by N Felts
leading out of the room, Rift’s full on sprint is cut short when the Stalfos march into the room with ill intent. Quickly moving into an attack formation, the pair of skeletal warriors begin to circle the boy, revealing they are not mindless drones, but capable fighters. With the water level quickly rising toward them all, it becomes obvious he has no choice but to fight.
“We can take them now,” Mai declares with a stoic determination. Unable to feel a fraction as confident, Rift takes an awkward battle pose just the same. Wasting no time, the first warrior charges forward, its bones and armor clattering while sheading the filth they were recently buried in. Rearing its spear back for a powerful thrust, Rift sees no opportunity to escape. “Left!” Mai demands, her passionate tone while issuing the single word instructions spurring at Rift’s insistent indecision. Ducking left, the spear hits nothing but air, lingering over Rift’s defensive position. Weakly attempting to bat the weapon away, a backhanded slap produces an explosive result when the spear is broken in two. Confused by the extraordinary power of the ordinary looking gauntlets, Rift stares bewildered at his forearm and considers his strength while the warrior angrily throws what is left of his weapon to the ground. The Stalfos proves far from defeated, the bitter humanoid lunging forward with a bony swipe aimed at the boy’s head. “Right!” Mai warns, encouraging Rift to sway right, and dodge the attack with ease. Wanting to test his power once more, Rift jabs at the skeleton’s overextended elbow from his advantageous position.
A blast of shattered bone leaves the wounded warrior stumbling backward, grabbing at its missing appendage in disbelief. Having never been the aggressor in a fight before, Rift finds himself eagerly searching for weaknesses. Mere thoughts of violence finally taking form now that he has the capability to execute. “Strike!” Mai instructs, the skeleton in an obvious state of weakness. Ducking forward, Rift dashes a half step before throwing a lunging punch of his own. The decrepit armor is obliterated along with the undead guardian’s ribs and spine. Flailing through the air, it lands back on the stone floor with a loud crunch, never to become animated again. Satisfied with his victory, Rift is taken off guard when Mai suddenly shouts, “Right!” Reacting at the last possible moment, he spins right just as the sneaky ghoul attempts to impale him. Certain he had the boy’s number, the Stalfos nearly loses its balance when the bladed tip of its weapon strikes the stone floor instead of the boy’s back. Finding himself completely behind the overzealous enemy, Rift sees its straitened leg exposed as it attempts to regain its equilibrium. Stepping into a downward hook, the skeleton’s knee is destroyed, sending it tripping onto the ground. Needing no command this time around, Rift leaps into the air, descending upon the helpless warrior with a heavy punch. His fist doesn’t stop until it has cracked the stone floor, the Stalfos’ ancient skull smashed to pieces in its wake with a satisfying crunch.
“Nice!” Mai cheers, awestruck with how quickly he is adapting to combat. The rushing water pours over the platform, creeping over Rift’s sandals in a warm stream. Wasting no time, he runs for higher ground, but is forced to descend the narrow staircase to exit. The small room is rapidly filling with water, the uncooperative floor doing nothing to hasten his escape. Halfway across, the water has reached his waist, and continues to rise faster than he would care. The muddy floor and thick, grimy water leave him running in slow motion, like a dream in which his only aspiration is to run as quickly as possible. Almost to the door, a sudden gush of the pale green liquid splashes onto the sole lantern, leaving the room in darkness. The water splashes against his chin, and Rift still hasn’t found the first step leading to salvation. “Almost there,” Mai assures him, adding, “Don’t give up!” Dipping his head under, he pulls his weightless leg out of the unforgiving floor, ready to succumb to fear in the pitch black tomb. Finally planting his foot on the staircase he breathes a gasp of relief once he breeches the water’s surface. Climbing from the death trap on his hands and knees, he shakes his soaked arms briefly before searching for his next objective. The water doesn’t pause for an instant, already pouring up through the open doorway and invading the large room. The entire temple suddenly shifts its weight, the room Rift has just exited breaking off completely. With gravity focused on the front door now, the water doubles its pace, flooding the room rapidly as the entire temple wobbles atop the massive swamp.
