The Legend of Sunset Shimmer: Link's Awakening.
By Ganondorf8.
February 4, 2021.
Chapter 20: The Island's Dark Secret.
Jumping back into the water and diving down to return to the main part of Martha's Bay, I began to think about where I had to go next in addition to everything which had been happening to me thus far. Princess Luna had given me plenty of hints and these were firmly on my mind, beginning with the bow. In previous experiences, I had found such a weapon inside of a dungeon which indicated that it was required. This time around, I had to go and purchase one from a shop by practically making myself broke in the process. The first thought I had was that I didn't need a bow because why have it somewhere where it could be acquired at any time?
Then again, Princess Luna was serious about me needing one so paying Aria a visit was definitely in my best interest. She also mentioned the mermaid statue and that something of importance was located underneath it. After going through so many trades and acquiring various items along the way, I had acquired a scale from Gloriosa which could be used to complete the statue, and I knew that would make Bulk Biceps happy. Whatever this item was had to be worth going through so much so perhaps I should go for that first? After all, I might forget about it only to wind up getting stuck later on.
The Princess also talked about me needing more money for something else. It did mean that I would have to grind for rupees again which was nothing short of tedious (If only there was a bank where I could've deposited rupees in order to use them later on) as the drops from monsters weren't exactly profitable this time around. I also wasn't finding as many treasure chests compared to my earlier exploits on Koholint Island. Of course, I could go back to Zecora and take on another one of her custom made dungeons in the hopes of acquiring extra money as she did say that I could become very rich were I to help her out.
And above all else was the location of the next dungeon. Again, I had not encountered any kind of shrine on the island and Princess Luna didn't exactly provide me with an exact location of said shrine. Granted, I hadn't explored every last area of the island which meant that I had to go somewhere that was still considered new. Still, I wasn't a fan of cryptic clues and much preferred a simple explanation so as to avoid running around in circles. With the Hookshot in my possession, I could now reach areas that were previously inaccessible. Perhaps one of those places will lead me to the shrine?
That's when it hit me on the head! I had a means of getting a simple explanation! Coming back up to the surface of Martha's Bay, I quickly looked around to see if Gloriosa was still around or perhaps she had returned to where she came from? (The latter ended up being the case) After seeing no traces of her, I swam over to the shore and got out of the water only to immediately raise my shield when a spear suddenly came flying towards me. A pair of Moblins had noticed me and were prepared to attack but they were quickly distracted by a Zirro which had suddenly dropped one of its bombs which exploded.
In the confusion, I walked south because of wanting to focus on reaching the nearest telephone I could find which happened to be directly in front of me. Good thing that the telephone booths had the telephone itself as a fixture on top of the tree otherwise they could easily be missed due to there being so many other trees around. A Buzz Blob nearby darting back and forth then gave me an idea regarding the Hookshot. Taking it out and aiming carefully, I fired it at the Buzz Blob, striking it in the back, and as expected, it became paralyzed with its electrical field disappearing in the process.
Walking past it and into the tree, I picked up the phone and it began ringing.
BBRRIINNG! BRRIINNG!
"Hi, it's Ulrira!" Discord's charming voice came through on the other end.
"I think you know why I'm calling you." I said.
Discord laughed which made me feel embarrassed knowing that I needed his help again. "You just can't get enough of old Ulrira can you? Nothing wrong with that as I like talking to people. Anyway, I hear that there's a beautiful mermaid statue somewhere south of Martha's Bay."
I groaned under my breath as that was information I already knew about. "You don't say?"
"I haven't been out there to see it but they tell me that it's a real work of art." Discord then paused for a moment before continuing. "If you happen to be in the area, you should definitely pay it a visit as it might prove enlightening. I also hear the artist was upset with his work because he was never able to fully complete the statue."
Again, this was something I already knew. "I guess the artist is upset about it."
"He is but he got over it and is now focusing on painting his muse."
"Thanks for the info." My voice was clearly upset as I was expecting to hear some actual advice rather than being told old stuff. I supposed that I might have gotten a bit ahead of the curve.
"By the way, have you ever been to a place called the Face Shrine?"
My ears immediately perked up upon hearing Discord say that. "What did you just say?"
