The Aftermath

The whole of Hyrule seemed to be subject to ominous clouds threatening rain, Link noted while he rode Epona across the lengthy fields. He followed the river that flowed down from the uncharted mountains and fed into a small lake near the entrance to the Lost Woods and Link’s childhood home, Kokiri Village. Due to the amount of rain that had been recently dumped upon the area from the heavens, the lake and river bed were currently overflowing into the overgrown grass.

While this would usually be a bad thing for most places, the nearby village of Kakariko had instead used the flooding to their advantage and turned the riverbed into a field for crops that grew beneath the water. There had even been talks of building an irrigation system to urge the overflowing lake to the drier parts of the field. Reminded once again why he fought so hard for the people of Hyrule, Link gently nudged Epona’s side with his boot, urging her to go faster toward the entrance to the forest he was so familiar with.

“Whoa, whoa, hold on girl…” Link pulled hard on Epona’s reins, which she objected to with an annoyed snorting sound while bucking up on her hind legs. Being accustomed to such behavior from an unruly horse, Link balanced himself so he wouldn’t fall off of her back then watched Epona prance uncomfortably around as if to recover from stopping so short and complain about doing so in the process. “Sorry, Epona”.

Climbing off of Epona’s back, Link patted her mane comfortingly and stared at the entrance to the woods in awe. His view of the usually quiet forest was entirely obstructed in fog and shadow. Fog wasn’t considerably abnormal for The Lost Woods, but this sort of fog was something new and incredibly unearthly as far as Link could tell. Taking a step forward, Link tried to find a logical explanation for the phenomenon but nothing came to mind. Nothing except for the use of magic; this only furthered his suspicions. Had the man cloaked in black who had summoned the Redeads and attacked the Queen taken refuge in the forest and cloaked himself in fog and shadow to avoid detection? As far as Link was concerned, there was only way to find out.

Before he could finish his thought, he heard humming from somewhere within the fog, a sing song voice of sorts, almost like it was luring him to come and play. Trudging ever forward, Link only stopped when he felt something tug on the back of his shirt. Epona had nipped the back of his tunic and tugged defiantly. Turning to face his horse, he placed both hands on either side of her worried face and stroked her cheek lovingly.

“It’s okay girl, I’ll be fine. I don’t fall for those tricks remember? Don’t you worry about me.” Link gave the horse a reassuring smile but was met with a nervous whinny and a shake of Epona’s head. “Really, I have to do this. You know that there are no other options! Come on, I’ve been through much worse, don’t you remember? It’s just fog anyway…” As if to spite him, suddenly there was childish laughter coming from within the fog that vanished as quickly as it came. Getting the chills down his spine, Link stared into the fog prepared for something horribly creepy to walk out of it. It shifted despite the lack of a breeze in the air, but revealed nothing ominous. It looked like the world’s biggest cauldron had boiled over inside the forest and now the steam of some sinister spell was spilling upon the world.

“And some creepy ghost laughter but honestly…” Link chuckled, turning back to his friend and confidant, and stroking her mane. “Please stay here and wait for me. I’ll be back before you know it and if I need you… you know my whistle.” Epona shook her head again but took a step back and gave Link a look that clearly told him that she trusted him and wouldn’t try to pull him back again or to follow him.

Turning away from his horse, Link started toward the fog, stretching the fingers of his left and his right hand just in case he had to act quickly. It’d been awhile since he’d properly tested his reflexes. He wondered if the Kokiri were alright in whatever fog had taken over the forest. The Kokiri were eternally children, growing to the age of nine or ten in appearance then never aging another day. Each had their own special fairy, their own companion. While they looked childish, many of them were far more mature than most of the adults Link had run into throughout Hyrule.

Link had grown up with the Kokiri since he’d been abandoned in the forest as an infant. He knew very little about his real family, but had always considered the forest children to be his brothers and sisters. Perhaps he’d consider stopping in the village on his way out to make sure they were alright, if he could find the village at all in the dense fog.

As Link continued further into the woods the fog slowly surrounded him. Link stepped carefully one foot at a time, considering changing the boots he had on in case the ground suddenly escaped him if he lost track of his footing. On his adventures to save Hyrule he’d obtained several different types of magical boots to assist him, ones that were so heavy he sank like a stone and others that removed traction beneath his every step. But on the other hand, Link had traveled this forest more than any other area of Hyrule. He knew it like the back of his hand, despite its deceiving name. He decided against changing boots and continued.

The forest, like a lot of Hyrule, was magical in its own right. While other areas of Hyrule had obvious reasons and sources for their magic, the Lost Woods had always been a mystery to everyone who had entered it. Many adventurers had sought out what gave the forest its power, but nearly all of them had disappeared never to return, at least not in the form they’d entered the forest in.

