The Legend of Zelda - Union of Evil Powers Ch 30

The Legend of Zelda: Union of Evil Powers

Chapter 30: The long trip

The group woke up several hours later after a good rest, although it was actually in the evening, almost late at night. Link, Saria and Zelda all stretched out together while yawning and decided to move to the nearby bathroom to get refreshed, soon to be followed by Nabooru and Ruto. Once the others had gone to refresh themselves, they made themselves ready to go on their trip.
“Isn’t it a bit odd for us to go travel at night?” Ruto asked.
“Normally yes, but with the kind of mission we’re undertaking, time is off the essence.” Rauru said.
“Point taken.”
“So how do we get out without alerting the others sleeping here?” Zelda asked.
“There’s a door in the hallway that leads to a veranda which is unlocked all the time. It’s right next to the stairway.” Link said as he geared up, giving his Gilded Master Sword a cool-looking twirl before putting it in its scabbard on his back without even looking.
Opening the door, Link first looked around in the hallway to see if no one was awake, before softly walking towards the door he talked about, leading the way for the others. True to his word, the door to the veranda was indeed unlocked, allowing the group to move out of the inn without moving down the stairs in the dark, presenting them with a view of Clock Town during the night. After everyone was on the veranda with Rauru closing the door, Link then simply jumped down from the veranda onto the street below, rolling forward as he landed, a common practice he frequently used to keep the motion in his travels while at the same time coming along unharmed from the jump, something which Saria and Zelda both imitated while Link waited for the others.
“So, where are we going?” Zelda asked.
“Remember that path that split up when we headed for the unknown land beyond the Woods of Mystery? I intend to investigate that path this time around to see if we can find some clues that will lead towards the area we’re truly looking for. If we use our horses to travel to as far as they can go within the Southern Swamp, it should save us on that part of the walking trip.” Link said.
Zelda nodded while Link mounted Epona, with Saria hopping on the horse behind him. After the others went on their horses as well, the group went on their way towards South Clock Town and from there to the exit which led into South Termina Field, heading for the Southern Swamp.

Watching the group leave were two of the Bomber’s Secret Society of Justice gang, who looked on in wonder why there were so many people moving on with Link and why Tatl and Tael followed them together with a third, for them unknown fairy. They wondered what the group was up to and where they were going at this time of night, but decided against following them. Still it was something to think about as they went on with their business, wondering if they would even come back…

