Apollo's follow-up to 'Muerante'
Link steeled himself for his journey, raised the Ocarina of Time to his lips, and played the sad melody he had learned only a few minutes ago. He started to fade, and disappeared from the Great Faerie's fountain.
"Will he return?" asked Navi, this being the only time she was away from Link since she joined him at the Deku Tree's request.
"By the Fire of Din, the Wind of Farore, and the Love of Nayru he will."
***** Link found himself on the deck of a great wooden ship. His new knowledge of sailing wondered that this entire ship was now his, and his home. His knowledge taking over, he instinctively readied it, and took off.
Chapter One
Link had been sailing for days. He checked his compass every once in a while, and made the necessary adjustments to keep himself on course. His stores of food and fresh water seemed barely depleted, but he knew they wouldn't last forever. He had found some fishing poles and some lures, and used them greatly to his advantage. It helped pass the time when the ship was on course and there was nothing to monitor.
He had been fishing a few hours now, when his pole suddenly heaved. He could see a huge black spot under the water, and it was coming closer. Right when it seemed it would have to come out of the water, it dove down, taking his pole with it. Link tried to follow the black shape, and when it was almost beyond his field of vision, it soared out of the water, giving Link a beautiful silhouette of what his best guess deemed a very large whale. He marveled at it's size, it's speed, and it's grace, but some water sprayed him, and he blinked. The thing was gone.
***** Link went on for a few more days, monitoring the ship, fishing, and checking his stores of fresh water, which can be a sailor’s most precious commodity. He estimated that he’d have about three months of stores left, not counting the fish he caught. I hope it doesn’t take that long.
He went about his duties on the ship, checking the compass, setting the sails, and checking the rudder. Not feeling much like fishing, he decided to go up to the crow’s nest to have a nice little nap. He awoke an hour later, feeling something through the ship. I don’t like this. What could be going on?
He looked down to find his deck swarmed by Bari, their jellyfish-like tentacles bringing water onto the ship. Great, just what I need. Why can’t I just have an uneventful day once in a while? He had only his Longshot in the Crow’s Nest with him. He searched for his bow and arrow, and found it, up on the bridge of the ship. Why do I never have what I need when I need it?
Link’s mind was racing, his Longshot couldn’t reach from here, but, it could from the sails. He balanced himself as best he could and took off his boots for more traction. He then proceeded to walk across the narrow cylinder of wood to where he could reach his weapon. He carefully took step, after step, after--- “AUGH!!!!!!” Link shot towards the floor and the happily waiting Bari, tentacles reaching out lovingly towards him. His mind was racing- Note to self, place Hover Boots in Crow’s nest! He whirled himself around so he could see the wood he just fell from, and fired his Longshot. Come on, reach!!!!
It stuck and Link found himself hanging only a foot from the Bari’s outstretched tentacles. At least now I know how close my Longshot can get. He then had the Longshot pull him up, and he got back on the little ledge. This time, he crawled towards the bridge.
He reached the end of the wood, and hoped that the bridge was raised enough over the deck for his Longshot to reach. He fired it, and saw it hook into his quiver. Good, I have my arrows, now for the bow. He hooked his quiver around his shoulder, and fired at his bow. He saw it latch onto the string, and he pulled it up. You Baris don’t have a chance now!!! Thought Link triumphantly as he crawled back into the crow’s nest. He took out his bow, nocked an arrow, and chose a target. Death came swiftly.
Link picked off Bari by Bari, until three remained, then his bowstring snapped. AUGH!! Thought Link, I must have scratched it with the Hookshot! I only carry one spare string in my quiver!!! I’ll have to use my bow sparingly. He reached into his quiver, got out his spare string, and removed what was his string from his bow. He attached the new one, with only minimal difficulty, the wood the bow was made from was from Kokiri Forest, so it had many useful properties Hylian bows lacked.
He picked off the remaining Bari, and wondered why they were so restless. Probably just looking for some food. Oh well, now to clean up this mess.