"I said have you ever been to a place called the Face Shrine." Discord answered. "It is north of Animal Village. That is a very interesting ruin though what most people don't know is that there are actually two shrines, one in the north and the other in the south. I hear you can't simply walk up to the northern shrine because it is located on a small patch of land cut off from the main land."
"How am I supposed to reach it then?"
Discord then laughed. "D'oh ho ho! That's an easy one for me to answer. There is a new place which opened up a few days ago where you can go down the river on a raft. No one has tried it yet as the monsters prevent anyone from leaving the safety of the village but perhaps you might be interested. They say that the woman who runs it is a little bit eccentric and is insistent on going with her customers to ensure they get an ideal experience. It will cost plenty of rupees so I hope you have enough. Anyway, that's all the information I have. Bye!"
Click!
Could that have been the money issue that Princess Luna talked about? It sounded possible except for the fact that going on a raft was pretty common knowledge. I'm certain she would've known about it so it must be something else later on. Either way, I required additional money but maybe I could haggle my way through this person that I needed to see in order to reach the two shrines. I knew how to haggle but I hadn't really applied on any of these adventures as I had a preference for wanting to do things without taking an easy path. I sighed knowing it meant having to grind even more now.
"That was some information Discord provided." Princess Twilight said.
"I think he knew I was upset over hearing him talk about that mermaid statue." I said.
Princess Twilight nodded. "You were starting to act rather rude towards him, Sunset. You have to remember that even though we know him as Discord, in this world, he is portraying an old man who happens to be quite the gossip. The real Discord can easily take any insults directed at him as he usually just ignores them unless they were directed at Fluttershy. In future, you should appreciate any and all information no matter if it doesn't provide you with progress."
I sighed. "You're right."
"I don't mean to make you feel bad."
"No, you're right in that I should be more sensitive."
"At least Discord told us where we need to go... Kind of."
I nodded slowly as I took out the Mermaid Scale and held it firmly in my hand. "So we need to get a bow, find the two shrines, and return this scale I acquired from Gloriosa in order to see what happens with that statue." Thinking it over in my mind for a few seconds, I came up with the ideal path that should cut down on some time before having to need to sleep again when the sun goes down. "We're close to Animal Village so we could go there and give the scale to Bulk Biceps."
"I think he would prefer it if you inserted that scale."
"Why do you think that?"
"He was pretty focused on painting that hippo we saw when we first paid him a visit." Princess Twilight answered.
"Still... We should try to hand him the scale just in case."
Princess Twilight nodded again. "He might come with us to complete his statue but it will depend if his subject would be okay with him leaving for a while." Her Highness paused and looked to be in deep thought, and I had a suspicion I knew what it was. "This item that Princess Luna said was hidden beneath the statue... It might be too powerful for you to use. We don't really know what it might since no one has ever said anything regarding what it is but maybe I'm just overthinking it. Am I overthinking things again, Sunset?"
I knew Her Highness was thinking about this mysterious item though I wasn't expecting her to label it as being too powerful or dangerous. There was a possibility that it was too dangerous and that me obtaining it would only cause me headaches, yet Princess Luna said it was necessary for me. I knew she was being serious otherwise she wouldn't have said anything about it in the first place. Whatever risks might be present, I had to endure them if I wanted to complete this adventure. Adventures had to have risks otherwise why even bother going on them in the first place right?
Leaving the telephone booth and taking out the ocarina, I played Manbo's Mambo and focused on the warp tile that was located just south of the Animal Village. Closing my eyes, I felt myself being teleported away in a bright light, and in the next instant, I was at my intended destination. I continued to be amazed at how being able to teleport to different locations effectively allowed me to cut down on time whilst allowing me more time to do things more productive, like solving puzzles and making progress. In a perfect world, I could teleport back home in the human world just like I could in Equestria.
Heading up north into the Animal Village, I made my way across to where Bulk Biceps lived and entered his home where I saw that he was still painting. I then remembered that there were two Bulks with each one being brothers. One was selling bananas for a living with the other being a painter. Both were polar opposites when it came to professions. Bulk's subject had since noticed me enter, an angry expression clearly spread across her face. Yeah... I had little to no chance of getting Bulk to come with me to the statue but I still intended on asking in case my misgivings were just that.
Approaching Bulk Biceps, he turned to face me. "Ah! Welcome back to my artist's studio! Yeah!"
