LoZ: Trail of Memories - Ch5: Tear of the Earth

Stepping into the strange new part of the forest Link could feel the shift in the air; all around him the magical music filtered through the thick trees and an occasional glowing orb would pass by him. Link trained his hearing onto the song to find its source and began to head deeper into the woods surrounding him. He had found a path that was blocked by a large boulder almost the size he was, Link decided that it was finally time to test out the new strength he wielded. Link bent down to reach the base of the rock and was surprised that he was actually able to move it. Once the boulder was removed Link was overwhelmed by a sudden rush of glowing orbs and wind that had appeared to be trapped behind the rock. Link moved passed the now cleared path until the balls of light that filled the area became a major distraction causing him to become lost a few times. It wasn’t until he closed his eyes and focused his sense of hearing on the song alone that he could pinpoint its true call. With his arms outstretched around him he began to maneuverer around the trees and bushes along the way.

Link stopped abruptly when his hands felt nothing but open air in his path, he opened his eyes and saw the small clearing he had unknowingly stumbled into. The song was very loud and clear there and he could see a small forest pool where many Fairies hovered above. As Link followed their movements he realized they were dancing along with the song that was playing through the forest. Just beyond the pond he could hear the song strongest and found its source. An auburn haired girl was seated upon a large stump singing to the dancing Fairies, beside her a purple Fairy hovered playfully. Sensing his presence she opened her green eyes and looked over at him curiously then nodded at her companion, the girl’s Fairy flew across the pond and stopped in front of his face intently assessing him.

His previous encounters with Fairies had always been from afar so Link was unsure what to make of the glowing Fairy that flew around him before returning to the mysterious girl who had ended her song. The girl shared a few quiet words with the Fairy before turning her attention to Link again.

“Ari says you have a touch of Fairy magic, stranger. Who are you and what are you doing in the Kokiri Forest?” the Kokiri asked with in a curious tone.

“My name is a Link, I was sent by a sage in search of a magical gem called the Tear of Farore,” Link answered quickly knowing that withholding information would get him nowhere.

“Hmm, Link. Just like the heroes from the old tales. And you must think you are some kind of hero then?” the girl asked before she gracefully leapt from the stump and made her way towards Link. “My name is Zinna, and since you have made it this far… I may as well take you to the Deku Tree. He will be able to tell if you are the real hero or not.”

“Thank you-” Link started before she added. “If you can keep up that is.”

Before Link could even ask her to wait Zinna had broken off into a run through the trees to the north. Link was caught off guard by the Kokiri’s sudden departure and try gathered his wits to follow after her. He managed to trail after Zinna for a few minutes seeing how her hair brightly contrasted against the green foliage, until she suddenly disappeared and he was lost among the sea of trees. He scoured his surroundings in the hope of catching sight of her again when a sharp whistle from overhead caught his attention.

He followed the sound and found himself in front of an enormous hollowed out wooden log. Zinna stood atop of it and laughed at his bewildered face. She hopped down and stood before him.

“Not bad for an outsider,” she said as she rocked back and broth on the heels of her boots jostling the small pouch she had tied around her waist. “Let’s get you to the Deku Tree, ok?”

Link only managed to nod as he followed the Kokiri through the log and into a secret part of the forest, on the other side the hidden village of the Kokiri children was revealed. The village was nestled in a small clearing with a clear forest stream that fed into a small pond. Spread around the village were houses carved out of large trees that were connected by a suspended bridge system.

Zinna stopped in her tracks when she realized the village was empty and she quickly looked around in alarm. She called out to her friends but received no response then turned to Link who was also surprised to find the villagers gone.

“Where is everyone?” Zinna asked herself worriedly.

Link was trying to find the answer to her question when he spied a few Bokoblins come out from behind the trees. They had large nets thrown over their shoulders and one even had what looked like a Kokiri inside.

