by N Felts
the light,” she explains as an odd sort of pleasure creeps into her voice.
“It was a trap!” The boy suddenly declares, the ingenious ploy causing him to unwittingly place himself in the deathtrap. The sand continues to build up, and it becomes obvious he will be buried alive in a very short period of time. “What do I do?” He shouts, not understanding why Mai isn’t helping him.
“It only exists in the light. Just like them,” she reveals, prompting Rift to look beyond his new prison to the army awaiting his attempt to escape. Arranged in a disturbing array, dozens of iron knuckles stand guard, waiting for any sign of the boy cheating death in the carefully constructed trap. “The chest wasn’t empty,” Mai adds, finally appearing next to her ally.
“What? What do you mean?” He shouts, not upset with her as much as his situation.
“Look,” she smiles, pointing at an inconspicuous bar on the twisted cage. Merely glancing at the bar, the boy fails to understand what she is getting at, but taking a closer look, he finds he can see his reflection in the otherworldly material. His black hair has turned so white it now appears to glow. Tribal markings have appeared on his face, a triangular blue symbol pointing down on his forehead as well as sharp, spiderlike lines tracing across his cheeks and around his eyes in vivid red. His pupils have vanished completely giving him the appearance of some sort of demon. “What,” he starts, backing away from the image. “What’s happening to me?”
“The final piece isn’t a piece of armor at all,” Mai explains, speaking calmly and clearly while keeping her distance. “It is my very essence, and with it, we are able to become one.”
“Become one?” He asks, his worried expression failing to translate through his new appearance.
“Together we can wield the power of a God to destroy our enemies. Come to me, Rift,” she declares, opening her arms but remaining where she stands. Unsure exactly what it is she is offering, the boy simply stands and stares at his gorgeous goddess. The amount of sand begins to multiply exponentially as it spills over his feet, and begins to rise toward his knees. He cannot possibly know the grander schemes at play in the colossal game of control the goddesses are engaged in. He will probably never understand what it means to belong to a cause greater than himself. The one thing he knows for certain is that Mai is there for him. She has never let him down. She has never steered him wrong. As he subconsciously drifts closer to her warmth, he realizes he trusts her completely. Whatever happens from here, they will be together.
After her arms wrapped around him, Rift’s perception blurred significantly. A refreshing sort of fiery breeze rushed through his veins, leaving him in a state of utter bliss. He only saw brief glimpses of exploding dunes of sand, and metal breaking beneath his fist. Rushes of air and dismantled pieces of metal flash through his mind in rapid, confusing instants. His thoughts ceased to be his own, merging with the unfathomable wonderings of a deity too abruptly for his feeble intellect to understand. The entire process could have lasted seconds or hours, but all too soon, the sensation ends as Mai releases him from his temporary captivity within herself. The army of iron knuckles will lay around them, most of them thrashed to pieces. She will explain how he was inside of her, and her inside of him simultaneously. She will assure him it is okay if her thoughts overwhelmed his own. She will hold him in her arms like a long lost mother, speaking softly while staring into his absent eyes. Finally, she will softly hum the melody of the reeds in Hyrule Field. A final attempt to gently place Rift in a nostalgic state of comfort until he returns to her. All of it will prove excessive and meaningless. As the boy slowly returns to his standard state of mind, he will know only one want. One need. One love. To be one with her once again.
Forgotten Goddess
The setting sun casts a bizarre hue across Hyrule Field, the aura of the Twilight Realm acting as a twisting lens of darkness for the rays to emanate through. The last of the day’s light rotates and twinkles through the shifting essence radiating from the desert causing a panicked atmosphere across the land. A sense of overwhelming urgency highlighting the critical nature of unfolding events. The dark, dancing colors leap and flow throughout Link’s peripheral vision as the castle walls come into view. Navi’s insistence to act less hastily falls upon deaf ears as the hero rushes forward, throwing all other matters to the wind. For all his heroics, the town surrounding the castle has been reduced to such a state once again. Leaping across the moat, Epona pays little attention to the destruction passing by in a blur on either side of her, only focusing on the destination. The destroyed fountain at the center of town catches Link’s eye as he guides his horse around it, the carefully carved stone fittingly destroyed as the hero has failed to protect the people. Garo continues to haunt his subconscious, the tale of trials and failure having struck a chord with the hero in some long ignored corner of his mind. His senses suddenly sharpening, Link realizes the ambush before it ever actually begins.