Arriving in the Southern Swamp took about a few minutes, after the horses were simply allowed to run once out in Termina Field. As the group traveled through the field, they took notice of the pleasant night sky around them, noticing the many stars in the clear night sky.
“Wow, the area looks nice out here at night. I haven’t seen such a beautiful night sky before.” Ruto said, commenting on the view she has of the stars and everything around in the night sky.
Looking up, Link also saw the moon in the sky, which fortunately was at a far greater distance away as if it was in its normal orbit and also sported no creepy-looking face overall on its surface, much to his relief. Hopefully it would put the past nightmares he had regarding the celestial object to rest now that he was assured it would not come back down from its orbit to destroy everything. Saria sighed happily as she leaned against Link’s back, being at peace as well. Although initially startled, Link smiled as he looked a bit backwards towards her.
“Enjoying the trip?” Link asked his childhood friend.
“Indeed. It feels like being able to get some additional rest underway.” She replied.
Link giggled at this as the group arrived at the edge of the swamp, before dismounting the horses so they could have some additional rest, coupled with having a vast supply of fresh spring water from the swamp around as well.
“This looks nice enough to just walk through for adults…” Impa said, looking over the swamp as Link waded into the water until he had to swim, while Nabooru simply walked inside the water on her turn. Saria, Zelda and Ruto followed, with Ruto swimming along happily, before playfully splashing Link and Zelda with some water, causing them to yelp, before playfully retaliating. Nabooru, Impa, Darunia and Rauru watched Link, Saria, Zelda and Ruto swim around happily and carefree, being carefree in that this was perhaps the last time they would be able to have such entertainment or be able to relax. Impa sighed as she was observing an obviously happy Zelda splashing Link and Zelda with water, whom returned this in kind, but all of them were laughing. Ruto was simply swimming about like a fish, refreshing herself all the way. Impa remembered that each of the children as well as Nabooru were only recently resurrected and while she mused they too remembered that, it was as if they had put those thoughts aside to focus on the task… or better yet want to leave it behind them as quickly as possible. Given that they already had stared death in the eyes before, this came as no surprise to the Sheikah woman. The entire group did keep most information concerning the Future That Almost Was to themselves, but they were nonetheless happy and relieved when the true reason of Ganondorf’s approach to the King of Hyrule had been exposed, with Ganondorf himself being tried, judged and eventually sealed away to prevent him from coming back, but they didn’t anticipate Ganondorf somehow acquiring the Triforce of Power after all, as if fate played a cruel joke… Impa had been discussing things with Rauru, the Sage of Light. He agreed that, in the case that the Sages are needed back in the Chamber, Link and Zelda both were the only ones allowed to join them at any time, but this wasn’t just because Link wanted to be with them to spend time with them as he saw each of the Sages as great friends he made during his travels… While the Sages themselves represented the ancient creators of Hyrule, having brought forth the races that inhabit it after the Goddesses Din, Farore and Nayru had given shape to the realm and given them life, Link was seen as the protector of the lands, making sure that those who seek to harm the innocent and destroy everything in their path would be vanquished, with the Sages assisting him by lending him their powers and wisdom. Even though Link and Zelda were the only ones on the battlefield themselves during the initial final battle against Ganon himself, the Six Sages themselves have witnessed everything through Zelda's eyes and were ready to imprison the Evil King once the time was right. But now that the Evil King had broken free from his prison, using the alliance he currently maintained with Majora, Impa was certain that in the following days the battle for the fate of the lands would take place.
“Cry woe, destruction, ruin and decay. The worst is death... and death will have his day!” She said softly, which was out of hearing range of the others, just as they went out of the swamp and entered the area that led to the Magic Hag’s Potion Shop and to the entrance of the Woods of Mystery.

Cremia and Romani both had a safe trip back home, their ranch being still in one piece and none of the cattle disturbed nor any supplies destroyed. Suffice it to say, the two ranch sisters decided to call it a day and went to sleep, with Romani being happy in having made her sister proud, while Cremia was happy that her sister helped in defending the cargo. She was considering to hire personnel to look after the place in their absence. After all, being a ranch owner wasn’t easy for a young woman like her, especially when the younger sister was so far the only family left, which in effect forced Cremia not only to be the wise older sister towards Romani, but also play a form of a mother figure to her.
“Good night, sis.” Cremia then heard Romani say after putting her in bed.
“Good night to you too, sweet dreams, Romani.” Cremia said with a smile, after which Romani settled in bed to sleep, before Cremia got into her own bed as well, which was at the far side of Romani’s bed.
As Cremia laid in her bed, she couldn’t help but think of what has happened in the past few days, wondering if that nice young man with his four female friends were alright and would drop by again soon.

Entering the Woods of Mystery, Link, Saria, Zelda, Ruto and Nabooru led the group to where the T-Junction was in the path, remembering their trip through the woods towards the unknown land beyond it. Upon reaching it, Link went up to the other path instead, which seemed to go up in a three-quarter circle as if it was like a stairway or something. Moving up the path, they found themselves entering a large meadow with another path going up as the other areas led to a dead end towards a cliff, which in turn gave them an overview of the Swamp and the Great Bay area in the far distance.
“That’s funny; this looks nowhere near any of the fields we’ve been in so far…” Link said, blinking at the lush landscape around.
“Yeah. I find it suspicious that there’s no enemies around here…” Zelda said.
“Don’t jinx it, but I do agree with you on that.” Impa said.
Carefully moving towards the path that was going up, Link found himself having to climb up certain parts to eventually reach a cliff with a small building on the other side, connected to the mainland using a bridge. The building itself was sealed shut, but the wall had a big crack in its center.
“Oh dear… it looks like a dead end…” Ruto said.
“Allow me.” Darunia said, taking out a Powder Keg he managed to take from the outpost in the forest after the whole battle against the Stalfos Commander and lit its fuse, taking it towards the wall and put it down before moving backwards.
Right away the others went to look for cover or at least covered their ears as the Powder Keg detonated, destroying the cracked wall and giving the group access to the building in the first place. Smiling, the group continued onward and entered the building, which led into a stone tunnel.