"I have something to show you." I said as I presented the Mermaid Scale.
"And what ave you got to show me?" Bulk Biceps took a quick look at what I had and was taken aback where he almost knocked over his canvass. "Zut alors! I cannot believe it! Iz zat zee Mermaid Scale? Sacre bleu! I didn't think you would go and get me one! You must have found zee mermaid of whom my statue was based on. I take it you wish for me to come and place it on my work down in Martha's Bay? Iz zat it?"
"Your subject doesn't look like she will appreciate that." I said as I turned my attention to the hippo in the corner. She huffed at me before assuming her position and I knew right there that she wasn't going to be of any help. "Since I can't convince you to come along right now, you can have this scale and put it on the statue later. I'll come back once I've done a few errands and hopefully you'll have gone to your statue."
Bulk Biceps shook his head." Non!"
"Huh?" I asked in a confused stupor.
"Non!"
"No? What do you mean no?"
"I can't use it right now." Bulk Biceps answered, shifting back and forth between his canvass and his subject. "I have to stay here and werk on zis drawing. If I do not complete it then my subject shall be most displeased with me." An idea then struck his mind and I knew what it was going to be right away. "You! Yes you! You can go and complete ze statue by using zis scale you possess. I know it isn't what you had hoped for but I have no other choice. Yeah!"
"Okay, if you want me to."
"Yeah! I shall be sure to give you ze credit for completing what has eluded me for years."
Knowing that trying to convince him to come with me was pointless, I pocketed the scale and left him to carry on his work. Back outside, I walked towards the western most entrance of the village and upon leaving, a bomb dropped next to my feet prompting me to jump just as it exploded seconds later leaving behind charred grass. Looking up, a Zirro then turned and flew away which made me glad that it lost interest in me. Heading south towards where I saw the statue, Gloriosa appeared from the corner of my eye from the depths of Martha's Bay and sat on a rock before flipping back her hair. I wanted to say something but I doubted she could hear me.
Avoiding a few more Buzz Blobs, I turned to the right and came upon a large gap that I couldn't jump across with the Roc's Feather. Had I come here much sooner, I'd have been completely stuck not to mention angry, but luckily for me, I had exactly was needed. How? It helped that there were two wooden boxes, one on each side of the gap to indicate that they could be used as Hookshot targets. This was one of those very obvious hints though I had to give whoever created this credit for making some people have to think about it. At the very least, there was one on my side in case I wanted to come back this way for whatever reason.
Taking it out, I aimed at the box on the other side of the gap, fired the chain and was pulled across once it had connected to the box. Another Buzz Blob then waddled its way over towards me (Much to my surprise as I didn't even notice it) but I stunned it with my Hookshot before moving on where I came upon what Bulk Biceps had made. The statue bore a striking resemblance to Gloriosa which made me think that Bulk had met her somewhere (Unless it was just plain luck that he managed to get her likeness so accurate) yet it being in this exact location didn't make much sense. It was in an area most couldn't access which was a real shame.
That's when I noticed it. "Right there!" I exclaimed as I pointed at the statue. "There's a missing piece where a scale should be."
Rubbing her eyes to get a better look, Princess Twilight was quite surprised. "I must admit that this was crafted incredibly well. Bulk Biceps, or the person that he portrays, must have spent many months making sure that every last bit of detail had been given its due attention. I'm sure you've probably made the comparison to Gloriosa so I won't bother going into that, but you have to wonder why place this here of all places."
"That's funny as I had the same feeling about the location."
"Not much we can do about that."
"I guess not." Taking out the scale, I placed it into the slot located in the middle of the statue's tail before taking a couple of steps back. "Okay, so now what?" Patience never was one of my strongest qualities as I was expecting an immediate reaction.
"Just wait a moment." Princess Twilight in her usual calm demeanor. Seconds later, the statue moved to the left and revealed a staircase leading down underground. "Everything comes to those who know how to wait it out, Sunset." Her Highness then focused her attention on what was revealed. "I don't know if Bulk Biceps knew about this stairway below his statue or he did and forgot about it, but I was expecting a treasure chest to have been buried here."
"It's probably down there somewhere."
"This could take a while."
