The Temple of Din is the most famous monument in Holodrum. Home not only to the greatest church for worshiping Din in the world, it also contains much knowledge written in languages of old. Scholars are working day and night to translate them. Four smaller shrines to Dinis servants, the Season Spirits, are also located there
-From "The History of Holodrum"
Chapter 2: A Hero's Work Is Never Done
"Hey, Diran!"
A man came running over to them, "Are these the kids you found passed out?"
"Yes, they are." Diran said, "Link, Saria, Kalo, this is Rumal, the leader of our little troupe."
"Pleased to meet you." Link said.
"Well hello there boy." Rumal said, shaking Linkis hand. "You were lucky that Diran found you, sheis the nicest girl in Holodrum!"
Diran blushed, "Rumal! You flatter me." She laughed.
"I believe you." Saria grinned, "Weire glad for the help, plus Iive never been to a carnival before!"
"Well there Miss, Iill have to make sure you see one!" Rumal patted Saria on the shoulder, "You know, you kids speak in a pretty strange accent, you know that?"
"Really?" Saria paused, trying to figure out what an accent was…she did notice that Diran and Rumal did talk in a similar way, one that sounded different then any she had heard before.
"Thatis because weire from Hyrule." Link explained.
"Hyrule? Never been there before." Rumal said, "Well, now I know how Hyrulans talk!" He chuckled. "Well, you nice kids can stay here for a while. After all, you both look pretty lost."
"Thanks." Link nodded, "Until we figure out what to do, weill take you up on that offer."
"Well," Rumal said, "I have to go, see you kids later!"
"He seems like a nice fellow." Kalo commented.
"Hey Diran," Link asked, "What exactly do you do here?"
"Oh, I dance." Diran smiled, "You want to see me practice?"
Link shrugged, but Saria was a bit more enthusiastic in her response, "Sure! Iid love to!"
"Youire a lot more excitable then your friend, you know that?" Diran winked.
"Oh, heis just a little anti-social." Saria nudged Link good-naturedly, "Arenit you, Linky?"
"Havenit I asked you not to call me that?" Link muttered, as Diran giggled.
"But youire so cute when your all flustered about it!" Saria giggled and kissed Link on the cheek.
Diran laughed at the sight, "Well, arenit you two the sweetest little pair." She began walking, "Iill take you to where I practice."
"Right-o!" Saria cheerfully followed, Link stood there for a moment, his face red.
"Sheis trained you well." Kalo commented, clearly amused by the whole thing.
"Oh shut up." Link muttered.
In many ways, the country of Holodrum is a beautiful place. It was a bit colder then Hyrule, being further north. Not much wide open space either, the land was dotted with small forests and hills. Holodrum is a very rocky country.She hated the place.
Not because of anything wrong with it, it just wasnit home. As she moved through the land, she often wondered why she had came here. "Oh yeah, because Iim a coward." she muttered, "Too scared to face my mistakes, too much of an idiot to realize that I should never have left in the first place." Sitting down on a tree stump, she looked into the distance. "Why did I think my mission was finished? It doesnit make sense, I never should have abandoned him…I hope heis safe…"
A few tears fell down her cheeks, like almost every day, she cried.
Shadow winced in pain as he exited the Void, he was still very weak, even with two weeks to recover. But he wasnit surprised by that, after all, he had only been blasted with a spell that had caused time to literally collapse around him, he still couldnit figure out how Kasuto could have learned that spell, though he had his suspicions…"Alright, this is where I sensed the troubling power…" Shadow muttered, "Lets see…" he moved through the thick foliage, "Why do they always have to pick the goddess-cursed areas that are impossible to move through?" As he traveled through the vines and ferns, he noticed that the closer he got to his destination, the deader the plants seemed to become. "This canit be a good omen…" Shadow finally came to a clearing, "What the…?"
A man was lying in the middle of the circular patch of dead grass, he was curled up in a fetal position, and was making a disturbing sound that was a cross between a laugh and a sob. Shadow walked over to the man, "Um, are you alright, sir?" he asked.
The man stopped making that disturbing laugh/sob, he turned and looked at Shadow, a huge grin on his face. Shadow recoiled when he saw the manis eyes, because contained in them was something that truly frightened him.
Madness.
"Never better." the man giggled, then suddenly began screaming in agony. Because a horrible light built up round him, it grew and grew, the twisted, perverse color nearly blinding Shadow. A pillar of that light sprouted from the man, before suddenly exploding outwards, knocking Shadow back. Gale force winds knocked down trees, while Shadow struggled to keep himself from being sent flying.
