Ocarina of Time II: Parallel Symphony

Standard disclaimer: I don't own any of these people, places or things. Heck, even most of the verbs belong to someone else. :-) All characters and settings © Nintendo. Hey, they've earned it.

---

Part One: Boy

Chapter Six: Fifteen -- Shadow

"HAH!" Nabooru shouted exultantly, charging.

Impa waited patiently, letting the wild Gerudo thief come at her. Twin scimitars gleamed in the light. Nabooru leaped and spun, a whirlwind to rival Link's legendary Spin Attack.

Impa ducked slightly, shifted to one side, and drew her knife. With a single thrust, she sent one of the scimitars flying. Nabooru stared, dumbstruck, as it sank into the ground several yards behind the Sheikah. Then she grinned, took her remaining scimitar in both hands, and leaped again.

More careful, this time, Impa thought, analyzing the hot-blooded young Gerudo's fighting style down to the woman's marrow. Good. The Sheikah backflipped away, throwing a Deku Nut to the ground in front of the younger woman. "Gah!" Nabooru shouted, recoiling. Impa permitted herself the slightest of smiles as she darted in, kicked the remaining blade out of the Gerudo's hands, and spun her leg around to knock Nabooru's out from under her. Impa landed on her opponent's stomach, pinning the Gerudo's arms beneath her legs, and placed the knife to Nabooru's throat.

Incredibly, the Spirit Sage laughed. "Gods! What a Gerudo you would make!"

"Link is right about your sense of humor," Impa said coolly. She didn't move. Nabooru wriggled impatiently. "The Twinrova sisters are after you, woman. The Twinrova sisters. Do you not remember the significance of that?"

"Hey, I've been training with you and Zelda, haven't I?" Nabooru tried to escape Impa, but the Sheikah had held countless students beneath her. You are not going anywhere until I decide otherwise, Impa thought fiercely. "Contrary to popular belief, we're not all bloodthirsty killers swaddled with knives in our cradles." Nabooru shrugged as much as her helplessness allowed. "Sure, we all train, but those who wear the white are the thieves, the scouts, those who find what we need to live." Impa's eyes tightened, and she pressed the blade closer to her fellow Sage's throat. Nabooru's eyes flew wide. "Hey! I-Impa, what are you doing?!"

"Should I just kill you now, then?" Impa said, forcing her voice to go cold. I love you like a sister, Nabooru, but too much is at stake. I must make you see. She stared at the Gerudo with eyes like red ice. "If you fall into the witches' hands, Link and Sheik will follow, no matter the danger. If either of them dies because of you..."

Nabooru swallowed. "That won't happen, I swear by Din. Those two are the closest thing I have left to family. Even the Gerudo who follow me look at me like a Queen, their answer to Ganondorf. Impa, you're frightening me."

"Good," Impa growled. "You think Zelda is like family to you? The Gerudo took everything from me. Everything." Nabooru's eyes went even wider. "That girl you call family? I raised her from when she was in that swaddling you mentioned. If she has a mother, may the gods shelter Luda, I am it. She is all I have left. I would die for her." She leaned in close enough that she could feel the breath from Nabooru's frightened panting. "I would kill for her. I have before, and I will again."

"I understand," Nabooru replied slowly. "Impa, what the sorceresses did to your people...every Gerudo who follows me feels shame beyond reckoning for that, but--"

Impa snorted and stood. Nabooru continued to stare at her in amazement. "I do not blame you for that, child. You were barely a girl when Kotake killed my son."

"Your son?!" Nabooru gasped. "Din, Nayru and Farore!"

"He was our last hope," Impa said. Her voice was like the Arbiter's then, empty of emotion. "All that the Sheikah will leave behind is Zelda." She looked back down at Nabooru. "If she lives, she will be more than enough. You've seen the marvel she's become. Wise, brilliant, courageous, powerful, noble...she will be the greatest queen Hyrule will ever know. With the Hero by her side, she will bring this land a Golden Age." Her eyes locked onto Nabooru's. "If she lives. Nothing is written. Ganondorf may yet kill her and plunge this world into despair. I promise you, however, that it will not happen while I live."

"Whoa." Nabooru looked at the Sheikah for a moment, then grinned and bounced to her feet. "Needlenose doesn't stand a chance."

"Din, Nayru and Farore!" Impa swore. Nabooru's grin didn't even waver. And I thought Zelda knew how to get under my skin! She glared at the Gerudo furiously. "Have you not heard a single word I said, woman?"

Nabooru's smile vanished, and she looked into the grass of Hyrule Field. "I heard every word, Impa. I understand what you're trying to do." She looked up again, matching Impa stare for stare. "Even so, I can't live my life afraid to do what I must for my people, and I won't let fear of that tyrant destroy who I am." The grin returned. "'Love life. In the end, it is all we have.'"

"I do not recognize..." Impa said.