"Maybe..." I was honestly hoping that this wasn't going to take too long but then nothing about this place could surprise me barring the absolute absurd. For a moment, I thought about going back to Bulk Biceps after getting the item and ask him what he knew about all this but I opted against it. I doubted he knew anything and besides, he was more focused on finishing that painting of his. "At least we can see where we're going down here!" Heading down into the underground tunnel, there were torches on the walls so I didn't have to worry about stumbling along in complete darkness.
Lowering her head, Princess Twilight blushed. "I guess this won't take a while."
Directly in front of me atop a slightly raised platform and surrounded by four torches and an assortment of skulls, I could see what looked to be a Magnifying Glass. "Is this what Princess Luna said I needed?" My reaction was mixed. On the one hand, I was upset that I had gone through so many trades and ended getting something that looked to be less than accurate. On the other hand, it was hidden extremely well and involved a lot of work to acquire it. "Twilight? What do you make of this?"
Looking at the Magnifying Glass for herself, Princess Twilight had an explanation all prepared. "This might look like an ordinary Magnifying Lens but appearances in these worlds has often been deceptive. You can use this item to see things that you couldn't see before."
"Sounds like the Lens of Truth from the previous adventure."
"Yes but without using any magic."
"Aside from that? What else can I use this for?"
That's when Princess Twilight had a thought. "Do you remember that one book in the Mabe Village library? You know, the one called 'Dark Secrets of Koholint Island'? It had the really small text?" I nodded which made Her Highness squee with glee. "I knew you wouldn't forget, Sunset! Anyway, a Magnifying Lens can make things look bigger than they really are. I'm not sure when we'll need to pay the library another visit in order to read the text but I'll make a mental note of it."
"Speaking of notes..." My words trailed off upon seeing a small piece of paper which had been hidden underneath the Magnifying Lens. Picking it up, the words on the paper had been scribbled on but I could make sense of what it said. "'On the beach is a hidden cave where nothing can be seen but perhaps it can be seen with what you have now.' Okay... That wasn't even close to being cryptic."
"I'll make another mental note for this too."
"Thanks Twilight."
"Where do you want to go now?"
"I need to get that bow."
"That would be wise as I have a feeling you will be needing it soon enough."
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CRRRACCCCKLLLLE FWOOOOOOSH!
"No doubt that you know that the Outsider has defeated the Slime Eel though it was a very close battle. If only it had been made a bit stronger then she wouldn't have prevailed and we could continue to remain in control."
Grogar sighed though showed no signs of anger this time. "We are disappointed that the Slime Eel was destroyed. It was one of the stronger Nightmares, but its defeat did not come without an ounce of victory. It was able to sow the seeds of doubt into her head."
"As in the true nature of this island?"
Nodding, Grogar smiled a cruel smile. "The Outsider will no doubt begin to question the words of the Slime Eel, but her spirit will suffer greatly once she learns the truth upon visiting the Southern Face Shrine." He then began laughing which echoed all around. "There is no avoiding it now, Hot Head. She is destined to learn what Koholint Island is. Once she does, she will continue with her mission but will be guilt-ridden from that point on. Her heart will become weak and thus will make costly mistakes. She will become much easier to defeat." He then paused before getting serious. "And yet, we have underestimated the Outsider from the beginning."
"Her progress is far greater than we thought."
"We once thought her nothing more than a nuisance but she has now become a concern, a worry to us."
"What can be done, master?"
"There are two visions that we have foreseen." Grogar answered. "In one, the Outsider, so wracked with guilt, dies before she has a chance to awaken the Wind Fish. How she is killed matters not but the fact is death claims her. In the other, we confront and kill her personally." Upon saying that, Grogar noticed Hot Head going limp. "Our words have made you ill, Hot Head."
"I... I was destroyed in one of your visions?"
Grogar nodded slowly. "Our visions have always been correct and these ones are no exception." He then began speaking in a much more somber tome which caught Hot Head by surprise as his master had never done such a thing before. "Though we have chastised you to no end, we know that you were merely fulfilling your obligations as our servant. Perhaps our obsession towards the Outsider blinded us. We were consumed with hatred."
"Perhaps the Outsider is having an adverse effect on us?"
"Perhaps but we must not allow that to become a problem."
"With five Instruments of the Sirens in her possession, her next destination is going to be the Northern Face Shrine."
"And who is the Nightmare who protects the instrument there?"
"Facade."
