as the last of the evening sun was swallowed up by the horizon.

Chapter 8: The Library

Zant and Raith waited on the roof of the library in Karkariko village. They had been there only a few minutes when Tralk flew down and less than gently placed Myren on the roof.
“We meet some Hylian soldiers on the way.” said Tralk “They were good.”
“I see. Myren got the bad end of deal eh?” asked Zant.
“I killed one of them, the other was too tough so I decided to retreat.” responded Tralk.
“How many were there?” questioned Raith.
“Two.” answered Myren, who had just awoken. Zant looked worried.
“Two Hylian troopers did this to you!?” exclaimed Raith.
“Cool it gramps.” said that oh so familiar voice of Dark Link.
“Ah, it’s the three unrealiables. The weak one, the late one, and the stupid one.” said Myren. Dark Link winked at her.
“Let’s hurry and get inside, we can make fun of each other where we can’t be seen.” ordered Tralk. The seven shadows came to the door and attempted to open it.
“Locked.” said Saaden. “Let me get some of my sand. I’ll blow the lock, it won’t be too loud.” Before Saaden could pull out any sand Dark Link walked up and kicked down the door.
“Well I suppose that works too.” said Saaden. Dark Link smiled big. The group walked in the library. There were shelves up to twelve feet high, all laden with books.
“Ok….what are we looking for?” asked Erda.
“Anything that looks old and is about Hylian myths. We need information on the Master Sword’s whereabouts.” answered Zant.
“I’ll check the basement.” insisted Raith. “Anyone care to join an old man in the basement?”
“Fine.” answered Zant. The two figures melted into the darkness of the basement.
Ralph, Vincent and Link entered the Lost Woods. It was dark, hardly any light entered in due to the overgrown trees. It was cool and peaceful, large roots covered the ancient paths, and smooth green leaves fluttered in the night breeze.
“I can see how people would get lost.” whispered Vincent grimly.
“We may run into some Skullkids, don’t harm them unless they try to harm you. They are normally playful, but it may get out of hand.” warned Link.
“I’ll roast em’.” replied Ralph apathetically. He was warrior that excelled in attacks that charred and burned things. The trio headed followed the map in the book, which said to head north for a good mile, then branch west for thrice that long.
“This is going to be rough.” announced Link, as they pushed through the brush, deeper into the legendary woodland.
Dark Link wasn’t the book type. He liked very few books, and the ones he did like had mainly to do with useless information, such as jokes or chess. He wasn’t having much luck finding anything that caught his eye.
Erda on the other hand was a bookwyrm. She read almost anything, but preferred books about nature and the earth. She used the things she learned from these books when using her powers. She had already slipped a good five or six books into her large baggy sleeves.
“They’re pretty handy aren’t they?” joked Saaden. Erda jumped.
“Uhh…yeah.” she answered.
“Either of you find anything?” asked Dark Link.
“Nothing that Zant would want.” they both replied.
“I think I might have.” said Dark Link. “Legendary Blades of Hyrule, oddly specific title. I’ll show this to Zant.” As Dark Link tripped down the stairs, on purpose of course, an old lady came down the stairs and froze when she saw the cloaked figures.
“Uh-oh, we didn’t plan on having a resident.” said Saaden in a concerned tone. Before either of them could do anything Myren had grabbed the old woman and was preparing to break her neck. Saaden fired a ball of sand into Myren’s eyes a second before the old woman was finished.
“Stop!” he yelled. “Just knock her out!”
“Dead men tell no tales.” responded Myren with an evil smirk.
“Who cares if she tells anyone, we’ll be long gone before she wakes up.” countered Erda.
“Shut it whelp.” spat Myren.
“That’s enough all of you.” ordered Zant, who had appeared on the stairwell. “Keep the twerp happy and just knock her out.” Myren frowned but obeyed. A quick punch to the back of the neck and the old woman went limp.
“I’ll carry her to a bed.” said Tralk. “Maybe she’ll think it was all a bad dream.” Just then the windows shattered and smoke poured in. Hylian guards could be heard outside.
“Curses! We’ve been found!” yelped Zant. Erda instantly punched the ground with all her might cracking the stone floor.
“What was that for?!” yelled Saaden. “Are you trying to kill-“ before he could finish his angry statement the Wyrm burst from the crack and splintered the roof. After a volley of arrows the guards retreated, followed by a large fire ball spewed by the Wyrm.