"Once, it was our motto," Nabooru explained. "Long ago, before Twinrova." She smiled brilliantly. "I'm bringing it back into common use."

Impa shook her head, smiling in spite of herself. "You made that up."

"I did not!" Nabooru shot back hotly. Impa glanced over at the Gerudo, who smiled sheepishly. "Well, okay, it might be a bit loose of a translation, but I did find it in the Spirit Temple." She went to her swords and retrieved them, then whistled. A magnificent Gerudo stallion raced over to the Spirit Sage, and she leaped on easily. "As for the Hero and the princess, well, you tell them if they do anything stupid on my account, we'll spank them until their backsides glow like Din's Fire. HYAH!"

The Sheikah watched Nabooru ride off, nonplused. Then she laughed in spite of herself. Reckless, impulsive, impossible...! She shook her head. And my best friend. It is good to have a friend, Little Sister. Be careful. Impa watched her ride off. Link and Zelda aren't the only ones who would risk everything to save you.

She gestured, and the Shadow carried her back to the Triforce symbol outside Zelda's room. Impa knocked politely. "Your Highness?"

There was a brief sound of moving wood. I wonder if she still thinks I don't know about her diary. Even after all the years that had gone by, Impa still felt a touch of shame at reading Zelda's most secret thoughts, but she had long ago decided that she had to know everything about her charge. Nor would I reveal them, not if Kotake and Koume delved into me with their foulest magics. Sheikah training would see her dead before they learned the least of the princess' secrets. "You may enter," Zelda said, and Impa did.

The Sheikah noted the faint flush in her surrogate daughter's cheeks. That pup, she thought fondly. Thank you, Nayru, for finding someone actually worthy of her. She closed the door behind her and stood at ease, in the military sense, legs slightly spread and arms folded behind her. "How may I serve you, Your Highness?"

"Oh stop that, Impa," Zelda said in exasperation, then walked briskly over and hugged the Sheikah. Impa hugged her back. "I have to put up with that nonsense when the court can hear, but I won't have it when it's just us." A moment later, Zelda stepped back and sat on her bed. "So, how did training with Nabooru go?"

"That girl," Impa said in a huff, "is a wild, reckless, impatient madwoman."

Zelda grinned. "You like her."

The mighty last Sheikah squeezed her eyes shut and pinched her nose. "Nayru save me from people who act before they think."

"Knew it." Impa blew out an exasperated breath. Zelda kicked her feet in what she no doubt thought was a gesture of casual indifference. And the next question is about Link's latest adventure, Impa decided. "So. Any word from Holodrum?" she asked lightly.

"We just received word from Altea. Link is on his way back now." Impa smiled gently and stroked Zelda's hair. "He is fine, child."

The princess sank into the bed in relief. "I was sure he would be," she said, sounding younger than she had to Impa in a long time. Then she looked up at Impa and smiled back. "You haven't stroked my hair like that in years."

"Nabooru has made me nostalgic, it seems," Impa said wryly. "I call you child, but you have grown so much over the past five years."

"Well, I'm not all grown-up and stuffy yet," Zelda laughed, throwing her arms around Impa again. "And I'm not ready to give up my nanny yet, either."

"Nanny!" Impa scoffed. "I thought we'd given up that pretense ages ago."

Zelda squeezed her tighter. "Not a chance."

"Well..." Impa glanced down at her emphatic charge. "Nabooru did mention something about a spanking."

"What?!" Zelda blurted, blushing, letting go and sliding away from the Sheikah. "I haven't done anything wrong, I swear!"

Impa couldn't help it. She chuckled. "Is that why you look so guilty, my girl?"

"G-guilty -- they were just thoughts," she said, turning bright scarlet. "You said there was nothing wrong with thoughts. You said."

"So I did." Impa sat down next to Zelda. "As I said more recently, you are growing quickly. Have you given thought to womanhood?"

"Constantly," she mumbled, biting her lip.

"Then it has come to men, I take it," the Sheikah prodded gently, draping an arm around her shoulders.

"Just one." Zelda was barely audible now.

She hasn't even sworn to Farore and gone to fix her lip gloss, Impa thought with amusement. "I fail to see the problem, then," she said, squeezing Zelda's shoulder. "He lives and dies for you, you know."

"Impa, that's half the problem," Zelda whispered, looking up at her bodyguard. Her eyes held more uncertainty than Impa had seen in them since the Fire Temple. "What if -- if he doesn't -- he cares about me, but what if he can't help it? He is literally my Hero. If he was only with me because he can't hurt me, I'd die, Impa." She huddled close to the Sheikah. "It'd kill him, and I'd just die." She sniffled. "I've tried to tell him, but I can't say it straight out. I don't know if I'm more afraid of him not...not feeling the same way I do...and telling me, or living a lie."

"I know the answer to that, my child," Impa said gently, "but Link is in so many ways not like most men, and you are the princess. It would be improper for him to court you as he is--"

"Improper?!" Zelda blurted. "He's the Hero of Time! What more title does he need? Farore!"