Link continued slowly, keeping alert and looking left to right with each step and soon behind him once he’d realized that the field had disappeared from view. A small wooden sign had been knocked to the ground and Link only noticed it when he’d accidentally kicked it. Leaning down, he picked up the wooden sign and righted it, stabbing the end of it into the ground and pushing the dirt around the stake to give it extra support so it would stay up properly.

He’d recognized the sign as one of the many that had been posted around Hyrule to let those unfamiliar with the land know where they were headed. This one in particular had once been labeled The Lost Woods but someone had scribbled the letters off of the sign completely so all that was left was a deep gouge. Furrowing his brow, Link wondered who would do such a thing and why. The Lost Woods were legendary. If there were somewhere outside of the old castle that had been notorious across the world outside of Hyrule, it was the woods that people generally avoided due to such tales.

Putting this information into the back of his mind in case it came up later, Link trudged past the sign and through the canopy of trees that signified the entrance to the Lost Woods. Beyond him the road would fork. To the left would be the woods and to the right would be Kokiri Village.

A twig snapped somewhere to his left and instinctively Link pulled his sword out of its sheath and pulled his shield up to protect himself. Staring through the fog for signs of movement other than the ethereal flow of the mist surrounding him, Link waited with baited breath for the source of the sound.

When no sound followed and no source showed itself, Link put away his sword and lowered his shield. Anywhere else in Hyrule, Link would have guessed it had been a small animal simply scavenging for food through the brush. The Lost Woods was special in another way. Normal benign animals had long since abandoned the woods. It had been hundreds of years since they’d disappeared. Nearly all the creatures within the forest were twisted with darkness and those who were within the woods and hadn’t yet been twisted would suffer a fate most foul.

For that was the power of the Lost Woods. It was in the name itself, Link thought. The very title of the woods was a warning to those passing by of what would become of them. The trees seemed to move and shift around on their own accord even when they weren’t shrouded in mystical fog. There was only one path that would lead directly through the woods and if one missed a single step they might never find their way back to the entrance, forced to wander the woods for all eternity.

Luckily Link had guidance the first time he’d gone through the forest. The Kokiri had always known their way through and had never feared the forest the way that the others had but still didn’t make it a habit of traveling through it. Could the Kokiri have gotten lost in the fog and wandered into the forest instead of their home? Perhaps that was the noise he’d heard.

“Hello?” Taking a chance, Link called out in case there was someone running around in terror in the woods, searching for help. Once someone became lost within the woods was when the wicked magic of the woods took hold of them. Panic and paranoia was rumored to grip anyone lost within the woods, forcing them to run and try to escape which would only succeed in getting them lost deeper within the thickening throng of trees until no light from the sun met them and all hope was lost.

He’d heard that the trees would turn wicked and make evil faces at those who had gotten lost to drive them into madness, but that was merely a rumor. It could also have been a lie told to children to keep them far from the woods. Perhaps those lost in the woods for a few days would go mad from lack of food, water, and companionship then imagine such a phenomenon. Link hoped he would never have to find out the truth. When those who had been lost had give up all hope of escape it was said the forest took them and made them into its own.

The wicked creatures that hid in the shadows of the forest, hoping to lure travelers off their safe path and into its dark boughs, were said to once have been travelers that had gotten lost and were transformed to do the bidding of the forest. Link had always been curious if there was a way to break the curse, but had also feared the idea of doing so.

What if he broke the curse and all those lost travelers were transformed back to their former selves? Surely their Hylian bodies were broken and rotting by now and the last thing Link wanted was for The Lost Woods to become The Dead Woods. When no sound met his ears in response to his cry, Link continued walking forward until he saw the familiar fork in the path in front of him.

Taking a deep breath, Link headed through the fork to the left, into the Woods, recalling this path he’d taken through them toward the hedge maze at the other end in his youth for the first time. The hedge maze had always been home to the worst creatures dwelling within the woods.

“One thing at a time Link.” He reminded himself. Something unsavory had gone on within the woods. It had always been a nasty place to walk through but this was a new level of evil, even for something already so dark and wicked. Perhaps someone was manipulating the power of the woods to their whim? Perhaps to take refuge in after they’d attacked the Queen of Hyrule? It was as good a theory as any other, Link thought.

Continuing ever forward, Link hummed to himself to break the unsettling silence. What had happened to the voices of the children who dwelled within the forest? Perhaps it had been another trick of the woods to lure strangers in with laughter and appealing sounds. Link thought that screams would’ve driven him in far faster and scared him way less than the creepy unearthly laughter of children that didn’t exist.

Getting the shivers from the very idea of it, Link continued to hum the song that his childhood friend, Saria, one of the Kokiri children, had taught him so many years prior. Something creaked suddenly beneath Link’s boots and he stopped and furrowed his brow in confusion.

