~Chapter Ten- Contact~
It has been a week since Zelda had met Warro that night. Despite his attire and origins, he is the total opposite of Link. Warro was a pervert, Link was noble, Warro is better at running, while Link is better at fighting; Warro was weak, where Link was strong. She had been waiting for Impa for the whole week, in Kakariko Village. She was disguised as a young girl, who was traveling. Of course, Link, being the mule that he was, never even touched the clothes provided for him, or even made an attempt to disguise himself. She sat on the steps in front of the gate to the Death Mountain Trail, sighing as she watching her hero garbed in green running from one hiding spot to the next to hide from the women that wanted to see him. His fame preceded him, and it was partially her fault. He was now hiding behind the wooden gate of the village.
“Impa, what’s taking you so long?” Zelda looked up and let out another sigh. Earlier today, she sensed a magic portal open nearby. Whatever was exiting that portal was looking for her, because she sensed the presence in that portal in the village right now. It’s close, she thought, hastily rising to her feet and began to move to a different spot; she could not risk being found out. She made her way down the steps and then down the next set of steps and hurried to—
“Oof! Sorry, I did not see you—“ She looked not much older than Zelda was. She was garbed in red with a matching bandana. She held her halberd at her side as if she were a wizard of some sort. Zelda’s eyes widened as she saw the face of who she had bumped into.
“It’s you!”
Their blades met for a third time as the boy in a yellow tunic attempted to force his way by Link again. His eyes burned like a fire and were the solid red of blood. His style was very unrefined, swinging his sword too wildly and leaving himself open for too long. He shoved the boy, making him lose his balance and fall on his back. He had seen this boy before; he was in the prisoner cell, sleeping, when he had last seen him. Zelda told him of the atrocities this boy had done to her. He simply could not let her in the vicinity of this sex-fiend. The boy rose to his feet and this time tried a different tactic. He charged toward him and then jumped to the side.
“Tch…” Link muttered as he fell for the feint, cutting, where the boy would have been swinging his sword. Instead, the boy jumped to the side and ran over to the rocky wall behind them, which was perpendicular to the gate. He hopped between them, using his right leg for the gate and the left for the wall. This boy moved faster than any Hylian he had seen. As he neared the top of the gate he pushed his feet from the wall and flipped behind Link, attempting an aerial attack as he came down. Link blocked the aerial, but as he came down behind him, they came at a stalemate. Link had brought his blade out and it was up to the boy’s neck, and this boy’s blade was next to his own.
“Why aren’t you letting me in?” The boy panted, eying Link’s sword. “I’m just trying to find—“
Link’s mouth opened, but before he could say a word,
“Link!”
“Warro!”
Zelda stood next to the girl, Kuro, she had bumped into, in the village. The sight of the boy, Warro, with a sword to his throat was suiting, but… what was this? A sword at Link’s throat? And it was Warro’s sword, of all the owners! Her hands clenched into fists as she bit her lip. She was reluctant to tell Link this, after what she had told him, but…
“Let him go, Link,” Zelda said. She sounded defeated as she said it. She repeated it. “Let him go.”
“You too, Warro,” Kuro said. “I am proud that you managed to keep up with him, but why do you have to pretend to suck so much?” Kuro put her hands on her hips and shook her head.
“Don’t encourage him, Kuro!” Zelda exclaimed, turning to Kuro, who stuck a finger in her ear as if she were cleaning it out. Zelda gasped at this lack of respect. “I kept you safe from Father! How dare you? I bet he put you up to this!” She pointed at Warro. “I bet his payment was—“
“He saw me naked, but that really was—“
“He saw you WHAT?” Zelda yelled. “And you let this little pervert get away with it?”
“Not really,” Kuro yawned. “He had to work his a** off for me.”
“Working on something productive, I hope,” Zelda sighed. “You were very reluctant to work with him before.” Warro looked at Kuro and then at Zelda. He did not know what the two were talking about, and then he looked at Link. The two of them really did dress alike. Link was staring blankly at Kuro and Zelda bickering as if he were in a trance.