Hearing Hot Head mention that name caused Grogar to groan though he did his best to hide it. "Facade... Not one of the strongest Nightmares but perhaps we underestimate his powers. Still, we are concerned that the Outsider will overcome him. After all, he has a tendency to be rather talkative." An idea then formed in Grogar's mind given the cruel smile he displayed once again. "The Outsider might not survive to encounter Facade let alone enter the Face Shrine. We shall strengthen the guardian that protects the key that is needed to open the shrine, but this alone may not be enough."
"What do you have in mind?"
"We faced the Outsider before and merely frightened her." Grogar answered. "This time, we shall do much more than that. When the darkness of night has blanketed the island once more, she will be visited by us. We shall not be merciful! We shall kill her within the veil of the dream! Had it been any other Nightmare, we would not be concerned, but a combination of it being Facade and that she has three instruments remaining has forced our hand."
Hot Head was shocked at what he had heard. "But, master! If you lose to her, then everything we have worked hard for will become nothing."
"Yes... It's possible that she may yet overcome us." Grogar then realized that Hot Head had mentioned the notion that he could be defeated. "You believe that the Outsider has the power to destroy us!? Had you said this much sooner, we would have punished you severely for uttering such words. However, since she has progressed much further than expected, we shall take your words into consideration. There is another observation about the Outsider that has caught our attention though we chose to ignore it until now. She possesses a power that is foreign to us."
"Foreign?"
"Yes."
"I don't understand."
"Neither do we but she is in possession of it."
"Can she access it whenever she wants?"
"No." Grogar answered shaking his head. "She cannot use this power for the Wind Fish's very presence prevents her from doing so, and yet, it can be dedicated within her." He then shook head as though trying to remove a horrible thought. "We are fortunate and thus there is no need to be concerned about this power... For the time being that is. We believe that if she were to gather all eight instruments, the dreamer could lift her restriction."
"Then she must die and soon."
Grogar nodded. "Facade must destroy the Outsider!" He then pointed to Hot Head. "Go! Inform him of what must be done. We shall strengthen the guardian of the key as an extra safety measure just in case." As Hot Head disappeared to carry out his orders, Grogar began contemplating over his ever-shrinking dominance over Koholint Island. "The Nightmares are just not powerful enough to get the job done. Their complacency makes them useless. Only you, Hot Head, my strongest servant, lack this unfortunate trait, and yet, you lack power like the rest. Outsider... Perhaps you are worthy to face our true form."
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As I began to make my way back to the entrance of the underground tunnel that housed the Magnifying Lens, Princess Twilight had alerted me of strange sounds that were echoing about the area. At first, I thought she was making it up, but when I heard the noises myself, I raised my shield to prepare myself for whatever was making them. Upon reaching the stairs, three Red Zols popped up from out of the ground, yet it was the two Mimics who appeared out of nowhere that got me concerned. How could they exist outside of the Dream Shrine? I thought they were exclusive to that place? Apparently not.
From what I remembered of them, Mimics copied my exact movements though they weren't able to attack. Normal sword swings had little effect on them but a charged swing could destroy them along with using the Pegasus Boots to charge through them. Focusing on the Red Zols, I cut each one into smaller pieces followed by slicing up what remained leaving just the Mimics, yet as expected, they were more focused on copying me which meant I didn't really have to fight either of them. Instead, I put my equipment away and merely waltzed on by before heading up the stairs and back outside.
I then asked Princess Twilight a question which had been bugging me for some time. I hadn't asked it straight away as I had other things on my mind, but now that I had acquired the treasure from the trading sequence, I felt now was as good a time as any to ask her for her opinion on the subject. We had discussed before about the meaning of the Slime Eel's final words and believed they were a warning, yet while Her Highness claimed that it involved not continuing this adventure, I felt there was a different answer. Sure, ending my journey would please the monsters as it would give them free reign to do whatever they wanted, but what about everyone else?
Would the Nightmares hurt the people of Koholint Island? Would the Wind Fish remain asleep forever? Worse yet, would I be unable to change things back to normal? With all these possibilities that could result from me simply giving up, I asked Princess Twilight what the actual meaning was behind those words. Her Highness, unfortunately, wasn't able to give me an answer as even she didn't know what the Slime Eel had hinted at before its death. Frustration began to rear its ugly head as I really needed an answer but if Princess Twilight couldn't provide me with guidance, getting frustrated would just make everything worse.