"Language," Impa said harshly, and Zelda looked at her toes, abashed. "He has spurned all official titles and accolades. As things stand, he is no more than a refugee from the Kokiri Forest, not ven a peasant by Hyrule's law. We do not have such ridiculous traditions as marrying to cement alliances, thank Nayru," she said, and Zelda made the symbol of the Triforce over her heart, "but even one of the gentry does not attempt to woo the Crown Princess of Hyrule, and Link is too chivalrous to overstep his bounds in that way."

"Din sear chivalry," Zelda muttered.

Impa hugged the princess more tightly. "You do not mean that." She let herself grin. "Besides, you seem determined to miss the point. Link cannot court you. Nothing stops you from beginning the process." Zelda's eyes widened again, and she bit her lip. The Sheikah gazed at her evenly. "You are still young yet. You needn't rush into things."

"Impa, half the women in Hyrule have their eyes on him," Zelda said in a rush. "If Ruto hadn't found Mikali, I'd include one of my best friends in that group!"

At that, Impa laughed outright. "More than half, I'd wager, but there's only one set of eyes he desires." Zelda turned scarlet again. "Patience, my child. You--"

#FREE!# the Shadow Beast's voice roared across the psychic plane. #FREE AT LAST!# She could feel his hunger, even across the ridge and through the palace's wards. #Come for me, little Sheikah! I thirst for your Blood!#

From far away, Zelda was calling out to her in a panic. I'll explain to her soon, Impa thought. #Fool Beast,# she 'pathed back coldly. #Behave yourself, lest your prison become a gallows.#

#Your gallows, last of the Blood,# Bongo Bongo laughed, #not mine! COME!#

Impa's mind returned to her body. "Impa!" Zelda wept. "Impa, speak to me!"

"I am fine, child," she said suddenly, realizing her body had gone rigid. I am getting old. She forced herself to become limber again. "I must return to the Shadow Temple. Summon the Hero. I fear I will need his help this time."

"I'm coming with you!" Zelda exploded, jumping to her feet. Her hands started to form the Sheik kuji-in when Impa caught them.

"Absolutely not," Impa replied firmly. "It will take the both of you to stop the Phantom Shadow Beast." Zelda's eyes filled half her face, quivering in fear. That fear is for me, Impa realized. For the first time since she was twelve, Impa wished she could lay down her burden. No. It would seem I will be able to lay down my burden sooner than I thought. Oh, husband, oh my son, we will be together soon. She held Zelda's cheek. "I must delay it until you arrive. Be wary. Nothing in the Temple is as it seems."

"Impa..." Zelda breathed. I dare wait no longer, Impa decided. "IMPA!" Zelda cried, and that was the last thing the Sheikah heard before the Shadow took her. Forgive me, Zelda.

I love you.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

"He didn't!" Link gasped. The Altean countryside rolled past him and his companion as they rode through the path Hyrule and its neighbor had carved across the mountains. Gods! the Hero thought with scandalized amusement.

"I swear by the gods, he did!" Marth laughed. "Grabbed her shoulders in front of half the court and kissed her full on the lips!"

"What did Elice do?" Link asked, reining Epona in. You can smell Hyrule, can't you, old friend? Though the road between the kingdoms was still rough and narrow, with years of work ahead, it was more than enough for two friends to ride through.

"She smiled one of the sweetest smiles I've ever seen, stepped back, grabbed his arm, and threw him straight out the throne room's doors!" This time, they laughed together. "My little sister is definitely all grown up."

"I don't know where these fairy tales with dainty princesses pining for heroes come from," Link said with a rueful chuckle. "All the ones I know scare me."

"Well, as long as you're polite, you have nothing to fear from Elice," Marth insisted. "Really, she's one of the gentlest women alive."

"Maybe in Altea," Link chuckled.

At that, Marth shrugged. "Conceded. The people of Hyrule do seem more peaceful as a rule." His eyes sought the sky. "We've known war for so long. Peace is...strange to us."

Link sighed sadly and rubbed Epona's neck. "I pray you get to know it better." The mare pressed against his hand approvingly.

"Mmm." Marth's gaze remained in the sky for a few moments longer, then he looked at Link again. "Ganondorf?"

"It's only been nine months since the Water Temple," Link said quietly, "but he's moving. I can see it." His hands clenched painfully on the reins. "I can feel it." Hyrule came into view below them, and Link's heart swelled to see her rolling fields.

"Well, if he moves, so will Altea." Marth's hand came to rest on Link's shoulders. "We do not abandon our friends, Hero."

Link looked up at the new-crowned king gratefully. "Thank you, Marth. I pray to Nayru we'll never need that help, but that means more to us than--"

#LINK!# Zelda screamed in his mind. Epona reared slightly when Link stiffened in shock.