He had stepped onto a bridge. Looking around, walking in a circle, Link wondered where he’d taken a wrong turn. There was no bridge leading into the woods. There had always been one going from the woods and into Kokiri Village, but never from the field to the woods. Had he accidentally taken the path to the right without meaning to? Perhaps he’d become confused by the fog.

Even then, Link knew he hadn’t missed his turn. There were forces at work far greater than the Lost Woods at this moment. Link had always suspected benevolent forces were ultimately at work with the woods, protecting something inside of it and keeping strangers from stumbling upon it and using it for their ill will. But whatever this force was that had taken him somewhere he didn’t recognize was something entirely different and far less benevolent.

Link thought he must have been on the right track. Someone didn’t want him to get through the woods. Whoever had attacked Zelda could be behind the darkness and the fog corrupting the woods and they most certainly would want him to think he’d gotten lost. Taking a determined step forward, Link knew if he followed the path he’d grown familiar with he would make his way through the woods as he always did so he pressed onward. Over the years, he’d learned to never doubt his instincts.

When he reached the middle of the bridge, the creaking intensified before there was a very sudden snap. The ropes holding the bridge up behind him had split and broken, too frail to be walked upon by someone carrying as much bulk as Link did daily with his sword, shield, quiver, bow and various other weaponry.

Scrambling in an attempt to grab onto the wooden planks of the bridge beneath his feet to catch himself, it was too late and Link found he wasn’t fast enough. He fell to the ground below, which was surprisingly not as far as he had expected it to be, but still far enough that when his head smacked against one of the many rocks in the stream flowing beneath the bridge met the back of his head, the world instantly turned black around him.

The unconsciousness didn’t linger very long and when he awoke, Link shot up, his hat having fallen off of his head and into the water beneath him. Feeling his head aching and throbbing, he instantly brought his hand to the bump that was forming on the back of his head just above his neck. Feeling moisture, Link was at first afraid that he’d started bleeding but when he brought his hand into view he saw there was nothing but water from the stream against the back of his head. Sighing with relief, Link groped for his hat which took him a few moments to find in the ever intensifying fog.

He had thought that it couldn’t get any thicker but nature had proven him wrong seeing as Link could only see about a foot in front of his nose, if that. Finding his hat finally, he wondered how on earth such fog was being created. There was a crack of thunder overhead so loud and close that the world shook beneath him. Looking around Link wondered if now he’d have to watch out for lightning which seemed nearly impossible within the fog. He hadn’t seen the bolt that had preceded the thunder that seemed so close.

Deciding his best bet was to get away from the water and get back onto his path Link found the fallen bridge and tugged on it to test its strength. The ropes tied to the opposite side of the bridge seemed sturdy enough. Grabbing the planks and deciding that he would use them like the rungs of a ladder, he slowly climbed his way up, despite the colossal headache that had started to form from the blow he’d taken.

Reminding himself that he had done much more difficult tasks with much worse wounds, Link cocked a confident smile. It was kind of nice to get back to having adventures and risking his life. Did that make him a terrible person? He enjoyed the thrill of the danger and potential death he faced during his adventures. Maybe he hadn’t been built for monotony.

Looking up through the fog to try and find the ledge he was meaning to climb upon originally, Link yelped and nearly let go of the bridge. Reaffirming his grip when his hands started to slip, Link returned his gaze to what had startled him in the first place.

The woman he’d captured for attacking the Queen was standing at the top of the ledge, glancing down at him, her hands on her hips, neither one of them offering him a hand up onto the ledge.

“Holy…” Link took a deep breath before continuing up the rest of the ladder, once he realized that the woman wasn’t making any effort to help him out. His head was throbbing and swimming. “You scared the hell out of me!”

“Well that’s what you get for ignoring me.” She folded her arms over her chest and looked at him in a mixture of annoyance and curiosity. What was he doing in the woods? Why was he climbing the ladder? Had he been hurt in his fall? She’d seen the form of someone below in the stream, silhouetted against the fog when lightning had struck nearly a foot away from her but she’d had no idea who it was until he’d suddenly emerged on the ledge through the fog, ultimately scaring the crap out of her.

“Ignoring you? It was very nice of you to help me out and everything.” Link rolled his eyes and readjusted his moistened hat, rubbing at the sore spot on the back of his head again with a pout.

“Help you out? What do you think me yelling to ask if you were alright down there was then if not helping, huh?”

“Yelling to help me? You didn’t yell for me. It’s not that far down you know. I would’ve heard something like that! Don’t lie to try and look better.”