Link and Zinna shared a look and nodded, they snuck up behind the monsters in hopes of rescuing the Kokiri from their grasp. Once hidden behind a thick group of bushes Zinna pulled a seed out of the pouch she wore on her side. She tossed it in-between the group of Bokoblins. The monsters looked at it in curiosity for a moment before the seed sank into the ground and large Deku Baba took its place. The Baba took ahold of the Bokoblin carrying the Kokiri and in the rush Link ran to the others with his sword drawn. He slashed twice at the first before it fell then launched a jump attack at the next while the last fought against the blue plant holding it in place. Zinna had managed to free the Kokiri when Link turned to face the last Bokoblin. After he stabbed it in the chest the Deku Baba released its still body before retreating back into the ground below.

 Zinna and Link quickly released the Kokiri boy from the net only to find him frantically looking around while his blue Fairy did the same. “Where are the others?!” the green haired boy asked.

“That’s what I was planning on asking you,” Zinna said as she tried to calm him down. “What happened, Tello?”

“I’m not sure…everyone was just playing in the village and then suddenly those beasts and their little buddies showed up and captured everyone!”

Link and Zinna looked at each other before turning back to Tello. “Did you see where they took everyone?”

“I saw them heading back into the forest before they caught me…Todo was there too but he escaped.”

They were caught off guard when they heard the shouts of a young male voice from deeper in the village. The calls were accompanied by the howls of small monsters and Link was already running to the source with Zinna and Tello following closely behind.

At the heart of the village they discovered another boy with a green Fairy attempting to hold his own against a small army of small monsters. They were very short and brightly colored but held the same glowing eyes of their larger counterparts. The Miniblins were trying to back the Kokiri boy into a corner with their tridents and he had managed to avoid them with his quick reflexes and the slingshot in his grasp.

“Todo! Hold on we’re coming!” Zinna called out to the boy.

At the sound of his name Todo became distracted and one of the purple monsters managed to knock him back with a stab to the chest. The brown haired boy fell backwards and hit his head on the ground behind him. Link pulled out his sword and quickly placed himself between the Miniblins and the stricken boy. His first slash struck the small monsters and sent them several feet from the Kokiri into their waiting comrades. Seeing an opening Link quickly turned himself into the rushing spin attack that finished off the tiny army.

While Link had been fighting off the Miniblins Zinna and Tello had rushed to the side of their fellow Kokiri, Todo had recovered quickly and sat up to watch Link finish off his attackers. He had a look of amazement on his face and tried to stand only to fall into the support of Tello.

“That was awesome!” Todo said in childish worship. “You took out those jerks like they were nothing!”

“Well Link thinks he’s a hero. He’s supposed to be good at saving people,” Zinna said as she checked out Todo’s injuries. “You’re just lucky he stepped in before they really hurt you.”

Todo winced at the girl’s prodding and tried to inch away. “Ouch, they weren’t so bad until you poked at them!”

Zinna rolled her eyes and grabbed another seed from her bag and shoved it into the complaining boy’s mouth. “Eat it. You’ll feel better.”

Todo made a disgusted face but chewed it anyway, within moments he eased off of Tello’s shoulder and stood on his own. Link was amazed at the scene, even his mother’s potions took longer to take effect. He figured she was must have some magical connection to the forest plants to use them so efficiently.

“Ok, I ate it. Now let’s go find the others!” Todo exclaimed as he tried to run off in the direction of the surrounding trees.

“No, we have to tell the Great Deku Tree what has happened. He’ll know what to do,” Tello argued.

Zinna nodded and directed Link to grab Todo by his green tunic. With the struggling Kokiri in tow Link followed Zinna and Tello to the edge of the village. The passed through a small opening that lead to an even larger clearing. At the center was the largest tree that Link had ever seen, it was a very curious looking tree that appeared to have a face carved into it and hair made of foliage. The tree shifted as they approached and its eyes opened to reveal that it was indeed sentient much to Link’s surprise.

“My children, what has happened?” the large tree asked in a gentle voice.

“Father the other Kokiri were kidnapped by strange monsters,” Zinna said. “They were snatched up and taken into the woods!” Todo added from his spot beside Link.

“I see, and who is this stranger you have brought to me?”