Link climbed down from the Crow’s nest, and looked at all the Bari corpses, a few still retained their electrical charges, but not enough to cause Link to worry further. He searched them for any arrows that he could sharpen and re-use, he found some, but not as many as he would have liked, he didn’t want to run out.
Link then shoved the corpses off the side of the boat, and checked his heading. Hmm, I’m a little too far to the west, better fix it. He walked over and adjusted the rudder, still mulling over the Bari. Why would they come here, I need answers!!!! They don’t usually like going near ships. Oh well, worrying won’t help me. I’d better just concentrate on my work. Link got the ship headed back in the right direction, and having nothing else to do, went fishing again.
***** Link had been fishing for several hours, when he heard a familiar sound.
“Splooch!” What’s that? “Splooch, Splooch!!!!” I don’t like the sound of this! “Splooch, Splooch, SPLOOCH!!!” Whatever it is it’s coming closer!
“SPLOOCH! THUNK!!!” Something hit the side of the ship, and it shuddered for a second. Link got up, put away his pole, and readied the Master Sword and Mirror Shield. He looked off to the side of the boat, just in time to see two over-sized octoroks, and one huge one! Their bumpy skin glistening with water, their huge “noses” ready to spew forth giant rocks. This must have been what upset the Baris! I’d find somewhere to hide too, had I been confronted by one of those, let alone three! Link steeled himself, and waited for the octoroks to come into range. He picked his bow up from the deck, and fired at one of the smaller ones.
“SPLASH!” the octorok dove under just in time, and the arrow went flying into the distance. Must be faster than normal too. Link fired three more arrows, all to the same effect. It was now the octorok’s turn. The first one Link had shot at fired back, giving Link barely enough time to block it’s rock with his shield. The impact sent pain coursing through his arms. Once again, the octorok dove under water. This isn’t working! Ah-hah! I know! Link nocked another arrow, but before he fired, murmured a small incantation. He let loose.
The Octorok dodged the arrow of course, but this time Link shot it in front of it, and when the arrow hit the water ice spread out for about two yards. The octorok floated to the surface, encased by the frozen water. Meanwhile, the other two had come much closer, and Link found himself staring into the yellow, seemingly unfocused eyes of two large octoroks.
The first one shot at Link, and Link dove to the side, only to have the other remaining octorok shoot at him as he landed. Link wasn’t prepared, so the rock hit him in the side, and knocked the wind out of him. Link lay there, heaving, as the octoroks prepared another attack. What’s with these guys? Thought an amazed Link I didn’t know they could get this big! Link struggled to his feet, and put his shield in place. The octoroks fired, Link blocked both shots, but each blow caused more and more explosions of pain down his arm. The reflected rocks went untouched, as the octoroks dove under. Link got his bow, and shot another Ice Arrow, and another, and another, sealing the water with ice, to give him some time to think.
Link’s mind was racing. I could try to get close enough with my sword, but it would be too risky. The ice can’t stay thick enough to hold them off forever! And I don’t have much magic left. I’d use Din’s Fire, but I could set the ship on fire, bombs would do the same, or would they...
Link sought out somewhere far enough away that the blast of the bomb wouldn’t reach the boat. He found one, lit a bomb, and hurled it. He also took out and lit another.
The bomb went flying, landed on the ice, and exploded, creating a hole just big enough for the octorok. Sure enough it came up, ready to barrage Link with it’s stone missiles. But Link was ready first. He threw the other bomb he was carrying at the octorok, and it landed inside it’s gaping maw. The large octorok sank down, followed by an underwater explosion, which made the hole large enough for the huge octorok to come through. The huge octorok wasn’t as easily fooled as its compatriots.
When it came through, and when Link threw his bomb, it had fired a rock, which hit the bomb, and made it explode prematurely. You’re a smart one, aren’t you? Thought Link. You just wait, you’ll get what’s coming to you!!!