“Well, clearly you didn’t hear me because I saw someone down there and yelled to see if they needed help. Though if I’d known it was you I probably would’ve left you there.” Pursing her lips in annoyance, she stood her ground. Link let his mouth hang open in surprise. He had never encountered anyone who talked to him quite like that before. People had always been grateful to see him or asked him for help where this woman had made it clear that she didn’t like a single thing about him.

“What are you doing in the woods anyway?” Link asked, deciding that it was best to leave that comment untouched. Would she really have left him there if he’d needed help? Something told him she was full of it. “Don’t you know this place is off limits to strangers? As if the ominous fog wasn’t enough to ward people off…”

“I’m exploring.” She shrugged her shoulders. Link once again stared at her like she had six heads.

“You’re exploring?”

“That’s what I said, are you hard of hearing?”

“Meandering in the Lost Woods on its worst day is exploring to you?”

“You’re in here aren’t you? Exploring? On The Lost Wood’s worst day, as a matter of fact.” The girl shook her head condescendingly. “What, the great hero of time is the only one who can hold their own in The Lost Woods?”

“You are not exploring, you’re full of it.” Link accused, pointing an irritated finger at her, the other hand on the back of his head to once again rub at his wound.

“Yeah, because you’re such an excellent judge of character, obviously.” The girl finally turned away from Link and started away from the bridge and further into the forest, partially knowing he was going to follow her.

“Actually I am an excellent judge of character. I sort of have to be given the circumstances.” Link dusted himself off of the muck and grime that had gotten on him when he’d fallen into the stream below the bridge and followed after her. “And I know that you wouldn’t stop on your way to Gerudo Valley without good reason.”

“Is that so?”

“You’re too selfish.”

“Yeah, I’m sure that’s what it is.” The girl scoffed and turned around to face him. “Do you always make wild accusations toward the people who try to help you out?”

“Help me out? You stood there while I climbed up that bridge and nearly made me fall because you scared me!”

“I didn’t see you through the fog until you were halfway on the ledge already! You think you’re the only one startled by something jumping out of the mist?”

“You said you saw me in the stream below!”

“I saw a figure silhouetted when lightning struck, that’s all. When you didn’t respond I wasn’t sure if it was the forest playing a trick on me or not and then suddenly you’re on the bridge at my feet.” Sighing heavily the girl continued marching through the woods, deciding it wasn’t worth her energy to argue with him any further.

“Okay, okay!” Link hadn’t intended to chase the woman away. The woods seemed less creepy now that he wasn’t alone. Grabbing her wrist and stopping her from continuing forward, Link was surprised when she twisted his arm and pulled him around in a circle, tugging his arm behind his back. “Hey! Ouch!”

“You Hylians all have a personal space issue.” The girl let go of him and took a deep breath.

“Well, I think you have some kind of an overreaction problem on top of that.” Link added. “But, but wait…” When he saw the girl’s temper flaring up again he held his hands in front of him defensively once he’d turned to face her again. “I think that we may have gotten rotten first impressions of each other.”

“You think, genius?”

“Yeah, I do. I tackled you and accused you of a crime you didn’t commit and I’m sorry! Though to be fair you kicked the crap out of me in the forest.”

“Do all of your apologies come followed with a reason as to why you’re not actually sorry?”

“No, that’s not what I meant.” Link groaned in annoyance. Despite how she was grating on his nerves, Link had to admit that it was kind of entertaining to talk to someone who didn’t constantly agree with him or act reasonably and level headed. He’d gotten so used to Impa and Zelda treating him like something sweet and courageous he’d forgotten that there were other sorts of confrontations that were just as exhilarating.

“Well, then what did you mean?”

“I simply meant that we both jumped to conclusions upon meeting and did things nastier than we should’ve.”

“You should’ve just said that instead of what you actually said.” The girl finally released the anger she’d built up and heaved a sigh in an attempt to relax. “Are you trying to say that we should start over?”

“Yeah, that’s exactly what I was getting to.” Link smiled proudly. The air was already less tense and stressful between them now that she’d stopped taking the defensive to everything he said.

“I’m starting to think you’re not very good with words, Mr. Hero.” The girl said after a moment of thought. Link couldn’t help but laugh even if he was being insulted.

“Are you always this mean?”

“I prefer the term honest.”

“You can be honest without being mean.”

“Not that I’ve found.”

“I’m Link.” He held his hand out for the woman to shake and she took it reluctantly after a second.

“I’m Izzy.” The girl shook his hand and squeezed it firmly before pulling her hand back.

“Izzy? That’s nice. Is it short for Isabel or Isabella?”

“It’s Izzy, that’s all you need to know.”

“You know, you don’t have to get defensive every time I say something.” Link chuckled, amused by this woman.

“I’m not defensive… Okay I am a little defensive but, that’s just how I am.” Izzy shrugged her shoulders again and then nodded toward the woods behind her. “What are you doing in here anyway?”