“Excellent, he’ll cover our retreat.” stated Zant. The group stormed out of the city. Dark Link stooped to the ground to quickly place the old woman in the grass and then followed his comrades.
“We’ve already been past this tree.” said Ralph. The three were growing restless and hopelessly lost.
“Well this is what the book tells us to do.” said Link.
“Did we read it right?” questioned Vincent.
“Wait! What’s that?” asked Ralph pointing to a large gray stone structure. Moss and other small trees were growing all over the sides of the building.
“The Forest Temple.” said Link solemnly. “Don’t let it out of your sights, head towards it.” The group charged towards the Forest Temple and soon found themselves in a large meadow. Knee high grass surrounded the pedestal which protected the Master Sword. Link walked up to the pedestal and placed his hands on the sword.
“Maelstrom?” asked Myren.
“Yes, Maelstrom, it should be in the Water Temple.” answered Zant.
“I thought we wanted the Master Sword! What is a Maelstrom anyway? Some kind of pasta?” inquired Dark Link.
“No you fool, it’s another legendary sword. According to this book, it can control the storms. If we collect some of these legendary weapons we won’t need to Master Sword.” lectured Zant.
“We already have the Orb of Shadows, which puts on near or equal ground with Link and his friends.” confirmed Raith.
“Ok, this is what will happen. I want Link and Myren to head to the Water Temple and get this Maelstrom.” demanded Zant.
“Why does the cranky one have to come with me?” whined Dark Link.
“Why does the idiot have to come with me?” barked Myren right back.
“Fine, fine Saaden, you want to go?” interrogated Zant.
“Yeah, I suppose.” He replied.
“Good, move out!” instructed Zant.
“Hold it right there!” shouted a strong voice from the distance.
The Master Sword glowed light green as Link pulled it out of the pedestal. He smiled remembering the things he had done with this weapon. With the Master Sword in hand the Kingdom of Hyrule would have a restored hope….or so they all thought.

[KeeperOfCourage]

Next set of chapters, please respond even if you havent read much of it.


Chapter 9: The Maelstrom

“Him again?” asked Tralk in a surprised voice.
“This one of the bullies that beat you kids up?” taunted Dark Link.
“Yeah, he’s the one that survived.” said Myren.
“All the rest of you can go. I just want to have a chat with your feathered friend.” sneered Helvar.
“Good. Hold him off for as long as you can Tralk.” requested Zant. Tralk sighed. He’d had enough excitement for a week. The rest of the group scurried up and over the village walls.
“Link, before I forget, I need to fix your hand. Have you picked out something to attach?” asked Zant. Dark Link handed Zant a hook, like the ones pirates use.
“You’ve got to be kidding me…” said Zant irritably. Dark Link began laughing hysterically. The rest of the group rolled their eyes.
“Oh that was good! Here this is the real thing I wanted!” said Dark Link as he handed him a silver gauntlet with knives for fingers. “I whipped it up myself.” He smiled big. It only took Zant a second to fuse the stump and gauntlet. After that the group split. Dark Link and Saaden heading to Lake Hylia and the Water Temple, and the rest of the group heading to gather up some Boblins to cause trouble.
“Good, now let’s find Helvar and Elrik quickly and get back home.” said Ralph. The group soon made their way out of the woods and sprinted to Karkariko. It was still dark, which made traveling a bit more difficult.
“Hold up.” whispered Vincent. In the distance were two small tents and four Boblins sitting around a campfire.
“Should we go around them?” asked Vincent.
“The less Boblins in the world the better.” whispered Link. The three split up and circled around the camp. The Boblins were obviously very drunk, and had no idea what was happening. Ralph was the first to act. He unleashed a blast of fire which licked up one the creatures. Link lunged at a second while Vincent did the same to the third. The last Boblin raised his war club and swung at Link. Being drunk he lost his balance and fell to the ground. Link finished him with a stab through the neck. The Hylains stood there for a moment to take in victory, and then moved onward.
Tralk and Helvar kept exchanging blows. Neither had landed a hit, and both were so exhausted that one hit would be the end. Helvar slashed Elrik’s blade right for Tralk’s ugly beak. Tralk flung his head back, dodging the blow by an inch, then quickly recoiled and tore across Helvar’s stomach. Helvar winced from the pain long enough for Tralk to stab him through with one of his blades. Helvar’s mind was racing. He remembered his childhood, the times he’d shared playing in the forest with his friends, the cold nights in his small village, and the projects with his father. Then he remembered what was really happening to him. His face grew red his rage rose to levels he didn’t think possible. Before Tralk could react Helvar had grabbed the blade sticking into him, pulled it deeper into his body with Tralk following, and sliced his sword down Tralk’s face. Tralk’s mind raced as well. He remembered the times he’d tried to make friends, but failed. He remembered the hot days in the desert that hardened him into what he was now. He also remembered how supportive his one true friend had been, and he had been killed at the hands of Hylians. Then…..nothing. Both figures fell over dead just as the dawn star rose above the hills surrounding the village.