“This is Link. He’s says that he’s here for the Tear,” Zinna answered.

“Well then, Link, I am Tarin the guardian of this forest charged with protecting the first Goddess Tear. Only a hero is worthy of the Tear of the Earth,” the Deku Tree said as he stared at Link. “If you wish to claim it you must prove your worth. Go into the Lost Woods and bring back my children and then you may have the Tear.”

After hearing the request of the Great Deku Tree Link followed the three Kokiri back to their village. It was dark by the time they climbed atop the suspended bridges to the city in the trees. They had figured it would be best to wait until morning before entering the forest, much to the disappointment of Todo. They huddled into what Link assumed was one of the three Kokiri’s home for the night, knowing that they were better off sticking together if they had unwanted company during the night.

*

Link and Zinna were the first to awake the next morning while the two boys snoozed on; Zinna was toying with her seed pouch and caught Link’s attention. She looked up at him in consideration and pulled another pouch from her belt and tossed it over to him. Link looked at the small bag and opened it to find several colored seeds inside it.

“I think this will help you out on your journey ahead,” she said as she pointed to the colored seeds spread out on the floor of the treehouse. Zinna picked up a green one and held it out for him. “This one can make a large lily pad grow if you toss it into a body of fresh water. It is large enough for someone around your size to stand on or even use as a boat if you need to.”

She placed it back into her bag and picked up a red one. “This one can grow mushrooms large enough to jump on. They can spring you up to high ledges that seem unreachable.”

Zinna then selected a yellow seed from her collection for Link to see. “This seed may look like any other seed and it can be used as ammunition for a sling shot. But on its own it is great for distraction, you can throw it and it will cause a large flash of light to stun your enemy.”

The last seed that she picked up was blue in color. “And this one will grow a deku baba. It can be used to trap monsters you might encounter. But be careful, Deku Babas aren’t the cleverest and can easily turn on you instead.”

Link looked down at the pouch and considered the information she had given him. “Thank you, Zinna. I’m sure this will help me out.”

She nodded and went to wake up her fellow Kokiri rather roughly; Tello awoke with a yawn while Todo nearly tumbled out of the treehouse in his surprise. Zinna shook her head and turned her attention towards breakfast. Link couldn’t help but find the interactions between the Kokiri amusing and realized he would have gone to find their missing friends even without the promise of the Tear as reward.

Todo had regained his senses and sat himself by Link at breakfast; he kept taking glances at him in-between bites until finally he decided to voice his excitement. “So Link, are you really the Hero the Great Deku Tree talks about?”

“Dummy, he’s not that hero. If he were then he would be older than we are. Link is the new hero,” Zinna said with certainty.

“Oh, so you have you done anything like in the old stories yet?” Todo pressed on eagerly.

“Not quite, I’ve traveled to Hyrule Castle and had to be rescued. I was in Kakariko Village for a while where I found these magical gauntlets. But the sage who is guiding me says that I have a long way to go,” Link answered as he tried to simplify his previous journeys for the Kokiri boy.

Todo considered what he had been told for a moment before Link saw his green eyes light up in excitement once more.

“So this is going to be your first big step! And we get to see it!” Todo began to jump around in a fit of joy much to his companions’ amusement. “This is going to be so cool!”

After finishing their meal Link and the three Kokiri exited the treehouse to the raised walkway, from the height vantage they saw a two blue Bokoblins ushering a small band of Miniblins through the village. They hid behind the ivy covered fence and watched the group of monsters head in the forest beyond the pool following the stream. When the last Blin disappeared from view Zinna silently jumped down from the wooden platform to the grass covered floor below.

“They must be headed back to their camp,” Zinna said as she motioned for the others to follow her lead. Link jumped over the side of the fence and landed safely on the ground while Todo and Tello took to the ladder, the followed after Zinna who kept to a steady but quiet pace in the direction that the monsters had disappeared in.

“Why do you think they kidnapped our friends?” Todo asked breaking the silence.

Zinna made a noise for him to keep quiet and answered in a low tone. “I’m not sure but if you blow our cover we will never know until they catch us.”