Link got an idea. He picked up one of the fish he had caught earlier, and started waving it at the huge octorok. This made the octorok excited, and it jumped out of the water, and onto the ice to get the fish. Link saw his chance, and pincushioned the octorok with arrows. It fell down, and stopped moving. Taking no chances, Link threw a bomb onto the still octorok, and hoped that the blast wouldn’t ignite the wood of the ship.
“BOOM!!!!” the bomb went off, annihilating the octorok, and melting away the rest of the ice. This left the way open for Link to get close enough to the first octorok he attacked and to dispatch it with another bomb. Link set the ship back on course and went to the galley to have something to eat.
With the adrenaline rush fading, Link’s aches and pains from the battle came screaming out. His shield arm had taken a lot of stress, and had almost broke. His spine and side were killing him from that one glancing blow. There was no Great Faerie to heal him now, he was on his own. He reached into his backpack, and brought out a bottle of healing salve, created by the little old lady in Kakariko village. He rubbed a little bit of it on his shield arm, and a little bit on his back and side. The effects were almost instantaneous. His aching began to subside, and the roaring pain evaporated into a protesting groan when he put too much pressure on it. Geez. Thought Link. At least I know what made the Baris get so frantic. Who would have known? Giant octoroks, and swarms of Baris! And I haven’t even gotten anywhere near that stupid book!
Link had a little to eat, and only a small amount of water to conserve it for the rest of his voyage. He then did an inventory. He had his four bottles of various medicines, all full except for the one he just used, fifteen bombs left, and only twenty-one arrows left, less than half of his original quiver. He’d need to get some more, just in case he needed them. I should have at least kept the feathers from the broken ones! Then I could have at least made some new ones! They might not have been as good, but they would have been something!
Chapter Two
Link continued sailing, and gradually his stores started to be depleted. He was fine food-wise, he always caught a fish or two, but it was fresh water he was worried about. Water was the most important thing for all life, and he’d surely be dead if he ever ran out. He estimated he had about two more weeks of fresh water, if he conserved it, and a month’s worth of food, not counting the fish he caught and would continue to catch. Link wasn’t worried, he’d pulled through tough situations before, and he would do so again.
Link was up in the Crow’s Nest one day, and as he looked off to the horizon he saw what appeared to be a very sizeable island. He checked his compass, the needle was pointing straight at the island. Thanks, Navi. You don’t know how useful this is! I’d better circle around and find a secluded place to anchor the ship, then I’ll go in on a Longboat. As Link circled the island, the compass needle circled too, once again confirming that the book was on the island.
Link found a small deserted lagoon that he could hide the ship in. He anchored there, took his backpack and tent, and entered the Longboat. The ship, instinctively reacting to Link’s thoughts, lowered and freed the Longboat. Link started rowing to shore.
***** Link made landfall about fifteen minutes later, and he found some underbrush and hid the boat. He wouldn’t want anyone to take it. He had thought he saw a sizeable town to the west somewhere, so he decided to find out where he was, and what this place was like.
He arrived at the town an hour later. It was almost dusk, so Link found a hidden cave nearby and decided to visit the town the next morning. Luckily the cave was also uninhabited, so Link wouldn’t have to worry about an animal attacking him in his sleep. He set up his bedroll, made a small fire to cook a fish he brought with him, and sat down to think.
This island appears to be where Ganon’s “Muerante” is located. Now I can only hope that nobody has found the book yet. I wish Navi, or someone was here. It’s lonely having no one to talk to. Oh well, I’d better just concentrate on the task at hand. “sniff” Great, the fish is burning. Link ate his blackened fish, and went to sleep wondering what was going on back in Hyrule. This time, it was a thankfully dreamless sleep.
***** He awoke well past dawn, and packed up all of his supplies. He hid them near the back of the cave, and erased any traces of the fire, and himself. He set out for the town.