An arrow screams past his head, fired from some shadowy enclosure amongst the trampled buildings lining the main street. Steering Epona on a more elusive course, the hero continues to charge into what is quickly becoming a downpour of feathered, wooden projectiles. Several Gerudo spring into the street ahead in a foolish attempt to cut off Link’s direct route toward the castle. Knowing his trusty steed could vault over women twice their height, the hero feels the faintest twinge of alarm when Epona abruptly missteps before continuing her gallop. A quick glance backward reveals what he had feared. She’s been hit. A deeply embedded arrow wobbles back and forth as she runs, firmly establishing its place within her thigh. Dozens of the shady assassins appear from every shadow and crevice overhead, each meticulously lining up an arrow with the fearless hero. Quickly snatching his shield from his back, Link deflects several more arrows as he is nearly out of harm’s way. Another misstep. Far more severe than the last as Epona is struggling to keep up the pace. Unable to bat away so many arrows fired at once, Link jerks on the reigns to duck down a side alley. Stubbornly, the horse charges forward despite her master’s commands, lowering her head as two more arrows strike her neck and side. The sword-wielding women guarding the path show no signs of backing down, aggressively advancing forward as the horse bears down on them. Not expecting the sudden jolt of speed, one unfortunate Gerudo is trampled as Epona charges right through her before her blade is ever swung. Several more futile shots are fired, landing well short of their goal as the hero advances up the path to the castle. Safe from the onslaught for the time being, Link convinces his horse to slow her pace as he guides her to a serene place just outside the castle gate.
“Is she alright? This doesn’t look good,” Navi murmurs, studying the damage but keeping her distance.
Immediately leaping from the saddle, Link grabs hold of the arrow embedded in his companions neck, praying he can remove it without causing any more damage. Fortunately, the stray shot hit nothing vital, piercing the muscle at an angle. Gently petting the weakening animal’s head, Link shoves the arrow through so the flared tip emerges on the other side. In seconds he breaks the arrow in half and removes it entirely, applying pressure to the wound as Epona falls to her knees in pain. Assessing the remaining wounds inflicted, the hero finally begins to understand the severity of the situation. Straining to climb back to her feet, the horse neighs loudly before falling to the ground, clearly in more pain now that the adrenaline has worn off. Agitated by her body refusing to do as it’s told, she continues to swing her head to and fro until Link grabs hold of her neck, hugging her tightly. The arrows are deep. Too deep to be removed safely. The arrow to her thigh is no cause for concern, but the two piercing her ribcage are draining the animal’s strength rapidly. As her breathing begins to shallow, Link gently hums her song as he rocks her in his arms. The melody Malon taught him so many years ago when he first visited Lon Lon Ranch. The song that brought them together. Though it sounds like a fond farewell at first, his tone drif
ts away from him as thoughts of vengeance pull his mind from the task at hand.
“Link?” Navi calls, growing even more concerned about her companion’s state of mind. “We can’t stay here.” Failing to hear her at all, the hero continues to rock slowly with his horse’s head dangling lifelessly in his arms. Watching with delight, his shadow bides its time as Epona slowly fades away. A pair of faintly glowing red eyes go unnoticed within the dark projection cast against a nearby wall, and in a display of unrivaled patience, they quickly fade away when Link eventually climbs to his feet.
“Link? Listen, we—“ Navy starts, unable to find the words when her companion’s expression becomes that of a stranger. A consistent breeze flows through the mountainous valley path leading to the castle, the setting sun casting the last of its augmented rays while the moon comes into view. Absently grabbing hold of the vines behind him with no particular sense of urgency, Link climbs to the top of the valley, briskly walking the short distance to the castle gate. Predictably, sentries posted at the massive gateway stand