"Link!" Marth grabbed Epona's reins. "Gods, what happened?"

"It's Zelda!" Link gasped. #Zel, what's wrong?#

#It's Impa! She's gone to the Shadow Temple to hold off Bongo Bongo!# He felt her incredulity. #I can't believe I said that...#

#Zel, Bongo Bongo is a serious opponent, but Impa can handle him until we get there.# He turned to Marth. "Can you bring Epona back to Lon Lon?"

"Of course," Marth said, his tone faintly offended.

#No, Link! She...# Zelda's fear shook Link's soul. #...she was going there to die...#

Link's own fear shook his soul. Impa? No! He grabbed at the air forcefully, and the Ocarina appeared in his hand. "I have to go. Now." He jumped off Epona. "You listen to Marth, okay?" he asked the mare. Epona nodded. #I'm coming, Zel!#

"Good luck, Hero," Marth whispered as Link played the Prelude of Light and vanished.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

Calm. Calm. Nayru, grant me calm. Oh gods, please, not Impa. Sheik paced frantically in the Temple of Time, the equanimity granted by her training a shattered ruin. Memory filled her thoughts, memory of the monster swatting her aside like an insect, Link drawing his blade to face a monster he couldn't even see and being half-crushed in its grip...

Suddenly, a creature named Bongo Bongo didn't seem comical any more.

A swirl of gold-white light, and her Hero appeared before her. "Link!" she cried and threw her arms around him.

Link shuddered, then held her in turn. "I'm here, Zel. I'm here."

Immediately she released him, ashamed. "I...we must hurry." Link nodded and placed the Ocarina to his lips. He played the haunting Nocturne of Shadow, and darker energy swirled around them. Light and Shadow carried them into the mana itself, and then restored them in front of the dreaded Shadow Temple.

"Sheik, you have nothing to be ashamed of," Link said quickly. "I'm worried about Impa too."

"What I did was unseemly," Sheik said quietly.

"What you did was human," Link replied softly. He drew his sword and called the Lens before his eyes. "Let's go. Every moment."

Sheik nodded, her control returning. Neither grief nor guilt will help her now. She padded forward silently. "Every moment," she repeated. She followed her Hero through the paths of the Shadow Temple, ignoring the gruesome decor. The skulls on the poles were odd, particularly as her Eye only saw one skull. The rest were illusion. They wove their way through disturbing, cramped passages to the far corner of the Temple prison. The Dead Hand there was no match for their combined power, and Link watched the Hover Boots vanish with a look of singular annoyance. "There. Now let's find Impa."

"She could have been here," Sheik noted reasonably.

"We know where she is," Link said direly as they returned to the room with the skulls. While he pushed the strange device, Sheik read the inscription. Ah. What odd puzzles. Link finished orienting the object, then crouched into a runner's start and dashed, the Hover Boots appearing on his feet just before he went over the edge. He raced across the gap, the Boots disappearing immediately after he hit solid ground again. "Whew. I love those things, but it's as bad as walking on ice. I hope Lenzo can fix that eventually. Okay, Sheik," he said, holding out his arm, "hit me with your chain and I'll pull you across."

For the first time since Impa's disappearance, Sheik smiled. Link gasped as she took off, then leaped, transforming into Zelda halfway across and floating serenely to his side. "I can jump farther than you," she noted evenly, then transformed again into her Sheikah form.

"No kidding," Link replied with a grin. He rubbed the back of his neck innocently.

"Farore," Sheik said, turning away to hide her blush. "Don't do that."

"Do what?" Link asked, puzzled. "Sheik, do what?"

"Every moment," Sheik pointed out. "Please, Hero."

Link grumbled wordlessly to himself, sharing a glance with Navi, then led them onward. "Use your Eye. There are invisible scythes all over the place in here." Sheik was glad of the warning soon after he gave it, but forewarned and forearmed made evading the traps simplicity itself for one trained as Sheikah. The Stalfos were tough, the Beamos obnoxious and the Like-Like an infuriating reminder of her limits, but no serious threats to their combined skill arose. "Blasted second-hand Mirror Shield, you'd think it'd work on Beamos."

"You could always complain to the Gerudo," Sheik pointed out while she retrieved her blades from the remains of the enormous skull.

"I think not," the Hero replied dryly. She held on to him when the fans blew mad winds at them, her needle slaying the burning eye. He carried her across the gap with the Hover Boots, together they slew the undead they faced, and in less than an hour, they had reached it.

"The Ship of Sorrow," Sheik whispered. The strange, unearthly vessel bobbed oddly before them. Link leaped onto it, then held out his hand. She grinned and leaped over him, landing behind her Hero. "Jump farther, remember?"

"Just trying to be polite," he replied lightly, stepping onto the Triforce symbol. "Besides, with this as part of it, I don't think 'Ship of Sorrow' is an appropriate name." He played Zelda's Lullaby.