Two men in dark robes approached the lake that was exploding in the reflection of the sun. They seemed very out of place in such a happy environment.
“Well, I can see the temple, but how to do we get down there without drowning?” inquired Saaden with a puzzled look on his face.
“I can hold my breath for awhile, I should be ok.” replied Dark Link.
“I can try making a small air mask with my sand.” said Saaden.
“Go for it.” was the response. Saaden quickly poured out a bag of sand and molded it into the shape of his face. It was air tight, so there was enough air inside of it for one good breath.
“Race ya!” yelled Dark Link.
“You’re on!” replied Saaden. The race, if you could even call it that, ending in an overwhelming victory for Dark Link.
“How do you do that?” asked Saaden as Dark Link helped him into the Temple.
“I suppose I was ‘born’ with it.” He said with sarcastic emphasis on the born part. The two began walking down the halls of the temple, looking for anything that would hint to a secret weapon.
“Personally, I’d much rather be hunting down some pasta than some old sword.” said Dark Link as he dropped to the ground to take a rest.
“Yeah, but we gotta listen to Zant. Or he’ll throw a fit.” replied Saaden. “You remember anything since the last time you were here?”
“Not really, this place has gotten wore down a lot since I was posted here.” replied Dark Link. “Though, there was one thing that caught my eye. C’mon follow me!” The two headed through a door in the pillar of the temple. The room’s walls were aquamarine blue with strange markings all over them. They headed down a flight of stairs and waded through some water before they reached their destination, a small tomb like room. An elegant treasure chest was seated in the center of the room.
“Ah-ha!” exclaimed Dark Link as he opened it. His hand disappeared then reappeared holding a sapphire blue scimitar with a teal colored gem in the center of the hilt.
“Spiffy.” snorted Saaden.
“I concur.” replied his friend.
“We’ve found this thing pretty fast, let’s get out of here and have some fun.” snickered Saaden.
“I’ve only known you for a month and I can already tell we’re going to be great friends for a long time.” said Dark Link with a grin. The two headed out of the temple and dropped down on the sandy shores of the lake. They feel asleep in minutes.

Chapter 10: Cover of Darkness

A Hylian soldier fell with a cry as the Boblins poured into the village. Soldiers rushed to the gate to stop the onslaught. The soldiers were caught off guard, and no match. The village was soon rid of life. The few that survived ran quickly to alert the surrounding settlements. Zant and his followers entered the village once the main fighting had cleared. Zant breathed in deeply.
“Ahhh….the smell of death.” he said with a wicked smile. Just then the Boblin next to him dropped to the ground, an arrow in its head. A brave bowman had stayed behind to get revenge. He leveled his bow, sights on Zant’s head. The arrow flew from the bow piercing the air. Before the arrow could reach its mark Zant hand lifted his hand and unleashed a wave of electricity, stopping the arrow and frying the bowmen.
“Search the village for others, and gather supplies. We’re going to blitz right through these villages and hit Hyrule Castle.” commanded Zant.
Dark Link and Saaden had awoken from their nap and were half way back to Karkariko. It was almost nightfall and they hoped for a secluded place to sleep.
“Zant underestimated us. He gave us three days to find this thing.” said Dark Link as he handled the Maelstrom. Saaden chuckled.
“Let’s hang out in Karkariko, maybe swipe a few things, get a drink, just relax.” he
replied. They entered the rear gate of the city in darkness and headed up onto a balcony to get a view of the village square.
“Looks like we’ve stumbled upon a heap of fun.” said Dark Link when he saw what was in the square.
“Well, at least he took that son of a Boblin with him.” said Ralph grimly.
“We found them this afternoon. Would’ve done something earlier, but the mayor declared the village in a state of emergency. No one could leave their houses.” stated a guard.
“Any sign of an older looking knight, red hair and beard?” interrogated Vincent.
“Yeah, five minutes from the city. It looks like he was killed by that menacing feathered creature too.”