Link entered the town after passing some small farms. He arrived just as the marketplace was opening. Good, he thought, I can get some more supplies, and arrows. Until he realized that these people had probably never heard of Hyrule, and wouldn’t accept its currency. Amazingly, they spoke and wrote in the Hyrulian tongue. Maybe they were immigrants, except for the lack of pointy ears that set all Hyrulians apart.
He wandered around, looking at the various goods, trying to figure out a way to get restocked. He didn’t have anything really worth trading on the ship, unless he decided to become a fisherman. There had to be some way to get some money here.
Almost as if he had spoken his thoughts aloud someone stopped him.
“Hail,” greeted someone as he tapped Link on the shoulder. “You new to the island?”
Link turned around to find an average sized man inspecting him. He had brown hair, brown eyes, and an open, but judging face. He seemed to be a little anxious.
“What do you mean?” inquired Link. “What makes you think I’m not from the island?”
“Let me see… Reason number one- you have been wandering around the marketplace all day, looking, but not buying. Number two- I have never seen you here before. Number three- you are obviously not from anywhere on the island, because no one here has seen the like of your clothing. Number four- You are outfitted for an adventure or for traveling some pretty sizeable distances,” the man apparently knew what he was talking about, he took in a lot of information in a short period of time. Who was this guy?
“So, maybe you’re right, but what does it matter to you?” Link was a little put off that this man knew so much about him. “And who are you anyway?”
He didn’t seem to hear Link, or if he did, he didn’t care. “Come to my house, we’ll talk more there.” “Oh, alright,” Link decided to see what this man was all about, he didn’t know anyone else here, and he needed all the allies he could get.
“Come along then,” they started walking.
As Link and the stranger walked through the town, a few people smiled at him, a couple waved, but many gave him pleading looks. This guy is well-known, or something. If the people know him, I don’t know if that’s a good sign. Their little procession, the man in front and Link behind went past a few more people, and Link saw more of the town. There were quite a few houses, and two inns, apparently. The marketplace had everything conceivable that you could want, from thatchers to blacksmiths. Luckily there too seemed to be a tropical version of the Goron’s bomb flower, so Link saw where he could purchase some bombs. He also noticed a large, sparkling stream that seemed to laugh as it flowed along the center of town. Well, now I know where they get their water.
Their walk took them to the edge of town, the side opposite the one Link entered in. There was a dense forest on this side. As they walked on Link saw some burned out houses, especially the ones nearest the forest. There was also a lumber mill there, but it was half burned and abandoned. Either there had been a natural fire, or someone or something had done it. This reminded Link of the burned and abandoned marketplace near Hyrule Castle. What did this? If it hadn’t been for that stream I wonder how far the fires would have gone.
They walked along further, and back towards the center of town. They finally stopped at one of the larger houses in the village. The man opened the door, and beckoned Link inside. “Welcome to Twin’s Island.”
***** Link entered into the house. It was well furnished, and definitely expensive. He could see the dining room to his right, and a study to his left. The dining room had chairs that seemed to almost have been shaped, not cut from the trees that made them. The table was elaborately carved with fine designs going across the outside rim. The study had a large bookshelf, packed with books, Not the one I want of course, that would be too easy. except for an empty space in the corner. In the center of the study there was another table, less elegant than the dining room one, but very fine nonetheless.
The man motioned for Link to sit down at the table in the study. He complied. His host on the other hand, walked in and continued to pace. He inhaled, and began explaining.