Finally, the storm stopped. Shadow pulled himself up, the man was no longer there. Instead there was a huge creature, taking on the basic appearance of a man, golden spiked armor covered his whole body, in his right hand was a spiked mace as big as Shadow. The thing laughed insanely. "Yes, I, Onox, General of Decay, have never been better." Onox looked up at the sky, "Soon, my beloved Din, you will be mine." Onox then started walking, carrying with him that stench of death.
"No…" Shadow whispered, even as he struggled to stand up, "Must…warn…Link…" But Shadow had lost to much strength, he passed out.
They were in a small tent, waiting for Diran to get ready. Link, Saria, and Kalo were sitting on some chairs (Well, Link and Saria were. Kalo was sitting on Sariais head.) While Diran was searching for a record. "Ah ha!" she said, pulling it out of a shelf. "Hereis some music I can dance to, normally I have live musicians to dance to, but for practicing I make do with records.""Records?" Saria asked.
"Like a Pictograph, only it records sound instead of an image." Link explained quickly.
"Here we go!" Diran placed the record in the player, and turned it on. She moved to the center of the room. As the music began to play, she began to dance. It was a lively tune she moved to, with rapid, joyful movements. Despite the speed at which Diran danced, they were still so fluid that time seemed to stop around her. The music grew in strength, and with it four rings of light formed around Diran. One was green, one yellow, one orange, and one blue. They spun around her as the dance grew in pace. The air became filled with the strange magic she used. It was one of the most beautiful sight they had ever seen. Finally, the music stopped, and with it the dance ended. Diran smiled, her whole body was covered with sweat. The three exploded into applause.
"Wow! That was amazing!" Kalo cheered.
"How did you do that?" Saria asked.
"Heh, pretty good." Link said.
Diran grinned modestly, "Iim glad you enjoyed it."
"It was really nice." Saria said, "Iim guessing you dance in front of people?"
"Yup." Diran said, "I dance to entertain people. I have a lot of dances, one for every situation imaginable."
"Those lights were a nice touch." Link said.
"Yeah…" Diran said quietly.
It was then that a the whole room became lit up by a different source of light. A light of a color that none of them had ever seen before came shining through the window. Quickly running toward the door, Link opened it and peered outside. There was a huge pillar of light in that unnatural color that defied description. For a moment the whole sky became that nightmarish shade, an oily color that filled everyone who gazed upon it with fear. Finally, it faded, yet it left behind a heavy feeling of dread.
"That canit be good." Link said.
Maple had managed to get her broom into the air. (After the thirty-second try.) Now she had seen the strange pillar, looking at where it had been for a moment, she closed her eyes and chanted. "Not my problem. Not my problem. Not my problem!" She opened her eyes and looked at the dead clearing, with trees knocked down around it. To make it seem even more inviting there was something walking through the forest that was causing everything to die. "Why are I still here, itis not my problem!" Maple told herself again, only to float closer to the clearing. Now she could see a black shape standing out against the brown. "Iim an idiot." Maple muttered, finally landing. "Hey, are you OK?" she asked, it looked like someone a little younger then her, though the black cloak kept her from getting a good assessment of his appearances. "Canit even tell if itis a cute guy…" she grumbled. Walking closer to the person, she noticed that the cloak did a really good job of hiding the persons looks. "Hello?" she reached down to pull the hood back, only to find the fabric extend like a tentacle around her hand. "What the? Itis alive?" Great, just what she needed, a living, magical cloak. "Hey there, I just want to help the guy wearing you!" The cloth loosened itself from her. "Thanks." she said."Sacred flames, bring thy warmth, make this injured person whole! Warm Embrace!" Maple cast the healing spell, the warm light repairing the damage done.
"Unng.." Maple now realized that it was a boy, "Link…" he muttered.
"You OK?" Maple asked
"Iim fine," he muttered, "I just got blasted by an evil force and can barely stand…Iim just peachy!"
"Good!" Maple said, ignoring the guyis sarcasm, "So, whatis your name? Iim Maple." She reached for his hood, only for the cloth to wrap around her again. "Can you call off your clothing? I wanna see your face, OK?"
"Fine," To Mapleis surprise, the hood didnit pull back, she just could suddenly see his face. "Happy now?" He had pale skin, silver hair fell down around his face, with bright red eyes looking out at her.
Maple raised an eyebrow, "You know, most people hide their faces because theyire ugly." She had to admit, the boy did look rather nice, though he looked a bit young, a boy who was just starting to enter puberty.
"I have my reasons." he said, "Iid prefer you not ask me about them."