Sheik licked her lips in surprise as the boat lurched to life, flowing forward. "Nayru," she breathed.

"We're going to have to repel boarders," Link noted calmly, "and we're going to have to get off in a hurry, but this part shouldn't be a prob -- FARORE!"

Three strangely-armed Stalfos landed around them. Sheik immediately became a blur of destruction, needles and feet flying, but these Stalfos were tougher than the ones they'd fought before. Her attacks seemed little more than insect bites. Link's savage slashes were more effective, but with three foes, all of whom could virtually ignore Sheik, he was starting to show the effects of his efforts. He grunted and sheathed the Great Fairy's Sword, summoning the Hammer. He took a savage blow, but shattered one Stalfos entirely.

I have to help him! Sheik thought desperately, but saw only one way to do it. She transformed into Zelda. "Din's Fire!" she cried, and a ball of flame crashed into the back of a second Stalfos. It turned, stumbling, then collapsed. With only one Stalfos left, even as resilient as it was, the fight only lasted a few seconds. Link reduced the skeleton to shards with one final crushing blow.

"Well," Link panted. "That was...fun."

"You have a strange idea of fun, love," Zelda replied.

Blushes blossomed like twin roses on his cheeks. "Wh-what?"

"I said -- HNN!" Zelda swore. The Stalfos she'd destroyed with her flame arose from its own remains and slashed at her. She winced, tears forming, and fell back, clutching a slash along her abdomen.

"ZELDA!" Link cried. "SEIYAH!" He jumped high into the air and came down on the skeleton like the wrath of Din, reducing it to powder. "Zelda! Are you all right?"

"I've been better," she said through a wince, "but I've been worse, too." Through her pained smile, she winked at him. "Do you have something we can bandage this with, Hero?"

Link scanned himself briefly, swore, then took off his hat. Navi was still glaring at the Stalfos' remains, so she didn't realize what was happening until he pressed it against Zelda's belly. "Hey, I live in there, you know!" she objected.

"You'll manage," Link drawled.

Zelda touched the fabric, amazed. "Link...your hat..."

He laughed and shrugged. "What? I can get another one if I have to. Besides, the hat's been through worse too."

"Tell me about it," Navi grumped. Link and Zelda looked at each other, then chuckled. Then the ship stopped and shuddered. "Yipe! Abandon ship!" the fairy wailed.

"Time to go!" Link shouted, grabbing the princess's hand and jumping. They landed beside each other as the vessel sank behind them.

After staring for a moment, Zelda transformed once again. "Well." Sheik looked at Link, making her expression as unreadable as she could. Then she grinned. "That was fun."

Link stared at her, goggle-eyed, then laughed. "Oh, it gets better."

After the maze of illusions and crushing spiked walls, she had to agree, but before long, they had claimed the keys they needed and approached the pit. "It's down there?" Sheik asked quietly. Link nodded. "Well. We should--"

The entire Temple shook. A single drumbeat echoed through every stone like an explosion. Even the air seemed to crack at its power. Impa flew up out of the pit and landed by their side, sprawled out like a broken, discarded doll. "Impa!" they cried in unison and darted to her side.

"...knew...you'd come..." Impa whispered hoarsely, a weary smile blossoming across her face.

"Hang on," Link said, gesturing. A Red Potion appeared in his hand, but Impa reached a hand up to stop him. Her arm hung at an angle arms weren't designed to make, and her hand flopped onto the bottle.

"no," she breathed, and Sheik could barely hear her even without the drumming. "i've lived too long as it is. the sheikah have lived too long."

"Don't say that!" Sheik wept. She gestured, and Zelda knelt by Impa's side. "Please, Impa! I can't lose you too!"

"listen...no time..." Impa could barely move, but she managed to pin Link with a stare. "zelda...is your...destiny..."

Link gripped her shoulder gently with his free hand. "And you'll be there to see it," he insisted.

The Shadow Sage almost smiled again. "no, hero...even you can't...help this time..." She turned back to Zelda then. "dampé...can take...my place...as sage..." Impa took the arm that would move and caressed the princess' cheek. "i...am...so...proud..."

"MOM!" Zelda cried. Mana flowed from her into the Sheikah. I won't lose you! I won't!

Impa's eyes widened in shock. Even in what must have been agony, she hadn't cried, but now tears flowed from her eyes. "my...daughter...link...the potion..."

Link didn't hesitate, pouring the crimson fluid into the Shadow Sage's mouth. Impa's eyes bulged and her entire body shuddered, but wounds closed and bones knitted as much as the age of the breaks allowed. "Impa, come on, come back to us," he whispered. Zelda blocked out everything but the mother of her heart, flowing all she had into her mentor.

For an instant, the last Sheikah lay still as death, not moving, not even breathing. Then she took a long, shuddering gasp, and deep, slow, laborious breaths followed. "I have three broken ribs," she said, voice still weak but far stronger than it had been. "My arms will be all but useless for days, and it will be several hours before I can walk."