“This is the town of Glitterspring. It is named after the little river that cuts through the center of town. I am its Mayor, Rhon Blispen. Before I talk to you about our problem, I should let you know more about the town. This town was founded many years ago, when we first came to the island. We’ve lived here for a long time, and have changed the land around this stream almost as much as it changed us. Yes, we did originally come from Hyrule, but we have lived here for so long that our ears are no longer pointed and we are less fair in complexion, so in effect, we aren’t really Hyrulians anymore. Every five years since we first came here, we have held an election, and elected the Mayor, Treasurer, and an Assistant to the Mayor. And after the votes are counted, the people have a giant festival, and each Master Craftsman donates a piece of work to the newly elected officials. The Mayor, Treasurer and Assistant all live in houses in the center of town. I was elected two years ago, so in three years, I will move to a new house, and the next Mayor will move here, unless I am re-elected. You can only be Mayor twice though, and if the people don’t think you are doing a good enough job, they will elect a new Mayor. That’s in danger of happening to me. I have been doing my best, but we have a recurring problem. There is a band of Rafes that live in the forest you saw. They burned the houses and during the confusion, even came to my house and stole an important chest full of items from me. They even stole my history of Twin’s Island, and it’s counterpart Kolihint Island. I digress. The Rafes believe that we are infringing on their territory by cutting down the trees to make more room for houses, and to build them. You saw what they did to the lumber mill. They are vicious creatures, and cannot be trusted, or reasoned with. The burning was their strongest attack up until now, and they seem to be more organized that before. This is where you come in. I need you to retrieve my chest, the items inside, and my book from them. The worst part is that they came when I was almost done with the book! I hate that! When people take things when you would have been finished in a matter of minutes! Oh well. What’s done is done. I hope you will help me, err, us. Please say you will, I will give you all the supplies you need, and I’ll even give you a guide. My best woodsman. Please help!”
The mayor was a desperate man. He wanted something so badly, and had no way of getting it. He seemed like a mouse on a wheel, begging for someone to help him go faster, even though he wasn’t getting anywhere. The townspeople were affected too, with the attacks, and burning. Link couldn’t leave them hanging. He had to help them. He’d get the supplies he needed, and maybe he’d even get some information on where he could find the Muerante. Why not? I don’t know of any other way I could get what I need.
“Ok, Mayor. I’ll help you. Just let me get my supplies first,” Link sighed mentally There is something odd about this guy! I just can’t tell what it is! He seems to have put getting his things back in front of helping the townspeople, whether they elect a new mayor or not. Especially that history. What was the name of that other island? Kolohint or something? Oh well, I’d better focus on the present.
“Good! Good!” the mayor’s mood had brightened substantially. “Your guide’s name is Taft. Meet him here tomorrow morning. I will arrange for a room to be made up for you in the Falcon’s Perch. It’s the larger of the two inns you saw. Here is money for supplies, this should be more than enough for you to buy what you need,” the mayor brought out a purse from a desk that was next to the bookcase. He checked it’s contents and plopped it on the table.
Link picked up the purse and gasped. It was heavy. He looked inside and was greeted to an array of copper, silver, and mostly gold coins. “What is the name of your currency here?” inquired a shocked Link.
“The copper ones are pents, the silver ones are shils, and the gold ones are cons. Ten pents to a shil, ten shils to a con. You can get about 30 arrows per 5 shils. Judging by the merchants here, they will charge you a little extra. You can keep what is left over as payment for your help. You will also have use of any of my things you find, except for the history. That book is for the town officials only. I also have a map here for you so you won’t get lost. Use it in good health. If you have any more questions, Taft will be glad to answer them. It’s getting late, so I’m going to have dinner and go to sleep very soon. I don’t get much these days. Very troubled… But anyway, I would recommend gathering your things and going to the inn. Come back here tomorrow after you buy what you need. Thanks again for your help,” as he talked about sleeping, there was a glint in the mayor’s eye Link failed to notice. He bade Link be on his way, and escorted him to the door.
“Will I see you tomorrow?” asked Link as he was being ushered out the door.
“Probably not, I have a lot of duties to attend to,” answered the mayor.
“Alright then, have a good night. I shall do my best to aid your village,” replied Link, but the mayor had already shut the door.
***** The walk to the cave was uneventful, as was the walk back to the town, and the inn. Link had no problems finding the inn, it had a large sign that was easily recognizable by the painting of a bird. It seemed to be ever vigilant, with its sharp eye keeping the inn’s common room peaceful.
