Link and Fox stepped cautiously into their new environment. Uneasy as always, they drew their weapons, ready for anyone or anything that might attack them.
The rough winds made them stop for a moment and realize that they were at a rather high elevation. At one point, Link had to hold onto his cap to keep it from getting blown away. They approached the edge of the ground they were standing on and let out a surprised gasp.
"A building!" Link reached to grasp his cap as the updraft threatened to snatch it away. "We're on top of a building!"
"And a pretty tall one for that matter!" Fox remarked. "I wonder where we are this time."
"Looks like there's a door heading downstairs." the Hylian pointed.
"Think we should check it out?" Fox nodded.
As they approached the door, loud, heavy footsteps thumped upwards toward them. Instinctively, they drew back, poised to fight.
"For something that sounds this big, one would think it was a Dodongo!" Link uttered.
"A what?" Fox blinked.
The source of the thumping finally came into view and glared at them venomously. It was huge, practically a dinosaur, but what was so strange about it was it appearance.
"What………… IS that?" the pilot cocked his head to side, puzzled and disgusted, but still in defensive posture.
"I don't know…" Link stepped back wearily, still wielding the Master Sword. "but it doesn't look too friendly!"
The creature stepped into the light, revealing itself to be much larger than the duo had first imagined. It thrummed its throat in a menacing growl as it glared down the two in front of it.
"Am I seeing things?" Link examined it more closely. "It looks like there's… a flower growing out of its back!"
"A flower?" Fox chuckled nervously. "The thing's big enough to be a palm tree!"
"Veeeeeeeeeeeeenusaur!" the creature roared, stamping its feet and shaking the floor beneath them. The heroes had to struggle to stay on their feet. As they regained their balance, the monster threw up a flurry of leaves, which then raced past Link and Fox with painful accuracy.
"Ouch!" Link touched his cheek where one of the leaves had struck him and was startled to find that he had been cut. The Hylian quickly put up his shield to fend off the remaining projectiles.
Fox was none too thrilled by the animal either. One of the leaves had caught him in the ear and it stung each time he swiveled it to listen around him.
"Lousy, good-for-nothing----" Fox cursed as he took aim and fired madly upon the offender. It reared back, howling, but stood firm enough to unleash another barrage of leaves.
"Get down!" Link leapt in front of Fox, holding up his shield to take the onslaught of razor-sharp vegetation. When the attack died down, Link raced forward and slashed with his sword. The creature howled once more before disappearing into oblivion.
Link withdrew his shield and wiped the blood off the scratches on his face. When he turned to look at Fox, he found his friend licking at a wound through a slice in his glove.
"What the hell do you think that thing was?" Link said, putting his sword away.
"How the hell should I know?" replied Fox between licks. "I've seen some weird things in my world, but nothing like that!"
"Do you think there are any more of them around?"
"I hope not! These cuts may not look like much, but damn, they sting!"
They sat down, tending to their various cuts and scratches while occasionally keeping an eye out for danger. After a time, lighter footsteps approached from the same stairwell. Readying themselves for the worst, they stood still, lying in wait for whatever was heading their way.
What finally came through the door was a large, pink blob with an egg in its kangaroo-like pocket. It looked at them, smiling broadly. Fox and Link had no idea what to make of it. The creature was neither attacking them nor defending itself and actually seemed happy to see them.
"What do you think THIS is?" the Hylian scratched his head confusedly.
"You're guess is as good as mine, but at least it's not that plant thing!" the pilot replied.
"Chansey!" the blob beamed as it reached into its pocket and pulled out not one, but two large, white eggs and held them out to Link and Fox. The heroes took them nervously, weary that they might be bombs of some sort, but as Fox took a sniff of it, he licked his lips hungrily.
"Smells delicious!" Fox remarked, nipping it for a taste.
"You sure that's safe to eat?" Link blinked at him oddly, still a bit suspicious of the presents they had received. Fox swallowed the bit in his mouth and grinned.
"This isn't bad at all!" he chuckled lightly before taking a huge bite.
"Chansey! Chansey!" the creature encouraged Link to do the same. The Hero of Time glanced at the pink monster, then at Fox. They seemed to be ok, and as he watched, he noticed that Fox's injuries were healing up. Not one to be left out, he took a bite out of his egg.
"How is it?" the pilot licked the remainder of the treat off of his fingers.
"Great!" Link replied after swallowing another big bite. "And look! Our wounds are healed!"
Fox looked himself over and found this to be true. He stepped up to the creature and held out his hand for a shake.
"Thanks for the help!" he nodded.
"Chansey!" it replied before disappearing as mysteriously as the other creature had.
"Eh?" the pilot blinked. "Are all the creatures in this place that weird?"
"Who knows…" Link gazed upwards. "But let's hope they're as friendly as that last one. That other one hurt!"
Something landed nearby, and Fox swiveled his ears to pinpoint the source. Link spotted two red and white balls and directed Fox's attention to them. Cautiously, they approached to have a closer look.
"What do you think these are?" Link asked.
"How should I know?" Fox replied. "This isn't Corneria."
The Hylian carefully picked up a ball and examined it. It was red on one half and white on the other. There was a small hinge on one side connecting the two halves and what appeared to be a button opposite of the hinge. He showed it to Fox.
"What do you make of this?" he inquired.
"It could be a container for something or…" Fox mused. "a bomb."
"If it's a bomb, I'm not touching it!"
"Chicken!"
"Take that back!" Link put his hand on his sword hilt.
"Wanna make me?" Fox grinned as he reached for his laser.
Just as they were about to thrash each other, Fox and Link were slammed violently into the ground. Recovering quickly, they looked up in time to see the Master Hand snatching the strange balls away.
"What is it doing!?" Link drew his sword.
The Master Hand held up the balls between its fingers tauntingly. The pilot and the Hero of Time could only watch and wonder what the gloved appendage had in store for them. As if to answer their mental questions, the Hand glowed with an eerie red aura before casting the balls down to the platform. The balls seemingly exploded in white light, and from each one, something materialized.
"Get ready, fairy-boy." Fox took aim with his laser. "Looks like we're in for double the trouble this time!"
"Let's hope it's not the plant monster again." said Link. "Or anything worse!"
The bright light began to die down, and in its wake were two very strange looking creatures…
~~~~~~~~~~
This is Chapter 8. Where would you like to go next?