Sighing, I decided to focus on the adventure though I really hoped that I would get an answer and soon. Taking out the ocarina and playing Manbo's Mambo, I focused on the warp tile located outside of Mabe Village (A shame there wasn't such a tile in the village proper but I digress) before I was warped away. Landing in the Ukuku Prairie and walking left whilst cutting down some bushes which netted me a few green rupees (It was going to get much worse from there what with having to grind for money), I picked up the boulder, tossed it aside, and entered the village where I immediately made my way over to the Item Shop.
Upon entering, I was exposed to Aria's attitude. "Whoa! Judging from all that dirt on you, you must have been spelunking somewhere!" I looked down at myself and her observation was embarrassingly spot on. My tunic had some dirt patches here and there whilst I had some gashes on my arms. "I don't mean to sound disrespectful but you ought to consider choosing a different career path."
I had to contradict her on that. "Your tone makes you sound disrespectful."
"Tch!" I knew that would upset Aria but I also knew that unlike the real version, this version was merely making a living which also included the occasional insult. "Anyway, I already know why you came back here, and yes, the bow hasn't gone anywhere in case you were worried someone went and bought it. The people of this village rarely have enough rupees to buy anything which makes me question why I even have this business."
"Is it still 980 rupees?"
Aria nodded with a sly grin. "You're a real sharp one you know."
"I don't suppose you could lower the price?"
"You mean like a discount?" Aria asked. I nodded and she quickly snapped back. "I'm not running a charity here! I mean, sure, I could lower the price but then everyone else will want the same thing and I'll end up going bankrupt sooner or later. Can you live with that on your conscious?"
Rolling my eyes, I waved my hands to signal that I couldn't win her argument. "Okay, okay! You win! I'll pay you the full amount for the bow." I walked up to where the bow was located on the back counter before picking it up. It was surprisingly light yet it didn't have any special features to make it stand out. Again, I wished that this had been hidden in a dungeon instead of being stuck in a shop. "I trust that you'll have no issues with my purchase?"
Before I had a chance to bring it to her, Aria quickly darted over to me, her eyes opened wide with surprise. "Are you saying that you have enough rupees to buy this?" I nodded and her jaw dropped. "No way! I know people don't save up much around here so I doubt you can either."
Smiling, I presented her with my wallet. "Empty this out and you'll see for yourself."
Taking my wallet, Aria walked back to the counter, confident that I didn't have enough rupees. Upon opening it up and emptying its contents, her jaw dropped again as her eyes widened over the prospect of making a huge profit. "You... You can actually afford this bow!? You must be the richest person I've ever met!" I couldn't help but notice she was drooling at seeing so much wealth. "Oooh... So much money about to become mine... It's a dream come true" After letting her indulge in her new-found wealth for a few moments, I coughed slightly which got her attention. "Right, I need to deal with you first."
"So... Can I purchase this?"
"Bow and arrow set... 980 rupees." I watched as she placed the rupees into the cash register before handing my wallet back to me. "Okay, you are now the proud owner of a bow that is sure to serve you well. It even comes with thirty arrows so feel free to shoot whatever you fancy. I do sell arrow refills for roughly forty rupees but I don't sell any quiver upgrades." She then walked back over to the shelf and placed another custom dungeon piece. "At this rate, it's going to take me years to sell these things. I mean, someone like you ought to have some use for these dungeon pieces."
"How much are they?"
"One hundred rupees for each one."
"I'll think about it."
"Sure you will." Aria said in a snarky manner. "I don't have anymore expensive items to sell you so if you're expecting me to surprise you with something over 1,000 rupees, then you can relax though I won't get another rupee payout." She then began getting annoyed with the fact that I was still standing there. "Hello!? You've already gotten the most expensive item I carry so what more do you want?"
"A couple of questions."
"What do I look like? A fortune teller!?"
"You owe me since I did just pay you a ton of money."
Aria sighed knowing that once again, I was right. "Fine! You can ask me some questions... As long as I actually know the answer. Just don't waste my time okay? I could get another customer come in at any moment and I need to make sure to attend to their every need."