Link went up to the innkeeper, and inquired as to his room and a meal. He was ushered upstairs to a private dining room, and treated to a very nice roasted chicken. His meal being quickly consumed, and it not being too late, he went downstairs to the common room to see what he could find out about the village.
He found that the inn was rather popular, and there was a large bouncer making sure there was no problem. He sat down at the end of a table where two men where engaged in conversation, and bought himself a drink. He only occasionally sipped from his cup, he wasn’t too fond of it. He also ordered a little bit of bread so it didn’t look like he was just sitting there, people would know he was eavesdropping. The two men were apparently involved in a discussion about the mayor.
“The mayor is not crazy, so he has problems sleeping,” argued one man “That doesn’t mean anything.”
“Oh yeah? I hear he has nightmares in his sleep,” countered the other. “No one else here does.”
The two men kept going like that for a while, and Link decided that there was nothing else to be learned here. He went up to his room, flopped onto his bed, and went to sleep.
Chapter Three
Link woke up slightly before sunrise. He got his things packed up, and left his room. He went back to the marketplace, but this time he could actually make purchases. He bought some flasks of water, bread, cheese, and some rations so he wouldn’t get hungry on the way. He didn’t buy any for Taft, he figured he’d be able to take care of himself.
Link went to some more shops, not knowing if he was being cheated out of his money. He then came upon the fletcher’s post. He bought two full quivers of arrows, a lot more than he’d probably need, but recalling the Bari, he wanted to make sure. His next stop was the bomb shop. He wasn’t sure how different these bombs would be than the Goron variety, so he went up to the shopkeeper.
“How long do the fuses last on these things?” inquired Link, examining an odd eggplant-shaped one.
“The one you’ve got there lasts about 1 and a half seconds,” replied the shopkeeper flatly.
Link carefully put down the eggplant bomb. “How about these ones over here?” He pointed to some plain spherical shaped ones on a shelf. They looked as close as you could get to a Goron one.
“Those give you five to eight seconds, depending on where you start the fuse,” Link hadn’t noticed the two black lines place at an interval on the fuse. These could come in handy.
Link bought a few of the regular ones, even a couple of oversized ones used in the mines further west of the town. He also bought an especially padded bomb bag for the eggplant ones, he wanted to have an explosive for every occasion. As he was leaving, the shopkeeper motioned him to wait a second.
“You seem to know your stuff about these things,” stated the unemotional shopkeeper.
“I guess so, I’ve been using them since I was ten,”
“Well, I’ve got something special for you then, something very special,” said the shopkeeper with a glint in his eye. “Something I’ve been wanting to test for a long time.”
The shopkeeper disappeared through a little door Link had failed to notice. He came back with several odd, to say the least, bombs. They were all black, and were completely covered with little bumps, which were covered with smaller bumps and so on.
“These are my latest creation,” explained the shopkeeper with glee. “Each bump, is another bomb. So the big ones go off, and then the smaller, and the next smaller ones. You’re the first person I’ve decided to sell these to. Be careful with them. Make sure that you are twenty feet away from them when they explode. I’m also going to give you these.”
The shopkeeper reached into his pockets and brought out about twenty little bombs, a little bigger than an arrowhead. They weighed nearly nothing, and were completely streamlined. They all had a little bit of paper on the bottom of them.
“What’s the paper for?” asked Link, amazed at these new types of bombs.
“The bottom of each one is very sticky, it keeps them from sticking to each other,” replied the shopkeeper. “The explosive is almost a glue, and a little of it stayed on the outside.”
“Well, I guess I’ll take them, how much do I owe you?”
“How much you got?”
Epilogue
Link made his purchases, and got all of his things. Amazingly enough, he still had a lot of money left over. He began to walk over to the mayor’s house. Here I go again, I finish one journey only to begin another. The only question is: How many more until I reach my final destination?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To the next Part...