“Things change when you go through some trials,” Kuro said. “Anyways, Zelda, about my question… do you know where Impa is, right now?”
“Beats me,” Zelda responded. “She has seen us since we left the castle.”
“I see, well, it’s really important I see her again,” Kuro said. “Warro needs to speak with her.”
“About what? Don’t tell me he’s into her, now,” Zelda said, sounding disgusted.
“No, no, it’s not like that!” Kuro laughed, waving her arms. “Warro’s not even like that. He just happens to be always at the wrong place at the wrong time, or is just an idiot.”
Kuro calling him an idiot stung. Warro’s ears drooped a little as she called him one. He placed his sword in the scabbard on his back and put his shield over it. Kuro had given him so much praise during their “training stay,” as Kuro had called it, in the Forest Temple. She said how much smarter he was getting and said that he improved a lot. The new spaulders and greaves she wore on her shoulders and legs were found inside a treasure chest in the temple.
“I see, well, anyways, I suppose you’ll be wanting to have him in the village,” Zelda said. “Come on, Warro. Just be on your best behavior. Tell me what you saw in the forest once we’re at the place Link and I are staying.”
“I have some things to ask you about as well,” Kuro said as the quartet entered the village all at once. As the walked, the sky became dark as clouds rolled in.
“Impa’s house is just up ahead,” Zelda said, looking up. A rain droplet landed on her face and soon a downpour followed. They hurried to shelter and Zelda let them inside the home of Impa. “Come in, come in!” Zelda motioned Kuro in as Link entered; Warro entered last and received a shove from Zelda to make him move faster. As the door shut behind him, Zelda could read the surprise on his face as he looked around. It was akin to the one Link expressed the first time he had been in the castle. Despite the housing being simple, with just the necessities, he seemed enthralled by the complexities that were deemed everyday things for normal people. “Sit.” Zelda pointed to the chairs that the rest of the group was sitting in. They were simple, wooden chairs, but their design intrigued Warro. Back at Lon Lon ranch, they sat on benches and stumps. “Sit, Warro, sit.” Zelda shoved him into a chair and then sat down on the last chair in the room. “Now, tell me what the Great Deku Tree had to say.”
“He sent us to destroy a parasite that was infecting the forest with a strangely colored…” Warro had no words to describe what he had seen and Zelda’s face remained perplexed at the intelligence of this boy. He was just so random with his knowledge.
“It was a fungus,” Kuro continued. “The Deku Tree sent us inside of him and we chased after the parasite, who we later learned was Queen Gohma, thanks to a quartet of Deku Scrubs inside. We then chased it to the Forest Temple, where we cornered it and killed it.”
“That’s good,” Zelda said with a sigh of relief. Link’s face was tense. His hands were clenched into fists on his lap as heard the story of the Deku Tree. Zelda could sympathize with Link. The Great Deku Tree was like a father to him, according to what he had told her when they met. “Do you know what state he is in currently?”
“I believe that from what he said, ‘I am prepared for what is to come,’ the worst case has happened,” Kuro looked down. “I’m sorry, Link. I know you’re from the forest. Warro and I did all we—“ Link suddenly rose from his chair and pressed Warro against the wall. His eyes were fighting back tears and his hand was tightly clutching the collar of Warro’s tunic.
“Link!” Zelda cried standing up and extending an arm to Link. “Please, Link, I know you’re angry, but…”
“She’s right. Warro just found out he died, right now. Just look.” Warro was also fighting back tears. The two boys from the forest were clearly outcasts, but they shared a common friend: The Great Deku Tree. Link let go of Warro and ran out of the house and into the rain.
“Link!” Zelda was about to chase after him, when Kuro placed a hand on her shoulder. She shook her head and motioned for Warro to go out after him. “They need to get along, right?”
“I suppose,” Zelda said. “He better not fight, though.”
“I’m not going to fight!” Warro yelled. “He’s the one who started—“
“Warro!” Kuro yelled. It was that quick response that got the message through his head: this was not the time for excuses. He ran out of the house after Link. Kuro helped Zelda back into her seat as the door shut.