"Got it." Maple nodded, "You never did tell me your name though." she grinned
"I…donit have a name. Iim just a shadow, you can call me that." He looked down at the ground, saddened.
"Shadow?" Maple asked, "That name sucks" she said flatly.
Shadow gave Maple a dry stare, "I didnit ask you to insult my taste in titles."
"You didnit ask me to heal you, though I did that too." Maple grinned, "What do you have to say to that, bub?"
Shadow didnit say anything, instead, he just stood up, gritting his teeth as he did. He finally stood up and looked around, "Alright, I need to head that way." Shadow started walking in the direction that whatever had caused the plants to die had gone.
"Wait, where are you going?" Maple asked.
"I need to find out whatis going on." Shadow said, as he took slow steps toward his destination
"Are you insane? Something out there kills plants just by being near them!" Maple said, "You can barely walk."
"I donit care." Shadow said, "Thank you for you help Maple, but I can handle things from here."
Maple watched as Shadow walked away, "Whatever, I did my good deed for the day, if you get yourself killed, itis not my problem."
Shadow smirked at her, "Iill remember that."
Maple shook her head, "Whatever, good luck, I guess."
"Iill repay you later!" Shadow said.
"Iill hold you to that." Maple grinned, before taking off on her broom again.
Then she fell to the ground.
"Not one word." Maple growled, as Shadow looked on with amusement.
"I didnit say anything." Shadow said.
People were worried about the strange thing that had appeared. Despite this, two Kokiri were investigating."What do you think it was?" Saria asked.
"Probably what we were sent here to take care of." Link looked around, "Saria, I want you to be careful."
"Whatis going on?" Diran asked, running over to them, "Why are you two out here? Something is happening, I think it might be dangerous."
"Believe me," Kalo said, "Weill be fine."
A rumbling was heard.
"Whatis that?" Saria whispered, a forest on the edge of the meadow, a line of trees could be seen dieing. "Something is killing everything around it." she said, panicked.
Link reached for his sword, only to remember that he had left his equipment at his house, "Damn!" Link realized they had a problem, "Saria, do you have the Gilded Sword?" he asked.
"Yes," Saria said, "I left it at the tent were I was resting."
"Well get it! I need a sword and thatis the only one weive got!" Link felt himself tensing up, a fight was coming.
"Link," Diran sounded worried, "you donit have to-"
"Just go! Both of you!" Link ordered, "Please, I can handle this."
"Come on Diran," Saria grabbed the silver-eyed womanis hand, "Letis get some weapons…" She pulled Diran away.
"Just…be careful Link." Diran said, "Iim sure Saria wouldnit like it if you got hurt."
"Iill be fine." Link said, marching towards the forest.
The dead plants finally parted, as the cause of them marched into the open. Link was the only other living thing that stood between the cause and itis goal.
The huge man in gold armor was emitting a poisonous aura of some kind. Link had encountered it before, demons often emitted the same sort of thing. All it took was some will power to avoid being affected by it. So Link stood there, a neutral look on his face, staring at the strange man.
The man in gold stopped, he stared at Link for a moment, "Youire mighty brave boy!" he said, "Not many people can stand before Onox and not run in terror!" Onox laughed.
"Meh, Iive seen scarier." Link said, "Though, Onox, that is your name, right? Anyway, Onox, I have to ask why the hell youire here. Iim guessing by the fact that you came shortly after a light the color of hell appeared and that everything you get near dies that youire not coming for the carnival."
Onox paused, "Well, boy, Iive come for Din."
That threw Link off for a moment, "Well, ask one of the locals where the nearest church is." He suggested.
Onox laughed, "Very funny boy! Iim not looking for religion, Iim looking for Din! The Oracle of Earth! The Avatar of the Goddess!"
"An Avatar of Din?" Link asked, "I still have this bad feeling about you, so Iill have to ask you to leave."
Now Onox got mad, "How dare you tell me what to do boy! What is your name? I want to know it before I crush you for your insolence!" He marched forward, what little of his face that Link could see was twisted in rage.
Link just smirked, "My name is Link."
Onox stopped, "Link?" he asked, "You are Link? You are the one I was warned about? You are the Hero of Time? The Bringer of Death? The Soul Sealer? The Slayer of Gods and Demons? You are just a child!"
Link laughed, "Well, what do you know? A crazy lunatic with world destroying plans has actually heard of me!"
"I refuse to believe that a mere child like you can pose any threat to me!" Onox growled, "If you continue to stand in my way, you will die!"
Link just tilted his head to one side, "I highly doubt that I will die today." He said casually, "Onox, I deal with idiots like you on a monthly basis, as far as Iim concerned, your just another spot on my record. So, bring it on."