“The door to the second floor is locked,” Mai reveals, trying her best to remain calm. “We need to find a key before the water catches up to us. Nodding in agreement, Rift doesn’t realize Mai’s calm demeanor is the only thing keeping him from panicking and making a critical mistake. A shorter staircase to his left leads to a large room full of fallen pillars and overgrown plants. The extraordinary amount of debris and foliage makes it look as if a giant wrecking ball smashed its way through centuries ago. Climbing atop one of the few pillar bases which still remains upright, rift spots a small chest at the far end of the room upon a pedestal.
“There!” He announces, quickly beginning his trek toward the treasure.
“Something’s fishy about this,” Mai absently responds. Climbing through the maze of debris, Rift reaches another standing pillar, but can find no clear path through to the chest. The old, circular slabs of stone lie piled into a wall with a plethora of plants and trees making the obstruction impassable. “Need a hand?” Mai asks, almost laughing at her own dumb joke. Realizing what she’s getting at, Rift gains his footing and leaps forward. “Here!” She shouts, grabbing hold of the boy’s glowing palm and whisking him over the wall of debris. Landing in front of the chest, Rift smiles and quickly trots toward the pedestal. An iron gate blasts up from unseen holes surrounding the treasure, the convenient chest suddenly inaccessible behind the strong bars. The new obstacle quickly becomes uninteresting when a howl echoes through the room.
Growling with every breath, a Wolfos creeps up to the ledge overlooking the desolate area. Its pale grey fur is strikingly contrasted by its vivid yellow eyes. Spotting its prey, the agile beast leaps from pillar to pillar before landing directly in front of Rift, its razor sharp claws biting into the stone floor as if the sturdy stone were chalk. Almost paralyzed with fear, Rift takes his battle stance, waiting for Mai’s instruction. The feral creature lets out a howl as it suddenly pounces with a swipe of its claws. “Left!” Mai shouts, giving Rift significantly less time to react compared to his previous battle. Shifting left, the sharp claws scrape against his right gauntlet, knocking him off balance for the moment. Continuing the assault, the four-legged foe dashes forward in a Z pattern in order to confuse Rift into dodging the wrong way. “Left!” Mai shouts once again. Able to dodge in time, Rift catches a glimpse of an opening as the animal dives past him. Far too small a window to capitalize on just yet, he stands his ground, waiting for the next assault. The beast seems to realize it has underestimated its prey, circling the boy while bearing its threatening teeth. Its patience wearing thin, the animal fakes a couple more attacks before diving in for the kill. “Right!” Mai yells, growing more accustomed to the beast’s unorthodox attacks. Rift can feel the hot burst of breath as the snap of teeth misses the mark once again. An awkward uppercut to the creature’s ribs sends it sprawling into a nearby pillar. “Strike!” Mai excitedly commands, seeing the opportunity to end the battle. Dashing in for the kill, Rift is surprised when the injured mutt quickly finds its footing and scampers out of the room.
The tall, iron bars fall back into the ground about the small chest, giving Rift access. Curiously, Rift moves back toward the chest, pondering the purpose of the brief trial. Flipping the lid back reveals what he had expected, a small silver key. “Alright!” Mai exclaims, still sounding mildly worried. “Let’s get out of here.” With a couple helpful hands from his mystic companion, Rift makes his way back into the main foyer. The water hasn’t slowed down for a moment, the entire room quickly consumed by the insipid, green waves. Already threatening the staircase he now s
tands upon, the path to the second floor lies beneath the ever increasing water level. “We’re running out of time,” Mai announces, attempting to spur a little more initiative from the boy. Simply standing and staring at the short distance between his position and the staircase leading to the second floor, he hangs his head in shame.
“I-I-I,” he stutters, embarrassed by yet another pathetic declaration.
“What? You can swim can’t you?” She states more than asks. Rift’s silence is all the confirmation she needs as the steadily rising water begins to splash over the top of the staircase. Slowly backing away, Rift feels the familiar sting of fear and disappointment. He would run, and he would hide, praying for anyone to come and save him. “Hey, we don’t back down from a challenge anymore,” she points out, sensing his reservations. “We can’t save Hyrule if we can’t get past a little bit of water. Trust me, we can do this.” Absently nodding, Rift is only half listening, the water now pooling atop the small platform connected to the sunken