“So, Kuro,” Zelda said crossing her legs. She was acting very informal. “You never were in battle before. How did you deal with the monsters that you encountered?”
“They’re not human, right?” Kuro said. “As long as they look inhuman, I can handle them.” Kuro’s legs shifted slightly. Zelda was used to this; everyone was nervous around her, especially other girls. All the other noble girls were not very talkative around her. To Zelda, they did not think anything through and were only concerned with having fun.
“Yes, but even so, what will you do when your foe is human?” Zelda asked. She had asked the same question to Link many times before and he had never been able to answer. From Kuro’s silence, she could tell it was the same for her. The awkward silence that followed lasted for over half an hour and—
CRASH! CRRRRACK!
“What was that?” Kuro asked getting up at the same time as the princess.
“How should I know?” Zelda answered, rushing to the door. Kuro stepped out in front of her, halberd in hand, and opened the door. It was raining even harder than it was earlier. As they made their way out, they squinted their eyes to look for Warro and Link.
“Stay here, Princess,” Kuro said. She ran down the steps, but Zelda began to follow.
“No, I must see this myself!” she protested.
“Fine,” Kuro sighed. “Just be careful and stay behind me. If things get hairy, get out of there, alright?” Zelda nodded and the two of them carefully made their way down the steps, making sure the other did not slip. As they made it to the main area of the village, they heard another snap, followed by a crack. They looked around then caught sight of Warro and Link lying on the ground, covered in mud, and out cold. The two girls then ran to their respective forest boy and checked to see if they were—
“Kuro, look out!” Kuro turned around and saw a large black… thing moving over the roof of one of the homes, in the village. It moved towards her was a surprising rate and then…
CRACK! The sound of a Deku Nut splitting open upon hitting the ground trumped the rain in loudness. The black thing stopped and before Kuro stood a white haired woman. Her dagger was unsheathed and she held it out, prepared to fight the thing, but then it suddenly turned and headed out of the village.
“Damn it,” the woman muttered. She turned to Zelda. “Are you alright Princess?” She then turned to Kuro and helped her up. It was her! Impa had finally come back! “How about you, Kuro?”
“I’m… I’m fine,” Kuro said, shaking from the cold and fear.
“I suppose you all have many questions,” Impa said, hoisting Link and Warro over her shoulders. “We’ll talk inside. “
“So, that thing was a monster you sealed away a long time ago?” Kuro asked. The three of them sat in the dining room as the boys were asleep in the bedroom.
“Yes,” Impa said. “Lately the worst case scenarios are occurring. Bongo-Bongo is even stronger than before, now. He is invisible and I believe he headed to the Shadow Temple.”
“Impa, Kuro was saying she and Warro were looking for you,” Zelda said. “The Great Deku Tree said to look for you.”
“Yes, so please,” Kuro said. “The Great Deku Tree thinks we could use the power of the Sage of Shadow—“
“I’m not the Sage,” Impa said. “My Great Grandmother and I share the same name. Zelda, you remember your old nanny, right? You might have been too young to remember.” Impa stretched her arms out and began to take off her armor. “Anyways, if you want to meet Impa, you will need my help. Bongo-Bongo headed to the Shadow Temple, so…”
“So, Link and I will have to go to Death Mountain alone?” Zelda asked.
“No, of course not, Princess,” Impa said. “I would have ordered you to stay behind as Link and I scaled the mountain, but since we met some allies, I think it’d be a good idea to work together with them. Besides, you owe Warro a chance to redeem himself… I do too.”
“What do you mean?” Kuro and Zelda asked simultaneously. Impa reached into her pocket and unfolded a piece of paper that she retrieved from it. Kuro’s eyes widened when she recognized it.
“Your father would not believe that Dark Matter attacked you, and so in order to let you hide, I used Warro as a scapegoat. Just don’t tell him I inflated what he did, you understand? It’s unneeded trouble. Tomorrow, Kuro, you and Link will head up to Death Mountain. Zelda, you and Warro are going with me. We have a stop to make before we head to the Shadow Temple.”