Both Dark Link and Dark Zelda were brooding as they were left in charge of the tower during Ganondorf’s absence as they had to recuperate from the injuries they suffered by the hands of their pure-hearted counterparts, giving more of a reason to kill them and take their places in turn. But they knew that this wouldn’t be easy at all, given what they have gone through now… Then they heard footsteps approaching them.
“Who’s there?” Dark Zelda asked.
“Ah, there you are. I was told I’d find you up here…” another female voice said, addressing them.
As Dark Link and Dark Zelda looked up, they could see a girl approaching. The girl herself had the same color palette as they had, being dark gray to pitch black all over her body, from hair to toe, save only for those blood-red eyes. But the striking appearance was her body overall, wearing a shirt with striped, long sleeves and striped collar, a pair of shorts, boots that ran up to halfway her calves and hair that had a few spikes forward from behind her ears as well as a headband on top of her head…… being a full, dark copy of the Forest Sage, Saria.
“Dark Saria’s the name,” she said, “I was instructed to meet you so I could join you.”
Both Dark Link and Dark Zelda looked at each other, before turning back to Dark Saria.
“Well, considering you probably have an objective similar to ours, you’re in.” Dark Link said.
“Thank you. So, what are you planning?” Dark Saria asked.
“Once these wounds have healed over properly, we have decided to train together. Apparently our goody-two-shoes selves have become stronger than initially anticipated, having bested us in combat.” Dark Zelda said.
“It’s a shame that it had to happen. But with some assistance, I’m sure we’ll have the upper hand soon enough…” Dark Saria said, grabbing a small plant which promptly withered into dust within her grasp.

After moving on a stone path from the tunnel, Link and the Sages arrived in a different landscape as they stopped next to a large tree to look around. Solid paths of grass and stone were spread over cliffs, connected by solid, tough wooden bridges, overlooking the landscape of what appeared to be a different side of the Southern Swamp and Great Bay area. It was a totally different sight as it was high above the actual normal ground, as they had a perfect view of the surroundings below.
“Wow, this is really different than what we know…” Link said, looking around as he was in awe of the surroundings.
“Yeah, I never thought something like this was even present here…” Zelda said.
“There’s a lot of things that remain unknown if we don’t move around to explore.” Impa said, causing Zelda to playfully punch her in the arm.
Heading towards one of the wooden bridges next to another tree, the group took it slower and went one by one.
“These bridges look tough, but there’s no railing around them. We’d better watch our step.” Link said, moving along carefully.
“Aye. One wrong move and we’d do ourselves in instead.” Zelda said, nodding as she followed.
The group then walked over a grass path that had a safe, stone wall from a cliff to the left, but was completely open to the right, which not only gave the group a good view of the vast forest area that littered the South side of Termina, but also offered a different sight on the majestic  Stone Tower area, identifying also the Ikana Canyon area below as they moved over an arc that spanned over the path towards the direction of Ikana Canyon itself.
“Something doesn’t seem right; I’ve never seen this area before…” Link said.
“Perhaps some people or even Ganondorf and Majora’s troops could have laid this out over some time…” Zelda said.
“I guess you’re right. It would explain why the wood of the bridges here appears still somewhat fresh and feels very tough in the first place.” Link said, nodding as the group moved onward, eventually arriving at an area that had several large stone slabs that were laid out in a circle, offering a greater area for the group to walk on.
“Well, in any case it’s nice and calm here too.” Saria said.
“Yeah, we could hang out in such a place.” Ruto added.
“Indeed. Perhaps we can go here to enjoy the sun or just enjoy the sights in good weather.” Nabooru said with a smile.
Link also smiled, taking a moment to enjoy a fresh breeze that passed over the area, before continuing his way towards a stone arc that he passed underneath, leading to lush field at one end with green grass all over the ground. Directly ahead was a well and further up ahead was a lone house.
“Hm? There is a house here?” Link asked, scratching his head in confusion.
“Who would live in a place like this? Not that I’m against it, I’m just confused.” Ruto said.
“Only one way to find out.” Darunia said, as the group approached the house.