Todo gulped and kept quiet as they trailed after the growling gang of monsters deep into the forest. The trees and bushes became thicker as they went and even the Kokiri were having a difficult time keeping track of where they are going.

At one point they had walked right into a nest of Deku Scrubs that had attacked them on sight much to the Kokiri’s surprise. When they had escaped the nut firing creatures they had lost their previous trail.

“The forest seems different today…” Zinna said as she tried to find the right path.

“That’s because those strangers brought a dark magic with them…” an unfamiliar voice cut in from atop of the large tree branches that hung overhead.

Link and the Kokiri turned to the source of the voice and saw a blue-skinned child with a strange hat looking down at them. It was one of the Skull Kids that Link had also heard about in the stories from the village elders. He had been told that they were even more mischievous than the Kokiri and should be treated with caution.

“What does that mean?” Todo asked exasperatedly as he stomped his foot.

“How did those monsters even find their way into our forest?” Zinna interrupted eyeing the Skull Kid with a suspicious look.

The Skull Kid tilted his head to the side as if in thought before answered. “I’m not sure, one day they just appeared and the woods have grown darker ever since. It’s even worst at the outpost they’ve built deeper in the forest.”

“What outpost?!” Todo asked impatiently.

“The outpost where they took the rest of the Kokiri,” the skull kid said with a chuckle. “You better find it quick or who knows what will happen to your friends.”

“Where is it? Can you take us to it?” Link finally spoke up.

The Skull Kid finally turned his attention to Link and jumped down from his perch to land before the young Hylian.

“And who do you think you are? Why are you so interested in the lives of the forest children?”

Link blinked at the child before him and took a gulp at his unnerving stare down, he realized he couldn’t let the creature get the better of him and answered in a honest but sharp tone, “I’m interested in anyone who needs my help. The Kokiri are no different from anyone else.”

“Hmm, you remind me of someone. So maybe I’ll give you a hint,” the Skull Kid said coyly. “You will find the monster’s hide out deep in the forest ahead but you will have to follow your nose…those beasties leave a nasty stench wherever they go.”

The Skull Kid gave them a mocking bow before leaping over Link and jumping to the tree tops and leaving as quickly as he had appeared.

“…that was weird,” Todo said as he shrugged his shoulders.

“Weird but helpful, so let’s sniff out that outpost,” Tello continued as he turned to waiting forest.

Zinna and Link nodded and the four of them closed their eyes and tried to pinpoint the stench the Skull Kid had mentioned, it didn’t take them long to pick up the scent and the quickly followed the trail into the dark woods.

The trail led them to a vast open area where a large wooden complex had been built from the previously cleared trees. They ducked behind the brush at the edge of the clearing before they could be spotted by the guards that patrolled around perimeter. From their spot they spied a few of the missing Kokiri locked in cages around the outpost.

When the guards passed their hiding spot Link turned to his Kokiri companions with a plan. “Alright we are going to have to split up to find all of your friends,” he said to the surprisingly attentively listening children.

“Todo you will go with Zinna,” he said as the boy in question whined at the decision. “And Tello will come with me. You have to be quick and quiet; otherwise you will get caught just like the others.”

They nodded and split into their assigned duos, Zinna and Todo crept around the side of camp when the guards weren’t paying attention and quickly ran into the mass of wooden structures. Link turned to Tello and held up his fingers as the guards patrolling near them passed by, when Link lowered his last finger the two of them quickly passed through the brush and into the camp.

The found their first Kokiri slumped against the side of her cell, she instantly sat up as they approached and Link had to place his finger on his lips to get her to keep quiet.

“Shh, we’ll let you out. Just be patient,” Link said trying to reassure her. The blond haired girl nodded and pointed them in the direction of the guard who had locked her away.

Link turned to Tello with another plan in mind. “Ok Todo, I need you to run out there and distract him while I sneak up behind him.”

Tello looked at the large Bokoblin in uncertainty but nodded slowly. “Ok, Link.”