“Searching for the man who attacked the Queen.” Link answered simply. He hadn’t intended on telling her anything but if he expected her to be honest with him he figured he should grant her the same courtesy.

“Yeah, any luck with that? I’m not sure how good you’d be at tracking someone down anyway since you thought I did it.”

“I thought we had started over.”

“It doesn’t mean I’m going to be nice to you.” Izzy shifted her feet and glanced behind him.

“Oh I see how it is.”

“Do you? Look, hero, maybe this wasn’t a good idea.”

“Come on, we’re both lost. If we stick together maybe we won’t get turned into Stalfos.” Link urged, his voice on edge once again. Despite it all, he smiled. He had never met anyone with such distaste for him who wasn’t out to kill him before. It was a nice change of pace. Link wondered if that meant he was a little screwed up in the head. He guessed he had to be to have gone through what he’d been through and still be in good spirits.

“Fine. Let’s travel together but I reserve the right to hit you if you get annoying.”

“Only if you grant me the same privilege.”

“Fair enough. Just to warn you though, I’ve got a pretty mean punch.” Izzy sighed. “So where to, hero?”

“This way.” Link started through the path in his memory, despite how different things looked.

“I thought you said you were lost?” Izzy immediately doubted his judgment.

“You asked me where to go!”

“I just want to know what makes you so sure. Now whose defensive hero?”

“My name is Link.” He corrected.

“Just tell me why we’re going this way and I’ll go okay?”

“Fine, Izzy. I’m following the path through the woods. It looks different than it used to but I think that whatever is causing this fog is manipulating the woods. The path should, in theory, still be the same. Why, what was your plan? Wander until the woods consumed you?”

“Yeah that sounds about right.” Izzy actually smiled.

“You never did say why you were in here.” The two finally started on their way on the path that Link had grown so familiar with, walking carefully to make sure there were no more incidents like the one on the bridge.

“Didn’t I?”

“You skirted around answering like your life depended on it.”

“You are a master of exaggeration.” Izzy narrowed her eyes and furrowed her brow in an attempt to see through the fog. Link waited to answer until the echoing clap of thunder above them had silenced. Once again, he hadn’t seen the lightning that had caused the thunder, but it had to have been close given how the ground shook beneath them.

“So how did you end up in the woods?”

“I heard something.” Izzy shrugged.

“Yeah, like what?”

“A child.” Izzy continued on and before Link could take the opportunity to make fun of her for being soft or something, since she saw the corners of his mouth upturn in amusement she continued on. “I had stopped to look anyway since… Well you don’t see fog like this every day.”

“That’s for sure.”

“I contemplated coming in anyway so I could explore.” Izzy kept walking. It wasn’t her first time in The Lost Woods, having been guided by maps prior to this time. If the fog hadn’t been in her way, she would’ve been able to find her way through. “I’ve always liked this place but the fog posed an excellent new adventure. Then I heard kids actually calling to me. I knew something had to have been amiss in here so I threw caution to the wind and decided… what the hell right?”

Link had stopped walking a moment prior, resting his hand on his belt, thinking about what she’d said.

“You consider this exploring?”

“Yeah, don’t you? Are you confused to what that word means? This is like… the third time you’ve asked me that.” Izzy stopped and turned to face him.

“Don’t you know what they say about these woods? How dangerous it is in here?”

“Of course I do, who doesn’t? What, you think just because I’m a woman that I can’t handle a little danger and mystery?”

“No, that’s not it at all. You are so defensive.” Link laughed in disbelief then walked to catch up with Izzy. “You’d risk your life just to explore some fog?” A smile crept over Izzy’s face finally.

“Oh come on, you wouldn’t?” She laughed, looking like the answer was simple. “Do you always take the easy road, hero?”

“Link.”

“Does it matter?”

“Yes, it does.”

“Anyway, come on… I see it in you.” Izzy pointed an accusing finger at the hero and stepped closer. “You live for the thrill of danger. You’re the type to jump without looking, to act first and ask questions later. Even if you weren’t looking for this man who attacked your precious Queen you’d be in here exploring once you saw the fog… just for the hell of it.” Link looked surprised and straightened his back to lean away from the accusing finger that got closer to him. “Don’t deny it hero, you love the excitement of adventure.”

When Link didn’t respond, Izzy smiled triumphantly and turned away from him. “The air is cooler down here, maybe this way?”

Link stood fixed in place for a moment, thinking about what the woman had said. Maybe that was true. He’d always been the kind of person to run toward trouble instead of away from it. Why hadn’t he noticed that about himself? Maybe it was because people kept telling him how selfless and wonderful he was that he hadn’t realized he’d had selfish intentions the entire time. Or maybe this woman who wouldn’t even use his name was tricking him into thinking he was selfish.