"I don't care," Zelda whispered, hugging Impa gently. "You're alive."

"Zel," Link said quietly, "when the portal opens...Impa's in no shape to jump down right now."

"Mind over matter," she said firmly. "I'll levitate her down. First..." Fury filled the princess, and the bow of Light formed in her hand. "...I want to introduce myself to our friend the drummer."

"Do not underestimate him," Impa said firmly. "He has more hands now," she added, taking Link in with her gaze as well, "and he seems invincible. You must be careful. You must!"

"Thinking first," Link said earnestly. "I promise." The Hero frowned. "How many more?"

Impa let her head rest against the stone. "I...do not know. At least two -- near the end, he hit me with four at once." Somehow, she took Zelda's hand. "Please, Zelda. I cannot lose you, either. Be careful. Both of you."

Link nodded, then stood. "You ready, Zel?"

Zelda nodded back, eyes blazing. "Let's go." She leaped down.

Above her, she heard Link chuckle. "That's my line," he quipped, then jumped after her. They bounced as they landed, which didn't surprise her Hero, but even having had the Temple described to her, Zelda still found it bizarre to be standing on a giant drum.

Then a hand started to play a steady rhythm on the surface. A second hand picked up a down beat, and together, they began to circle the Hylians. Another hand appeared around the drum, though it did not play. Then there was another. And another. Six. Seven. Eight. The extra hands began to circle, wavering almost as if they were laughing at the pair. "What is he," Link snarled, "Bongo Bongo or Octo Octo?"

"I believe the phrase," Zelda replied ferociously, already readying her bow, "is 'start shooting and don't stop until there's nothing moving but us!'"

"Close enough!" Link agreed, and Light Arrows lanced out from the pair. Zelda called forth the Eye when the hands vanished, and Link placed his Lens in front of his face, where it hovered to allow him to see their foes. The hands swiped at them, Link blocking and dodging while Zelda leaped over them.

The battle seemed to go on forever. Once, they had all eight hands paralyzed, and Bongo Bongo's body appeared. Zelda hit it with an arrow, and Link slashed at it viciously, forcing it to retreat in pain. After that, though, the hands got smarter, hiding behind one another and pounding at them from above with massive fists. Twice, Zelda got crushed beneath one, and Link had been punched or slapped more than that. "This isn't working!" he shouted.

"I'm open to suggestions!" Zelda shot back, firing at a hand she'd named 'Scar' for its eponymous markings. The thing seemed to hate her, and at this point the feeling was becoming mutual. She took aim grimly and shot it. This time, though, as she gaped in amazement and hope reborn, it wailed and vanished in a burst of Dark Fire. "Link! The hands -- they're not invincible after all!"

"Well, that's a welcome change!" Link laughed, taking aim himself. With Navi's help, he stayed focused on one hand and pierced it again and again, dodging blows, until it, too, exploded into Shadow. Somewhere in the distance, their foe howled in frustration.

"Thank Din for Navi!" Zelda laughed in relief. She took aim, and this time, they finished off one of the hands together. It's working! We're going to beat this Beast! The princess smiled viciously and advanced on the two main hands. Now, let's see how Bongo boy likes being on the defensive--

"Zelda, NO!" Link shouted. Immediately, Zelda realized her mistake and leaped back -- too late. A hand grabbed her from behind, carrying her into the air, crushing her, and slamming her to the drum. Stars sparkled in the distant darkness, stars that could not shine in this Din-forsaken place. No -- I can't leave Link alone -- not now...

The hand slammed down on her again, and her body shuddered. Link's furious, frightened howls of rage echoed dimly in her mind as he slashed at her tormentor, obliterating it, but when she tried to stand, darkness claimed her.

Impa...Link...forgive me...

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

Link roared like an animal and stabbed the evil hand through its palm. Of course she's carrying all potions, he thought, furious at himself for not making her take at least one fairy. "Navi!"

"She's all right!" Navi shouted back. "Just unconscious, she'll wake up with a few bruises, but that's it!"

If we live through this, the Hero thought grimly. With the destruction of the hand that had hurt Zelda, four remained. More than he'd dealt with before, and he was already wounded. Worse, Bongo seemed stronger than ever. Each blow felt like being hit by Ganon itself. Link knew he was tough. After years of battle and victory, no amount of humility could tell him he was weak. This time, though, he truly feared losing. Not simply for himself, but...

"Farore," he snarled, and summoned the Iron Boots to his feet. "You can't have her. You hear me?! You won't!"

Bongo Bongo laughed. "I will bring your broken bodies to Ganondorf, and he will give me the souls of the Sheikah, forever. They shall know torment unlike any Mandrag Himself ever dreamed of!"

Link paled, but not so much as to let a hand take him unaware. A Light Arrow convinced the Shadow Beast not to be so grabby. "What does Ganondorf want with me? Zelda, I can understand, but..."