“Alright, you stay put until I give you a signal,” Link said as he stealthily crept to the wall where the guard stood. On the other side the Bokoblin looked around with little attention to the trap awaiting him. Link listened to the creature and when he heard it begin walking again he motioned for Tello to make his move.

Tello jumped into action and ran into the view of the Bokoblin that quickly startled and dimwittedly ran past the fence where Link waited with his sword ready. Link had nearly sliced the monster in half before it even realized he was there. On its bloody form Link found a large collection of keys and worked to find the right one for the cage holding the Kokiri girl.

Once freed Link had told her to run for the village and to not stop until she reached the Deku Tree, she had nodded and thanked him and mentioned that fourteen other Kokiri had been captured with her before fleeing from the outpost. Link turned to Tello and they continued on with their search with their keys in hand. They had to duck behind a wall when they heard the calls of the patrolling monsters close by. Link peaked through a small hole in the wood and saw two more Bokoblins taunting one of the Kokiri they had captured. Another two Kokiri were held captive with him and were trying to distract their jailers from their frightened friend.

Link motioned for Tello to stay out of sight while Link pulled out the pouch Zinna had given him, he thought back to what she had told him and pulled out a single blue seed. He tossed it in-between the distracted harassers and watched as it grew into a large Deku Baba that latched itself around the Bokoblin on the right. The other Blin turned its attention to freeing his friend while Link crept up from behind and slashed at its throat killing it instantly. The Blin trapped by the Deku Baba managed to free itself only to fall on Link’s sword; the Baba seemed to stare at him curiously before returning to the earth below. Seeing that the coast was clear Tello came out of his hiding spot with the keys and freed his fellow Kokiri and directed them to return to the safety of their guardian until they returned. As Link surveyed the scene he caught sight of a small treasure chest hidden amongst the camp supplies, his curiosity got the better of him and he opened it to reveal a wooden slingshot, figuring that it would come in handy he slipped it into his belt loop.

“Four down ten more to go,” Link said as he ruffled Tello’s hair in praise. “Let’s hope Zinna and Todo have had the same luck.”

Tello nodded and followed Link further into the outpost hoping to find the other Kokiri along the way. They continued their search through the encampment and encountered another two captured Kokiri. Tello had spied their jailers and Link used the slingshot he had found to distract them long enough for Tello to free his friends for their cages telling them what they had told the previous Kokiri.

They passed through some wooden corridors counting three open and empty cages along the way but neither the jailers nor the Kokiri were around; Link and Tello shared a concerned look but pressed on hoping they weren’t too late for the missing forest children. When they reached a large platform at the center of the complex they spotted the Kokiri who must have been missing from the cages. They were tied to the top of three posts and beneath them an army of miniature Blins waited with their tridents. The three Kokiri struggled against their bonds and yelled at the little pests until one of them spotted Link and Tello. He had nearly stopped struggling until he realized they needed the distraction and quickly began yelling louder than before.

Seeing the opportunity Link quickly opened his pouch and gave Tello a handful of the yellow seeds and the slingshot. He used a red one to quickly produce a mushroom that bounced the boy to the top of the tall wooden wall. Link told him to shoot at the Miniblins while he took care of the rest with his sword, Tello did as he was told and began to launch a barrage of seeds at the tiny terrors. The sudden attack startled the monsters that quickly dispersed in various directions. Link met the ones that Tello missed with his sword. Their double attack continued until the seeds suddenly stopped firing and Link had to take out the last of the miniature Blins on his own.

Taking a moment to catch his breath and wipe his brow Link turned to see what had stopped Tello’s onslaught only to find the Kokiri struggling in the hold of humongous red Moblin. The Moblin had Tello tied to his spear in one hand and large wooden shield in the other. The large monster jostled his captured Kokiri mockingly causing the boy to fall unconscious and gave Link a dark laugh; in return Link made a frustrated noise and readied himself for the new threat.