But why would she do that? What could she possibly gain?

“Hello?” Izzy waved her hand in front of face, having walked back toward him. “Hyrule to the Hero of Time, are you still there or are you already turning into a Deku Scrub or something?”

“What? Oh no, I was just trying to think.” Link shook his head, pushing the thought away for a moment. “Yeah, this way. It’s cooler? I didn’t notice until you pointed it out.”

“Maybe that’s because you’re wearing three hundred layers of clothing and chain mail.”

“Trust me, it’s come in handy when you live like I do.” Link chuckled and started down the path. “And I would be a Stalfos, for the record.”

“What?” Izzy didn’t turn to face him but instead continued walking.

“You told me I’d be turning into a Deku Scrub. I’d turn into a Stalfos Knight. We both know that.”

“You spit crap out of your mouth as often as a Deku Scrub, are you so sure?”

“Ha ha, you’re so funny.” Link rolled his eyes. Izzy had been about to respond when they both heard a shriek far off to the left. Staring in the direction of the scream, they listened for a second cry. When none came, they exchanged glances. Both had their hands on the hilts of their swords, prepared to do away with any evil doers that emerged from the fog.

“…maybe it was the forest playing a trick on us.” Izzy theorized after a moment.

“Yeah, that has to be it…” Link had his doubts. The scream hadn’t sounded like it was in need of any help. Instead, it had sounded like an angry creature expressing its rage at them for having made it this far into the forest. “I have a bad feeling. Let’s keep going.”

“See, I told you that you leapt before you looked.” Izzy started walking with Link but then stopped when a second scream echoed through the forest around them.

“What the hell…” Link whispered under his breath.

“That’s it. I’m done playing games with this forest.” Izzy pulled her sword from its sheath and started toward the direction of the scream.

“That’s what it wants! To draw you off the path! I thought you knew the stories about The Lost Woods, Izzy!” Link reached to snatch Izzy’s wrist as he had done earlier but she’d managed to dodge him, anticipating that he would try to stop her.

“It’s trying to scare us into staying away from it not lure us closer to it, hero. I’m not scared so I’m going to make it shut up.”

“Really? I kinda am.” Link hurried after the woman, not pulling out his sword. He had no idea what type of villain they were in store for when they stepped off the path.

“That’s the fun of it.”

“I guess.” Link shrugged after he thought about it, following Izzy closely through the forest. The fog started to fade and instead turned into a thick haze of darkness. “I think you were right… Something’s hiding in here.”

“You should learn to listen to me more often.”

“I’ve known you for an hour.” Link laughed, feeling the need to talk in hushed tones as if someone was listening in on every word they said.

“And you have ignored everything I’ve said since we met.”

They walked slowly through the trees until they reached a clearing that Link recognized. It stood below them while they stood on the edge of a path high above it. The path looped around through rocks and trees down the side of the hill and into the clearing that was filled with scattered trees and overgrown grass.

“The illusion is broken here, I know where we are.” Link whispered underneath his breath.

“Come on, something’s down there waiting.” Izzy started down the path. Link watched her go for a moment, trying to see the forest clearly through the fog and shadow that lingered in the air. After a second of hesitation he pulled out his bow, preparing himself to back the woman with her sword already out up if he needed to. Link stopped short, nearly stumbling as Izzy ran into him.

“What are you doing?”

“Don’t think! Just jump!” Izzy’s face was stricken with panic so Link didn’t hesitate when she grabbed his arm and threw him to the ground, throwing herself next to him after a moment and covering her head defensively. About to ask what the panic had been about, Link felt the ground shake and something loud explode behind them. Covering his ears a second too late he could hear ringing and then felt small stones, dirt, and gravel falling on his back from the explosion followed by sticks and leaves raining down around them.

After Izzy thought it was safe she turned onto her back and hopped to her feet and explained herself, her sword once again in her right hand.

“The perimeter was lined with explosives, I had already tripped them when I realized they were there!” Izzy was out of breath, her face pale but determined.

“What?” Link shuffled to his feet, still holding his bow with a white knuckled grip. “You tripped it? Like with a wire?”

“Or magic.” Izzy whispered in return. The dust from the explosion cleared, the fog having gone with it, revealing a mass of shadow, numerous glowing red lights within it, almost like eyes.

When they took a step closer to inspect the clearing, the ground shook, the trees creaking and bending threateningly. An unearthly voice seemingly coming from the ground spoke in a language neither one of them recognized.

“What the hell did it just say?” Izzy sneered, not backing down but certainly shaken by the power of the voice.