The monster chuckled, a low, sadistic sound. "He knows the power each of you has touched. He and Zelda, only secondhand, it is true..." the triangle of light shone from Link's hand. "...but in you, it resides in truth." Something whistled down at him from above.

Link looked up just in time to throw up his shield. He barely avoided being crushed -- but the Lens flew from its place before him, and another hand shattered it with a single blow! "Farore. No," he gasped. Gone. And every time he'd tried, the Eye...no! This time, I have to! He looked down at Zelda, who moaned and clutched at her Light Bow, still trying to lift it even unconscious. He crouched protectively over the princess, shield on his back, and willed himself to focus.

Bongo Bongo laughed and began pounding on his back. Calm. Insight. Know Truth, for -- hnn -- Truth is what liberates us from the Dark Fire of corruption. Know -- UHNN! know Self, for Truth begins with a true Self. The Eye didn't come. Why? What am I hiding from myself? He looked down at Zelda, the Sage still trying desperately to make herself move. He forced himself to endure another blow. Zelda...

All at once it hit him.

I love you, Zel.

Again, the hand came whistling down at him. This time, though, the bloody Eye of the Sheikah formed on his brow. With perfect timing, he thrust his Great Fairy's Sword straight up. It wasn't the Master Sword, but in that moment, it was enough. Bongo screamed, and the hand exploded in Dark Fire. He gazed unflinching into its horrific single eye. "You just lost, monster. You can yield, or you can die. To be perfectly honest, I don't care either way."

"No!" The three remaining hands thrust at Link as one. "I can still destroy you!"

Link held his sword behind him, glaring contemptuously at the three hands, then spun the moment they came into range. A ring of fire struck them all at once, and Bongo Bongo screamed. He surged his body towards the Hero, but Link had already drawn another Arrow of Light, and the Shadow Beast couldn't turn in time. Link let the arrow fly, and with Navi's help, it struck dead center. Once more, the Beast's body fell to the drum, and Link leaped forward, slashing and spinning mercilessly. "Die. Die! Die, sear you, DIE!"

With a single, final thrust into its foul eye, it did, shuddering, flying into the air, and raining down Dark Fire on every inch of the drum's surface. Link spat into the burning mass. "And stay dead this time, Beast!" The heart formed the instant the Fire vanished, and to Link's amazement, the Golden Gauntlets appeared next to it. As gently as he could, he picked up Zelda and lowered her into the heart. She gasped and shuddered, her bruises and cuts vanishing. Gods, she's beautiful, he thought. Never had he been so relieved.

"Link!" Zelda breathed. "Is it--"

"Over," he replied, brushing against the Gauntlets as he helped her stand. They swirled and vanished as the other artifacts had. "He's dead. It's over."

Zelda looked away. "Link...I failed--"

Oh no you don't. Link took her chin firmly in his hand. "I could never," he said implacably, "have beaten that thing without you."

"Yes you could." She smiled back at him and stroked his cheek. "You're the Hero. If I helped, though...that's what matters." She stepped back from him, looked up into the blackness above, and raised her arms. Impa slowly floated down to them, the Shadow Medallion appearing and vanishing moments after the Shadow Sage entered the chamber. He watched her from behind, drinking in the grateful look she'd given him. Those eyes. I will never regret belonging to those eyes.

Again the Arbiter appeared in his orange gateway. "The end draws near," he said in his typical monotone. "When next we meet, you shall see the fruits of your labor...and of Ganondorf's."

"When I care, I'll let you know," Link said wearily. "Unless you have something of actual importance to tell us, rather than pompous pontificating with no substance, move so we can get out of here."

The Arbiter began his descent. "As you wish. Simply, then, know this: the Spirit Temple is not what it once was. You shall face challenges beyond any you have known before. The Stalfos you faced on the Ship of Sorrow were only the first new danger ahead. There will be more, for Ganondorf has learned nearly all you would have kept hidden from him."

Link shuddered. "The streams--"

"That alone, he cannot wield against you. As for the rest, only time will tell." With that, the Arbiter vanished.

"I'm beginning to take a serious dislike to that creature," Zelda sighed, Impa floating above her arms.

"No argument there," Link agreed.

Impa shook her head. "So quick to judge. Think first." Both young Hylians turned to the Shadow Sage. "If he serves the gods, do you think he wants Ganondorf to win, or for Mandrag to be released?"

"I don't think he wants anything," Link replied with a sigh. "I don't think he cares."

"If he let his own feelings interfere with what he does," Impa pointed out, "could he keep Ganondorf's attention fixed here? Would the witches let him near their king?" Neither could answer her. "Let us be gone. I exult at the end of my tribe's ancient foe, but I will be glad to be away from this place."