The Moblin took a few large steps towards Link and he tried to land a hit but only met the creature’s thick wooden shield. His enemy made several slow but powerful stabs at him, Link dodged the first few attacks but caught the final in the arm and was sent flying backwards. On the ground Link looked up at his attacker and quickly realized its weak spot, attacks from the front would be pointless due to its large shield but from behind it was a huge sitting duck. Link jumped from the ground and readied himself for a new tactic. Instead of waiting for the Moblin to come to him Link launched himself into a run and scaled the giant slab of wood until he was standing atop of it. Before the Moblin’s movement knocked him over to the other side Link managed to slice the creature across the arm making him release his weapon and Tello with it; Link took the opportunity to grab the fallen slingshot from the ground and fire a seed into the right eye of the flailing Moblin stunning it once more. Link’s final assault came as a jump attack to the Moblin’s large torso finally killing it.

Behind him Link could hear footsteps running in their direction and it took his last ounce of strength to turn to face the unknown arrivals. He breathed a sigh of relief when Todo and Zinna appeared with the seven missing Kokiri in tow.

Zinna had quickly run over to the three Kokiri who were still bound to the posts on the platform while Todo went to free his friend from the spear he was tied to. Link sheathed his sword and shield before he went to slip the slingshot into his belt, doing so something shiny and red caught his attention. Partially hidden beneath the fallen Moblin Link spied a large heart shaped crystal. Feeling his curiosity get the better of him Link picked up the heart container, the crystal made a small twinkling sound before it disappeared and Link instantly felt his stamina recover and the wounds he had received heal to his amazement. Link belatedly realized that it was one of the heart crystals that when found made a person stronger, an item he had only heard of from his mother when he was a child but never seen until now.

The cheering sound of the celebrating Kokiri caught his attention and he was soon caught in the embrace of the small excitable children of the forest.

“Thank you Link!” a small green haired girl with pigtails said.

“I told you he was awesome!” Todo exclaimed as he climbed onto Link’s back.

Link was a bit overwhelmed by the attention but he was happy that they had survived the experience and gladly accepted their praise. They followed after him with like little ducklings as he headed back through the forest to their now safe village. He had been questioned about his clothes and weapons along the way until Zinna had given them a stern look that quelled their excitement, the Kokiri decided instead to mutter to each other how Link had fought off the invading monsters.

Once they finally reached their village he was taken by the hand by Todo and Tello to the Great Deku Tree. The Kokiri that had been freed were anxiously waiting around the tree immediately perked up and ran over to Link and their rescued friends. He was stopped in his tracks again by the grateful Kokiri and Zinna was forced to pry Link away from the forest children and led him to the now jovial looking tree and Todo followed suit.

“Father, I think Link has proven himself to be the new Hero. He brought our brothers and sisters home safely,” she said in a serious tone.

“Yeah! And he did it awesomely!” Todo exclaimed.

Link couldn’t suppress the small dusting of pink that spread across his face at their praise and shifted his feet nervously.

The Great Deku Tree was quiet for a moment and Link was unsure what would happen next until the glowing green eyes of the tree glistened brightly for a moment and suddenly a beautiful green gem materialized out of thin air before Link.

“Heroic young Link, you have done well to return my children to me,” the Deku Tree said in a pleasant tone. “The journey you have ahead of you is a long and arduous one but I know that you will persevere, it is your destiny.”

Link listened to the meaningful words of the forest guardian with care. He was hoping to receive some sort of clue as to his destiny but only received more questions.

“Take this token as a symbol of my thanks, may it aide you on your journey.”

Link hesitantly reached for the floating tear shaped emerald that seemed to change in size with his touch. He carefully placed the gem into the first slot on the gauntlet and heard it fit inside with an audible click.

“Thank you, Tarin,” Link said as he inspected the gauntlet once more.

“You are welcome, Link. You will find that Farore’s Tear will grant you part of her agility; it will allow you move at a far faster pace than you capable of. Should you ever find yourself in a dire situation you can use it to flee.”

Link was very curious to test out the new ability of his gauntlet but knew it was not the time and instead listened to great tree’s next words.

“You are welcome to return to our forest in the future, however what you seek is hidden beyond our borders. Fear not, I have a feeling that we will be seeing each other again soon enough.”