Without another word, Onox charged, Link just stood there. Onox threw a punch, but Link ducked under the blow. Link then rolled underneath Onoxis legs, he then hit Onox with a punch that could shatter stone. Onox was not amused, and spun around at a speed that defied his size. Link ducked three more punches before getting close and hitting Onox with a powerful kick. Onox roared in rage, throwing a very powerful punch. He finally got a blow in. Link went flying, slamming through a cotton candy stand.
"Well, boy, what do you have to say to that?" Onox taunted.
There was a green flash of light, and Link appeared in the air above Onoxis face, which promptly got kicked. Hard.
"I say: I bet you look better without teeth." Link smirked as he landed onto the ground. Link stopped smirking when Onoxis hand wrapped around his neck.
"You are an irritating little whelp." Onox snarled, lifting Link into the air, "Iim going to enjoy crushing your windpipe."
Link just looked an Onox.
"Whatis the matter boy? Canit breathe?" Onox laughed, he looked down and saw Link grab his arm, "Struggle all you want, thereis nothing you can do!"
Link seemed to disagree, Link began grunting, as he pulled on Onox. To Onoxis surprise, he was actually pulling Onox into the air! With a battle cry, Link flipped himself around, even as he starting to fall, he threw Onox over him, causing the gold armored warrior to slam against the ground. Link, using the momentum he generated, flung himself into the air. Onox looked up and saw Link above him, a ball of light forming in his hands. "Hey Onox," Link said cheerfully, "this is the part where you burn in Hell!" Link threw his hands forward, and with it came the pillar of godly flame. "Dinis Fire!"
Dinis Fire, among the most powerful magic in the world, a non-elemental force that could burn away a soul. It hit Onox dead on.
Link landed with a grin on his face, with a wave of his hand the flare focused, becoming a massive spiral rising higher and higher.
It was at that point when Saria returned, holding the Gilded Kokiri Sword in her hands. Diran was following closely behind her.
"Oh, quickly, give me the sword!" Link demanded, "Before he gets out of this!" He pointed to the cyclone of fire behind him.
"What in the name of Nayru did you do?" Diran shouted, looking at all the damage that had been caused be the fight.
"Itis nothing!" Link said, "I promise Iill-" Link suddenly fell to the ground as a giant mace slammed into his back.
A black wind blew away Links spell, and Onox was reveled standing there, holding the mace. He marched over to Link, slamming a foot on the Kokiri. "What where you saying about me burning in Hell?" he asked mockingly.
"Unng…" Link struggled to pull himself up, but Onox merely pushed his foot down harder.
"You dared to stand in my way, and then you actually thought you could hurt me!" Onox snarled, his face filled with hatred. He dug his foot deeper into Linkis back, "Iim going to enjoy killing you."
"Link!" Saria drew her sword, a moment later it flared green, as Makan took control. "Let him go!" she charged, ready to bring down her blade.
Onox simply held out his hand, and smoke that was that foul color extended around Saria. "I have no time for you, little brat." he growled, "Iill kill you later."
Saria was choking, the horrible smoke made it impossible to breath, she fell to the ground and started gagging.
"Saria…" Link mumbled, things were stating to get fuzzy for him, he knew he would be passing out in a few minutes.
"No…" Diran whispered.
Onox looked at Diran, "Yes…" he said, "My beloved Din. I have come to claim you!"
Diranis, or rather, Dinis, eyes widened, "No! I wonit let you!" She quickly held out her hands, as white fire built up around them. But the foul smoke that Onox had released moved from Saria to Din, within a minute, she was gagging instead.
"Donit worry, it wonit kill you, no, not you." Onox turned to Link, "But now…to finish you off."
"Silent Embrace."
A white light formed around Onox, magic collapsed around him. Onox thrashed and screamed, yet there was no sound. Finally, the spell faded, and Onox stumbled off Link.
Link found himself able to breathe again, though he still couldnit stand. Struggling to move, he managed to get on his knees. He then looked around, Saria was unconscious, Din(?) looked like she was going pass out soon. That left whoever had saved him, Link looked behind him, where he saw his savior.
It was Shadow. He was hovering in the air, his whole body tensed. He looked ready to kill. "I," he snarled, "will not let you cause other people to suffer!" With that Shadow moved in a blur of white fire. Instantly appearing in front of Onox, Shadow struck with a magically enhanced blow. Onox was blown back, he landed, only to burst into flames.