“I don’t know, but I get the strong feeling that it was telling us to go away.” Link narrowed his eyes. Before either could continue talking the glowing red eyes disappeared into the shadowy mass and it shrunk down low to the ground. In an instant it stretched into the air, something round flying out the top of it. Link and Izzy looked into the air to see what had flown out of the shadow creature. Widening his eyes in realization Link shoved Izzy away from him and dove to the ground again.

A black bomb hit the ground where they’d been sitting and several others around the perimeter as it must have done when Izzy had approached it prior to this. They waited for the shower of dirt to finish raining down on them before they both got to their feet.

“Alright, I’ve had enough.” Link got on his feet and in a flash had pulled an arrow from his quiver which he aimed in his bow toward the creature. Pulling the string taut he aimed and the let the arrow fly, hitting its mark dead on. Smirking confidently, Link glanced over at Izzy as if to gloat. Izzy rolled her eyes and pointed to the beast.

“Nice shot, hero, but something tells me that wasn’t enough.” Izzy watched the shadowy mass collapse onto the ground and groan hauntingly.

“Looks pretty dead to me, thank you very much.” Link drew a second arrow as quickly as he’d drawn the first and held his bow aimed at the beast. The shadowy created laid on the ground with the arrow sticking out of what seemed like it could be its face for a long moment before suddenly the arrow sunk into the shadow, disappearing as though it had never been there in the first place.

“Really? It looks like you just fed it a tasty snack.” Izzy bounced on the tips of her toes, nervous and ready to flee if things started exploding again.

“Trust me, I hit it dead on. I never miss my mark.”

“Oh come on, you can’t be that cocky.” Izzy rolled her eyes. Before Link could argue with Izzy the shadowy mass rose from the ground and stretched taller than it had before, expanding across nearly the entire length of the clearing. Link and Izzy stared in awe at what looked like a large gaping dark mouth, now howling in front of them. Link let a second arrow fly into the mouth of the creature but all it did was howl louder than it had before in aggravation.

In an instant, dozens of arrows came flying from within the mouth of the creature toward Link and Izzy. Having had the feeling that something nasty was going to happen, Izzy took to a run, ducking and jumping quickly to avoid the arrows that came flying toward her. She found refuge behind a large boulder near the entrance to the clearing. Link on the other hand had stared stunned at the beast and was too slow to lift his shield. An arrow struck him in the shoulder and though the sickening thud of the arrow meeting his flesh had disgusted him, he reaffirmed his grip on his shield and hid behind it, listening to the clink of the metallic arrowheads bouncing off of his gold plated mirror shield.

The barrage of arrows seemingly ended so Link dared to peek out from behind his shield, his shoulder throbbing painfully but nowhere near bad enough to stop him from trying to take the monster down. He’d use the adrenaline to his advantage if he could. Plus, now that his shoulder was throbbing, the bump on the back of his head didn’t seem so significant.

“Izzy! Are you alright?” The woman didn’t carry a shield, Link recalled and he was partially worried that she didn’t make it out. “Izzy?”

“I’m fine!” She called from the ledge above him, peeking her head down at him. “Ouch.” Scrunching up her face she acknowledged the arrow in his shoulder.

“I’m alright, thanks for asking.” Link groaned and considered pulling the arrow from his shoulder but knew that it would only gush and weaken him if he did. The arrow would have to wait until this creature had fallen.

“I’ve got this.” Izzy jumped from the ledge above him and moved to the edge of the clearing, leaping carefully onto one of the few trees inside the clearing. Balancing on the branches, she drew her sword from its sheath with her right hand.

“Don’t do anything stupid.” Link hissed, getting to his feet, keeping his shield on his arm. Deciding that shooting arrows at the beast would only result in a second barrage of them, he contemplated what else he could do. Perhaps a different sort of arrow would help? He hadn’t used the magical arrows he’d found on his adventure to free Hyrule from the clutches of Ganondorf since the night he’d fought the evil king.

Choosing to ignore Link, Izzy continued over the branches, hopping down them one by one until she reached the ground in the clearing, behind the shadow beast that had returned to its original size. It roared at them once again in a language neither one of the warriors understood. Before it got the chance to blow more of those bombs at them, Izzy swung her sword at the beast, thrusting the blade deep into the shadow. Making a face of disgust when the plunge echoed the sound of something meaty and fleshy instead of shadow as she had expected, she pulled her sword free of the darkness before slashing skillfully at the beast several more times.

Just as it had done when Link had shot the beast with arrows, it fell onto the ground, looking defeated. Link watched from the ledge above and decided to take a risk. Aiming his bow again, his shoulder pulling and tugging painfully from the arrow still lodged into it, he drew an arrow imbued with the power of light from his quiver and let it fly into the beast on the ground.

Izzy shielded her eyes when the arrow struck its target and filled the area in front of her with light. Blinking a few times to get the phantom spots of light from her vision she shot Link an angry look.