The words of the Deku Tree puzzled Link but had little time to think them over as the forest children soon dragged him into the Kokiri village for a celebration. That night Link was treated to a small feast and performance by the forest children and their beloved fairies.

*

In the morning the Kokiri reluctantly allowed Link to leave their forest, several had begged for him to stay and teach them how to fight like he did and were only placated by his promises to return. Zinna, Tello, and Todo accompanied him out of the forest where he found his small canoe waiting where he had left it.

“Make sure you don’t do anything reckless while you are out there,” Zinna said in a concerned tone.

“Forget that! Make sure you do something really cool so you can tell us about it when you come back!” Todo said to cover up his sadness at the idea of Link leaving.

“Just make sure you stay safe enough to find your way back here,” Tello said as he tried to appease his two friends.

“I will try my best, but trouble tends to find me first,” Link said sheepishly. “I promise to come back with more stories but for now I have to find the other tears, wherever they are.”

Zinna nodded in understanding before giving him a quick hug, the boys followed suit squishing the girl in-between them.

“We’ll miss you, Link,” Todo said in a miserable voice.

Link patted the Kokiri on the head gently, “I’ll miss you too. Just keep everyone safe until I get back, ok?”

Todo instantly brightened and nodded eagerly. “I’ll keep them safe! Don’t you worry!”

Zinna rolled her eyes but said nothing and the three Kokiri waved at Link when he finally climbed into his boat and began to paddle out in the mist. Link waved as best he could with his oar in hand until they disappeared from view and he had to focus on finding his way back through the swamp to his own village.

The surface of the lake was calm as Link steered himself around the countless trees and Link thought back to the words of the Deku Tree when another voice entered his mind.

‘Congratulations Link. You’ve found your first Tear.’

Emera’s voice in his head was beginning to seem like second nature to him and he allowed it to soothe his restless mind.

‘The next gem you seek is the Tear of Nayru. It was given to the Zora royal family long ago. You will have to seek out their Domain in order to find it.’

Link nodded to himself and thought about the Zora merchant he had met on his first trip to Lanayru, he had promised to stop in and visit.

‘You are still weary from your last venture, stay in your village and recover. Even with Epona you will have a long journey ahead of you.’

As Emera’s voice faded away Link reached the very edge of the village he called home. Most of the village fishermen were gone along with their canoes but the women greeted him with relieved smiles. Link returned them and quickly tied off his boat before heading to where Epona had been kept in the few days that he’d been gone.

The moment she saw him she had rushed over and nudged him gently with her head, Link had rubbed down her neck affectionately and pulled out of a piece of fruit he had found in the forest for her to eat.

“She really seems to like you, Link,” his mother said in a quiet tone, he hadn’t heard her approach and startled a bit.

“I guess so, Emera say it’s strange because she doesn’t really take to people easily,” Link replied at he turned to face her.

He could see the relief on her face and wasn’t surprised when she stepped over to embrace him. “I see you’ve found what you were looking for.”

“After saving a handful of Kokiri, yes,” Link joked.

“They we’re attacked?” Teva questioned.

“Yeah, they were captured by a band of monsters and held captive in their own forest.”

“So the evil plaguing Hyrule has finally found its way into our forest. I had hoped it would be spared,” Teva trailed off.

“I think at this point it’s everywhere. And the only way to stop it is to stop the Phantom King,” Link said as he remembered the dark king he had encountered at Hyrule Castle. His mere presence had made the atmosphere vile and Link was eager to rid Hyrule of it; despite the lingering fear he wanted desperately for a rematch with the dark lord.

“That may be true but you have no business meeting him in battle in your current state,” his mother said firmly and pulled him up the steps to the raised walkways of the village. “You will have to become far stronger before that.”

Link reluctantly agreed with his mother and inwardly shuddered at the memory of their first encounter. He allowed his mother to drag him into the house and shower him with motherly concern, he felt childish but it was comforting all the same. Link decided he would enjoy the feeling all he could before he was thrown back into the unpredictable world again.