“We’ll avenge them, we’ll avenge them soon.” said Link solemnly.
“Well, well, well look what we found.” said Dark Link as he leapt from the balcony and landed gracefully a few paces from Link. Link glared at the dark figure.
“Do you have any friends or do you always choose to come alone?” questioned Link as he drew the Master Sword.
“Oh, I see you got a new toy like I asked! I got one as well, actually two to be exact.” he brushed aside his robe to reveal the knives on his gauntlet. “I also brought a friend along this time.” Saaden jumped down next to his friend and emptied his sand onto the ground.
“Vincent, help me with Dark Link. Ralph can handle the other one.” ordered Link.
Link and Vincent closed in on Dark Link slowly, while Ralph and the guards did the same to Saaden. With an amused grin Saaden clapped his hands, which were now glowing with energy, together, sending his sand flying in all directions. The sand smacked the most of the guards in the face immobilizing them. An arrow sailed through the air easily dodged by the quick moving desert denizen. Ralph unleashed a blast of fire that was quickly extinguished by Saaden’s sand. Ralph, not knowing what else to do, continued firing balls of magma towards Saaden. Saaden knew the routine, and countered with his balls of sand.
Vincent stepped back from the shock of Dark Link’s blow. His sword was scratched and tore from the impact of the knives. Link countered with a hack from the Master Sword. His opponent blocked it with the gauntlet.
“What a handy toy.” said Dark Link. “Let’s make this a little more interesting. What kind of weather do you enjoy? Snow? Sunny? How about rain? I know its cliché, but I’m quite fond of it.” He drew out the Maelstrom and stabbed it into the air. Instantly clouds dark clouds began gathering, and thunder was in the distance.”
“W-what is that?!” asked Vincent in a horrified voice. Dark Link pointed the Maelstrom at Vincent and fired a blast of water from it. Vincent was propelled backwards.
“Now that is spiffy!” yelled Dark Link. Link charged at Dark Link and unleashed a storm of steel. He attacked with all his strength, breaking his adversary’s guard. Dark Link stumbled and fell on his back. Link jumped into the air, preparing for a finishing blow, but his face soon grew pale. It’s actually pretty funny how fast you can think when you’re panicked. Link figured that out during the first milliseconds of his ascent. It was too late now, he had to follow through. In the time Link had taken to get airborne Dark Link had activated the Orb of Shadows. His left arm was surrounded by dark energy, surging through his veins. When Link’s sword was an inch from his chest, he grabbed the blade and hurled Link across the square. His hand was cut badly in the process.
“What do you have against my hands?” questioned Dark Link as he rose from the ground. Link rose as well. Vincent began and furious attack, his sword was light, which made it extremely fast and deadly. Dark Link was forced back on the defensive.
After the exchange of sand and fire, Saaden launched his offensive. He rose all his sand into the air and formed needles with it.
“First wave, go!” he yelled. A dozen sand needles flew through the air aimed for Ralph. The latter dodged most of them and blocked the rest with is fire.
“You’re going to have to do better than that hot head.” taunted Saaden. “Second wave, go!” The next wave of needles made their way to Ralph. Again he dodged most but this time his block wasn’t sufficient, and two of the sand needles rammed into his thigh. Ralph grimaced, but didn’t cry out. Instead he returned the favor with a stream of fire. Saaden was caught off guard and was able to dodge most of the stream, but part of it singed across his cheek.
“I heard you people want to take Holodrum. Why is that?” pried Ralph
“Holodrum is the first of many kingdoms we will conquer.” replied Saaden, holding his cheek to ease the pain.
“That smarts.” he thought.
Dark Link breathed heavily, the Orb of Shadows drained his energy very fast. Vincent kept the pressure up with his fast swipes, but Dark Link tore his sword from his hands with the Maelstrom and stabbed him with the knives on his gauntlet. Vincent’s armor took most of the damage, but his skin was still pierced. He punched Dark Link in the face and staggered back.
Ralph took another hit from the needles. He now had seven sand needles sticking from various parts of his body. He fired another ball of fire into the mix just to keep Saaden on his guard.
“Let’s get this over with, I want to relax.” said Saaden as he formed his sand into a whip. He flung the ominous weapon towards Ralph’s face, but it was blocked by the latter’s sword. The whip caught onto the sword, which enabled Saaden to fling it out of reach. Another crack of the whip and Ralph was struck in the face. He jumped out of reach and breathed heavily.