Ganondorf and Majora finished their preparations inside the other temple, making sure that it had to be ventured through by their ‘pursuers’ in order to ‘make progress’. While there were a few things that required the group to pass through, the whole temple by itself served as nothing more than a diversion that the two vile beings needed to springboard their own, final preparation to finally invade and conquer Termina, using the group’s own plan to strike from a different angle and location altogether, as their forces have been steadily building up in the conquered Pirates’ Fortress. While the Gerudo there did receive a scolding for losing the people they were pursuing, they were surprisingly left alive, just being sent to do some more cumbersome duties as punishment for their failure. Still, it didn’t stop them from allowing enemy forces to build up in their fortress, using a new, fresh set of these airships that were created to first take over the Great Bay area, from where they could launch an invasion of Clock Town from the West side once a decent foothold in the Great Bay was secured.
“Are you sure that this is going to work?” Majora asked.
“Majora, once those pests manage to even complete the area, it would already be too late to save Termina from being invaded and conquered. Considering the size of this place would be more of an advantage to us rather than the other way around. While they believe that they can deliver a serious blow to us, we deliver an equal one by invading Termina as a whole. They’d be at the wrong place at the wrong time when that happens.” Ganondorf said.
“You got me there. So, what do you have planned for them in this temple anyway?” Majora asked.
“That’s for me to know and for them to find out… they will see soon enough. Let’s say that this temple as a whole will make the Fire Temple seem like child’s play…” Ganondorf said, smirking.

Upon approaching the house, the group saw that someone was standing further up ahead, close to the cliffside. It appeared to be an elderly man with a moustache, with gray/white hair at the sides, wearing a blue robe. He was clearly enjoying the view. The group approached him cautiously.
“Um, excuse me, sir?” Link then asked, causing the man to turn around.
“Hm? So many visitors at once, I did not expect this. What can I do for you, young man?” The man asked kindly.
“We’re looking for the entrance to an outpost that belongs to our enemies. We have heard that this outpost is located somewhere between the areas of Snowhead and Ikana Canyon…” Zelda said.
“Hmmm, I have indeed felt the presence of evil forces in this area, although they did not bother me, as if they were specifically moving to the area you spoke of. However, there is something you must know; the area you spoke of houses two temples which are hidden amongst a vast network of lava rivers and lakes in that area. You cannot reach them unless you acquire an item that allows you to create platforms on the surface of any liquid body, such as water and lava. The item lies hidden within the starting area itself. A few other travelers did manage to explore the area in a distant past, hence my knowledge of how to cross the area.” The old man said.
“I see. It would make sense though; otherwise nobody would even know about it.” Rauru said.
“Indeed. I assume you are here to cleanse the area of the evil that has infested it?” The old man asked.
“That we are, sir.” Saria said.
“Very well. Follow me, I will lead you to the entrance.” The old man said, moving off towards the well with the group in tow.

Moving onto the well, the man then used a rope set in a block and tackle to lower the platform the group stood on down, effectively making it an elevator of some sort. Upon arriving at the bottom, the man got off first, using a lantern to lead the group into a cave.
“Wow, this place definitely lives up to the mystery.” Link said, looking around while following the man as he walked towards another bridge, which in turn gave the group a few of the far side of Ikana Canyon, with the mountain area of Snowhead further up ahead.
“Yeah, it’s like the area outside here is shrouded in it, just like that land beyond the Woods of Mystery.” Zelda said.
The man led them through another stone arc before arriving at a stone area that held a wooden platform, which looked like another elevator.
“Go up there and you’ll see the entrance to the area you seek around the corner. Make sure you are prepared well.” The man said.
“We will, sir. Thank you.” Zelda said as the group went on the platform, which lifted up to take them to their destination.
“No problem. May your journey be safe.” He said before he left and the group went towards the entrance of the sanctuary they were looking for.
The group soon found it, the entrance looking like an opened gate with a staircase in front of it inside the stone wall.
“Well, looks like this must be it.” Nabooru said.
The others nodded, before moving up the stairway together…