Link and Zelda nodded in unison, and together, they stepped into the gate. Once again, they emerged in the desert. The moon gleamed full and bright over the sands, and the three existing medallion replicas glowed with a beautiful, unearthly light. "Hey, that's different," Link noted.

"You have a gift for understatement," Zelda noted dryly. Again, the pillar rose, the large Shadow Medallion duplicate gleaming a faint violet before fading to the alien white, and the entire structure glowed with the same energy as it grew like a living thing once more.

"That light..." Impa looked up. "Could it be...?"

"Impa?" Zelda asked. "Do you know what that is?"

"I do not, child." Impa shook her head. "No, not child or pup, not any more. You have both proven yourselves capable of handling the burdens of adults long since.

"Zelda, I can say nothing with certainty, but legend has it that during the days when those who would become the Sheikah and Twili rose, the Nohansen tribe wielded Light as we did Shadow. Combining science and magic, they created an entire field of magical technology based on solid light. Most was lost during the Twilight War. When those who became the Twili were banished, the remaining, loyal Shadow tribes swore themselves to the Hylians of Light as the Sheikah."

Zelda chuckled. "Every time I think I know you, sensei, you reveal a new facet."

Impa managed once more to stroke her cheek. "You will surpass me, daughter of my heart."

Aww, Link thought happily as Zelda sniffled. "Come -- come on," the princess insisted. "We should get back. I had no idea the desert was so cold at night, and you need rest. Link?"

Link nodded and, once they were all touching, played the Prelude of Light. In a flash, they were gone.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

#So what are you gonna do now, Hero?# Navi 'pathed brightly.

#Nothing. I know how I feel. I can admit it to myself. Nothing else has changed.# Link strode down the corridor towards General Onox's war room.

#Nothing's changed?!# Navi shot back. #Are you mad?# She scrubbed at a last blood stain from the inside. #Too small to notice, my dorsal wings -- Link, you couldn't hide what you felt from me before, when even you didn't know. You think I can't tell how much you love her now?#

#It doesn't matter,# Link replied firmly. Guards stepped out of his way quickly, the thunder in his eyes clear to everyone around him.

#Now you listen to me, Hero--# Navi began.

#Hero! Hero! Like that matters!# Link roared across their bond. Navi fell silent, stunned. #You've heard these people, Navi. I'm nothing to them. Nothing. Less than a peasant. And even if that were different, do you have any idea what a 'pure-hearted Hero' really is? Do any of them?#

Navi snorted. A knight recoiled slightly. #You're good. You're good, the way Ganondorf is evil.#

#Hah!# Link replied contemptuously. #'Good!' Zelda, she's good! Me -- I'm a savage, Navi! I'm Farore's blade, her wolf! You know how many times I've regretted killing any of the soldiers, monsters or creatures we've fought?# Navi didn't answer, curling up in the part in his hair. #That's right. The answer would be 'none.' That's not natural, Navi. When one of the innocent is hurt, I hurt, sure. The soldiers, I've heard them talk about nightmares where they see the eyes of those they've killed.#

#Is that why you won't let the king knight you?# Navi asked quietly.

#That, and half his council would be outraged,# Link replied, his own mental voice softening. #Hyrule's tilting on its axis, and Daphnes needs all the stability he can get. Knighting a fifteen year old boy -- thirteen, when he started talking about it -- with no family? The chivalry would be furious.# Link sighed, a tear rolling down his cheek. #I can't risk that. Not for just myself.# His jaw clenched. #Besides, those aren't the only whispers I've heard.#

Navi thumped him on his head with a tiny fist. #You don't believe that garbage about Zelda!#

#Don't be ridiculous!# Link retorted hotly. #Anyone calls Zelda a tart around me, I'll feed him four feet of Fairy's Sword!# His confidence waned quickly, though. #She could do something, though. About...you know. If she wanted.# Navi gently rubbed the spot she'd hit him on, sighing. #She's grateful to me, Navi. She's my best friend, and she wants to help me. That's all there is.#

Again, Navi snorted. Link's cap quivered like a living thing. Lord Shad leaped back, Sir Ashei catching him with a gleam in her eyes. #Yeah. That's why she's mooning over you half the time. And I seem to remember an 'L' word in the Shadow Temple...#

#Slip of the tongue,# Link muttered. Navi giggled. #Okay then! If you're right, why doesn't she do something? Too sheltered? I bet Morpha'd have a thing or two to say about that. If she hadn't saved me from it, that is. Shy? Zelda? Who was that prince she told to get seared last month?#

Navi pouted, but this time, she was out of answers. Link sighed and gripped the door handle. Onox was one of those who thought he was dirt. Useful dirt, but dirt all the same. It doesn't matter. I will do what I must. At least Onox respects my skills as a warrior. There'd be no games in that room. Ganondorf was too dangerous, and too much was at stake. He opened the door and went in, leaving hopeless childhood dreams behind.

#We'll see about that,# Navi quipped.

#Shut up, Navi.#