“Consider this an honor. This is the first time I have ever had to use this. I’d like you to meet Furnace’s Tongue.” grunted Ralph. Ralph formed both his hands into one fist, closed his eyes, and crouched. Saaden, with a peculiar look on his face, fired another needle at Ralph. It tore into his shoulder, but Ralph didn’t even flinch. Soon flames began slowly whirling around Ralph, even amid the steadily increasing rain. The flames grew faster and higher, a tornado of inferno shrouded Ralph. Saaden’s eye grew wide with terror. He formed all his sand into a solid block for defense, and then waited.
Dark Link turned just in time to see the flames sever the sand block and plow towards Saaden. In the blink of an eye Dark Link dove for Saaden and pushed him to safety. The flames burst, tearing down trees and damaging buildings. When everything cleared, Saaden and Dark Link had disappeared, and the sky returned to its normal cloudless state.

Chapter 11: Waves of Ember

Saaden’s burns were bad. Dark Link had to find the rest of the group and have Myren heal him. As exhausted as he was he hoisted his companion onto his back and sprinted in the direction the others had headed.
“Did you see him…?” asked Saaden in a weak voice.
“See who?” was Dark Link’s answer.
“Tralk…..his body….was lying next to a soldier’s…..” said Saaden weakly. Dark Link did not respond. Suddenly Dark Link stopped. A rumbling came from beneath them, then out burst the Wyrm.
“Wyrmy…” whispered Dark Link as he collapsed. When he awoke he was in a house. He rose and walked outside to find himself in a run-down village with Boblins running about.
“Well looks like you’re awake.” said Raith coldly. “Can’t say I’m happy about that, but you’d better thank Erda, she was the one that found you guys.”
“Tralk’s dead.” replied Dark Link. Raith sighed.
“I’ll tell Zant.” Raith walked off as Erda walked over.
“Thanks for the save.” said Dark Link
“No problem, I figured something was wrong when all those clouds appeared over Karkariko.” replied Erda. “We have another mission though. You and I have to hang out here to care for Saaden. Everyone else is going to the Ember Fields to get another weapon. Something called the Flareblitz.” Zant walked up as she was finishing her\speech.
“Ok, since Tralk is dead and we’re nearing the assault on Hyrule Castle I’m going to tell you the entire plan. At first we wanted the Master Sword, but then we learned of the other blades. I’ve read that these blades equal the Master Sword in their specific abilities. As you know our goal is domination of Hyrule. If we can control Hyrule we can control all its resources and weaponry.” Zant was a good lecturer.
“Then we go after Holodrum?” questioned Myren.
“Yes, Holodrum is more powerful than Hyrule, that’s why we need all the power we can get. With Holodrum in our possession we can then work our way to Termina, Labrynnia, and then the big prize….the Isle of Ruins.” replied Zant.
“The people that descended from the gods live there right?” asked Raith.
“Yes…we need all the strength possible to take that island. Every inch of that rock is part of a fortress.” responded Zant.
“Well then let’s hurry and get this Flareblitz thing.” said Myren. With that behind them Myren, Zant, and Raith headed towards the foothills of Death Mountain and the Ember Fields.
Ralph awoke in a bed in the hotel of Karkariko village. He had a horrible headache and he was sore everywhere. Link and Vincent were also resting.
“We’ve sent a message to Hyrule Castle. The Lord Protector is mustering all the available forces in the kingdom. We’re preparing to defend the castle.” announced Link. Ralph moaned in response.
“They’ve also started to evacuate the civilians. Probably heading towards Termina.” added Vincent.
“We’ll probably be staying Karkariko for awhile.” said Link.
“Volley!” yelled a sergeant stationed at Karkariko. A dozen archers unleashed a small wall of arrows. They poured down on the advancing Boblins, cutting down many of them. The pikemen at the gate braced for impact as the boar riders closed in. The boars slammed into the wall of steel and wood tearing themselves, their riders, and the pikemen to shreds.
“Sound the alarm! Attack on the east gate!” cried the sergeant. The bell sounded throughout the village.
“Man the walls!” he shouted again. Karkariko was build in between two large and impossible to climb plateaus. A path went right in between them, making it easy to building defenses. A wall in the west entrance and one in the north was all that was necessary. The village was built to be defended by a low amount of soldiers, and could hold out for months. Even the houses were designed for defense. Each house had a tower on the roof, and a seven foot wall around it.
The Boblins unleashed a wave of arrows slamming into walls and soldiers.