“Thanks for the warning!”

“Izzy, look out!” Link grimaced when the beast rose from the ground and took the shape of a warrior, shadowy looking blades in either hand. Izzy looked back to the creature just in time and managed to hold up her sword to block the blow of the phantom sword as it came down against her.

“What is this thing?” Shouting in frustration, Izzy did her best to block each blow and then decided it was time to try and get away from the beast. If it was doing what she thought it was doing, then in a few seconds it was going to release some of those blinding arrows Link had shot at it.

Guiding the beast toward the tree during their sword fight, she looped around the tree trunk and struck a blow to the back of the beast before grabbing onto the branch above her and quickly swinging herself on top of it. With every intention of climbing back up the tree to get to the same ledge that Link stood on behind his shield, she jumped to the second branch but yelped in surprise when the shadowy warrior met her on top of the branch and swung the sword toward her.

Izzy reacted quickly and was able to duck and grab onto the bottom of the branch, swinging herself back onto the branch closest to the ground. She was able to hold her sword up just in time to be able to block the oncoming attack but was surprised when the hilt of the shadowy sword smashed into her forehead.

Dazed, she fell off of the bottom branch and onto her back on the ground. Instinctively she rubbed her head to make sure it wasn’t bleeding only to find that it was. Not having the time to think about that, she shuffled to her feet and held up her sword just in time.

“Now what?” Izzy yelled, dazed and trying to blink around the dizziness the blow to her head had caused. “I can’t keep this up!”

“I have no idea! I thought the light arrow would work!” Link shouted from above. Deciding he couldn’t watch the scene any longer despite his injury he hurried down the path and into the clearing, sword drawn but his grip was already weakened thanks to the arrow in his shoulder.

“Physical attacks will do you no good.” An unfamiliar voice from the opposite end of the clearing addressed them. “This beast will take what physical damage it’s received and not rest until it’s returned it tenfold.”

“Who the hell is that now?” Izzy cursed, out of breath. The effort of blocking and dodging the attacks from the shadowy warrior was starting to take its toll. She knew she could handle the swordfight for a period of time, but eventually she’d start tripping up her steps and taking damage.

“It won’t stop until it has landed a blow and then as I’m sure you guessed, the arrows you fired into it will return to you.”

“Where are you?” Link yelled, turning in place in an attempt to see who was talking to them and try to figure out if they were friend or foe. Stepping from the shadows at the opposite end of the clearing, the figure of a man appeared, silhouetted and still bathed in the shadows that seemed to form unnaturally around him.

“Get her out of the way.” The voice spoke a second time before whispering in a language Link couldn’t understand.

“Yeah, you tell that to the shadow thing!” Izzy grimaced, having put away her sword and taken to dodging the attacks instead of making poor attempts in returning them since the creature had made it clear she would get no such chance.

“Come here!” Link grabbed the arm of his companion and tugged her to the side very suddenly. Before the shadow warrior could turn on them, the ground started to shake around it and collapse, bringing the creature to its knees and howling again as it had done when it’d been attacked the first two times.

“Great now it’s just going to bury us alive.” Izzy hissed, pushing Link away and contemplated going after the creature again while it was wounded.

“Not if I don’t give it the chance.” Link pulled a small diamond shaped pendant from his pocket, a red ethereal glow coming from the center. Prepared to use the magic of the goddesses on the creature, Link rushed forward.

“Don’t.” The mystery voice instructed them again and before Link could take another step, orbs of light from the heavens appeared around the shadow creature, spinning in circles until they’d joined into one large mass. What looked like lightning came from the orb and struck the creature on the ground.

Seemingly appearing from the shadow on the ground cast by the tree, a man appeared, covered nearly from head to toe in a black cloak. Holding a gloved hand out toward the shadow creature, he grabbed hard onto one of the glowing red eyes of the creature. His hand shook and trembled and the howling from the creature grew louder and louder.

The entire clearing seemed to shake with whatever power struggle was going on. Watching in awe, Izzy stared mouth agape as the strange battle taking place in front of her against this shadowy beast.

“Get down.” Link grabbed onto Izzy’s shoulder and pulled her back down to the ground. He wasn’t sure what powers were at work but he didn’t want either of them to suffer through the backlash if they didn’t have to.

Very suddenly the clearing grew silent and the beast disappeared from sight completely, seemingly sucked up into the hand of the man who had been battling it. Both Link and Izzy watched in surprise, unsure of how to react.

From where the shadow had been a red stone fell onto the ground, hissing and sizzling as though it’d be too hot to touch. In an instant the fog that had been plaguing the woods started to dissipate and clear and the misguiding illusions disappeared entirely, leaving only the man covered from head to toe in a dark cloak and the red glowing stone in the center of the clearing.