Onox looked up at Shadow, and laughed. "What do you know about suffering? I suffer daily! I shall end my suffering now!" Onox screamed, and more of that evil smoke formed around him, it spiraled like a tornado, engulfing everything. "Once I have my beloved Din, I shall make a place where I shall suffer no more!" Link felt his senses being fogged, everything started to go black. Great, I really am going to pass out.
Link fainted.
"What the hell?" she asked, "Thereis enough power there to create a mountain." She looked over to the direction she had sensed the clash of two powers, one good, and one evil. "Alright, Iim just too damn curious." She took to the air, following the magical currents to find the battle ground.
Saria really hated passing out, this was the second time today she had done so."Ah, youire awake." A doctor by her bed said, "How are you doing?"
"Where am I?" Saria mumbled.
"Horon Village Hospital," the doctor said, "you and two other boys your age are the last ones to wake up."
"Two?" Saria muttered, "Where are they?"
"In another room, we keep boys and girls separate." The doctor explained.
"Oh, that makes sense." Saria said."What the hell are you doing here?" Linkis voice echoed through the building.
"I think one of the other boys are awake." Saria said dryly."Last I checked, risking death by Magical Overuse in order to save your ass!" Another voice shouted back, this one was…Shadowis? No, it couldnit be, Shadow was gone…besides, Shadow never yelled like that.
"Yeah right Shadow, what scheme do you have this time?" Link screamed.
Never mind.
"Iim in a freaking hospital? What sort of diabolical plan involves checking into a hospital?" Shadow screamed right back."Shut up the both of you!" Saria shouted at the top of her lungs.
There was silence.
"Iim impressed." The doctor said, "By the way, a fairy has been watching you, heis sleeping on that table over there." He pointed to where Saria could see Kalo.
"Thank you." Saria nodded, "I need to check on the boys, I know them, OK?"
Link glared at Shadow, he didnit know why the Lune Perin was doing in a bed next to him, but it didnit like it.Though it was odd, when Link had woken up, Shadow had been awake already. He had seemed happy and relieved when he saw that Link was safe, it was only after Link had yelled that he had gotten mad.
Now they were both glaring at each other, silent. They were like this when Saria entered the room, Kalo with her. "Shadow!" Kalo said, surprised.
"Oh, hello Kalo." Shadow smiled weakly.
"Shadow…" Saria said slowly, "Why are you here?" Her voice held huge amounts of quiet anger.
Shadow noticed the tone, and winced. "I…I came to help." he muttered.
Link snorted, "Yeah, and Moblins are vegetarians."
"Iim telling the truth…" Shadow whispered.
"Oh, Iim sure you are, at least partly." Link sneered, "But thereis more, isnit there?"
"No!" Shadow said, "there isnit!"
"I donit believe you." Link said coldly. "I hate you with all my being," Shadow winced. "You are a disgusting, perverted reflection of myself." Shadow tried to keep a steady face. "There is nothing good in you!" Link screamed, it was then that Shadow broke down."Shut up!" He shouted, tears in his eyes, "You know nothing about me! Who are you to say that I canit be allowed to make a mistake! Youive made tons of them."
He shouted, tears in his eyes, "You know about me! Who are you to say that I canit be allowed to make a mistake! Youive made tons of them.""What would you know about mistakes." Link said, still hateful"Ganondorf was your fault!" Shadow screamed, sobbing, "If you hadnit pulled that cursed sword out of that rock, none of this would have happened! I never would have existed! So donit you say that I am evil, because I am not! I am trying to atone for my sins. Like you." Shadow spat, before vanishing in a flash of green light.
Shadow screamed, sobbing, "If you hadnit pulled that cursed sword out of that rock, none of this would have happened! I never would have existed! So donit say that I am evil, because I am not! I am trying to atone for my sins. Like you." Shadow spat, before vanishing in a flash of green light."Good riddance." Link said, then turned to Saria, "Now Saria-" Link froze when he saw the look on her face.
She was angry at him.
"Saria?" he asked.
"He was crying Link." Saria said icily, "He feels sorry for what heis done, and you spit on his efforts!"
"Saria…you donit believe him, do you?" Link asked, surprised.
"Yes Link, I believe him, heis never lied to us before, why would he start?" Saria said, "Are you so distrustful and cynical that you canit believe that someone has changed? Iim going to ask Makan about what happened, donit follow me." Saria stood up and left.
"Weill tell you when we get back." Kalo said, "Oh, and Link, you screwed up, big time." Kalo then flew after Saria. Leaving Link alone.
"But…" Link whispered, "He tried to hurt you…how can you forgive him so easily, all because of a few tears?"
He got no answer.
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