“Return fire!!” shouted the sergeant. The archers did so killing another handful of Boblins. Suddenly one of the boars went berserk and charged right for the gate. It smashed through it, killing itself from the impact. The soldiers scattered to find cover and more pikemen took position behind what remained of the gate. The Boblins charged forward, only to be repulsed bloodily by the pikemen. The first company of Boblins fell back behind the others that had accompanied them. The next prepared to charge.
Zant, Myren, and Raith marched into a desolate, tree ridden land. The ground was hard and black, cracks wound all around.
“What a lovely spot for a vacation.” said Zant. The three continued into the fields. Soot and other debris floated in the air, and there was an occasional rumble.
“Volcano?” inquired Raith.
“Well do you see one?” asked Myren in her usual snotty fashion.
“He’s right Myren.” snapped Zant. “We can also see it, look where you’re standing.” Myren’s eyes grew wide as she looked on the ground.
“It’s a flat volcano. We’ll be approaching, and entering, its mouth shortly.” said Zant.
“The Magma Temple I presume?” asked Raith.
“Yes.” was the response. The Magma Temple, like the MountainSide Temple, was one of the lesser known and smaller temples. As they walked farther geysers of steam burst from the ground.
“Watch your step.” warned Zant. “We draw near.”
Saaden stirred in his sleep. His burns were better, but still painful.
“Looks like he’ll be out of the fight for awhile.” said Erda sadly.
“It’s a drag, I managed to get him out the way before the main blast got him.” said Dark Link proudly.
“Who’d you run into?” questioned the girl.
“Link and his friends: a fire wizard and an experienced captain.” he responded. “We did a number on them, but the power of the wizard’s final attack combined with my energy being sucked from the orb made it necessary for a retreat.” The two sat by the sand user’s bed in silence for awhile.
“How many villages have we taken?” asked Dark Link.
“Eight. Most of the villagers slaughtered from each.” said Erda grimly.
“It’s strange, the longer I’m free from Ganon’s grasp, the more sympathy and kindness creep into me.” replied Dark Link.
“Maybe you aren’t so dark anymore.” said Erda with a smile. Dark Link returned the favor.
Zant and his followers stood at the crest of a large pit, and the bottom: lava.
“This is it, use the stairway to the left to get down.” ordered Zant. The three made a slow descent down to a stone structure on a stone island in the middle of the sea of flames. They entered the door and walked into a stone room.
“So they positioned fours stones corner to corner and then dropped another one on top for a roof? Not much of a temple.” said Myren.
“They also carved a door, don’t forget that.” corrected Zant. The three walked up to a stone table with a treasure chest on, but as Zant reached for the chest a voice came from outside the temple.
“Desist.” said the voice.
“Such a simple command.” said Raith, as a red robed figure walked in. The figured removed its hood, revealing long red hair.
“I am Brasena, guardian of the Flareblitz.” said a girl no older than twenty. Myren grinned.
“Deal with it hot head, we’re taking this sword.” said the dark haired woman. Brasena did not respond by using words as one would have expected, but by unleashing an immense ball of fire charging for Myren. She ducked dodging the blast, but the heat singed her hair and completely removed her hood. A large hole appeared where the rear wall of the temple once was. Myren responded with three quick shots from her crossbow. Brasena charred one of them, caught another in her mouth and blocked the last with the arrow in her mouth.
“Impressive.” complimented Zant, as he unleashed a blast of electricity. Raith joined in by firing a wave of energy. Brasena blocked both with another ball of fire. While the three were exchanging presents Myren had quickly snuck behind the red headed guardian and fired and poisoned arrow which met Brasena’s knee with deadly effect.
“That was a poisoned arrow.” said Myren cruelly. “You will die in five minutes.”
“Then I will take all of you with me before a minute is up. I would like you all to meet the move my older brother taught me. Furnace’s Tongue!” yelled Brasena. Fire raged around the girl and grew larger and larger. Myren ran out of the temple followed by Raith. Zant, who was at the far side of the room exited via the large hole in the wall. A second after he left the temple exploded in a fiery blasted of immeasurable magnitude. Myren smashed into the ground due to the blast. Her face began bleeding. Raith was sent sprawling. Zant managed to remain standing, but his over cloak was tore from him and he was cut by the wind blast. When the storm of fire was over the three walked past the now ruined temple and stood around the table.
“We’ve got what we came for. Let’s leave.” ordered Zant. The three walked towards the stairway. Myren spat on Brasena’s body as they strolled past.