The lack of anyone else and the looming silence made us all cough. I finally broke the silence before it could get really awkward. "I've only got two questions so you don't have to worry about being bombarded with so much curiosity. First, have you ever heard of any shrines around here? And second, do you know anything about river rapids?"
"Shrines? No, I don't know anything about any shrines." Aria answered, her demeanor clearly showing that she had no interest in answering anything. "Ugh! You should probably ask an archaeologist or something! But... I suppose someone like you might be interested in the ruins north of Animal Village." Before I had a chance to ask something else, she quickly shot me down instantly. "Hey! I know nothing about that place other than it exists. Who knows? You might find some treasure or nothing but dirt. The river rapids on the other hand are a different matter."
She didn't realize it but she had in fact helped me with regards to a potential new location. I nodded at Princess Twilight to acknowledge her to note that bit of information down in order to rely on it later. Rather than continue to badger her about that, I instead focused on asking about the river rapids as she knew something about it. "You know about the rapids? I heard it was run by someone who is eccentric."
Aria nodded. "Yeah, I know the woman who runs it. She's very insistent on going with her customers and won't take no for an answer. She can get annoying sometimes what with her endless chatter but she can handle those rapids better than anyone else."
"I might pay her a visit."
"If you're feeling adventurous then go for it."
At that point, Aria began waving her hand, an indication that she had no more answers. She was also signaling for me to leave as I was hanging around her shop way too much and could potentially ruin the experiences of other customers (Not that she had anyone else come into her place mind you). I had nothing else to purchase so I took my leave though I was satisfied with what she had told me. While I still didn't know the exact location of the next dungeon, I had two new locations to visit in the hopes of finding it. Flash Sentry would be a boon here but he hasn't made himself known for some time now.
"What did you make of that, Twilight?"
"Aria is as charming as ever." Princess Twilight answered.
"She needs a better outlook on life."
"Among other things."
I couldn't help but laugh at that. "Anyway, where should we go next?"
"Of the two locations Aria told us about, the ruins near the Animal Village would be the best place for us to search." Princess Twilight answered. "We don't know where the river rapids are and I know you don't want to waste time combing this entire island looking for it. So, going to where we know makes sense, right?"
"And it's not because going to some ruins would make for excellent research material?" I asked, rolling my eyes.
Princess Twilight blushed. "Okay, so I'm that obvious to figure out."
A part of me was curious as to what these ruins Aria mentioned were all about. From my own experiences, ruins usually held treasure, secrets, progression, a combination of these, or perhaps something completely unexpected. They were often a good place to go though they weren't what I would call a cakewalk. Such places could also contain tricks, traps, monsters, or nothing at all, a sign that it had been abandoned long ago. If this was progression, I'd be pleased more than anything else as I'd be that much closer to fixing things. If it were nothing but a dead end, I'd be crushed.
Since I had to go back to the Animal Village yet again, I took out the ocarina and played Manbo's Mambo (I really appreciated this song now as it had saved me so much backtracking and keeping my feet from getting any kind of pain) and began concentrating on the warp tile just south of the village. Once again, I was whisked off in a bright light and upon reaching my destination moments later, I walked up and into the village before heading left and going back into Martha's Bay. The only direction left to explore at that point was north, so I went that way in hopes of finding the right path.
The first thing that caught my attention, aside from the Zirro flying about and the Buzz Blobs scuttling about, was a staircase heading into another underground tunnel. I knew straight away that what I was looking for couldn't be down there as that would've been both obvious and completely unexpected. Ruins were usually well hidden and not easy to find. Still, I was curious and walked down them which lead me to a tunnel filled with water though this wasn't an issue as I had the Flippers on hand for any swimming. I then noticed a Piece of Heart hidden underwater beyond the stranger blocks that could be broken by using the Pegasus Boots.
Switching over to the boots and dashing through the blocks, I quickly stopped so as to not go too far, and dove into the water to retrieve the Peace of Heart. Upon picking it up and holding it above my head, its warmth filled me with strength and confidence, the kind that would see through tough times ahead. Deciding that progressing any further in the cave would only amount to likely finding a dead end or maybe some treasure chests with paltry rewards (Though I could have used the extra rupees), I got out of the water, walked back outside via the stairs, and continued forward making sure to avoid the monsters.
Turning right due to the river blocking my path, I kept walking until I stopped upon hearing the familiar flapping wings of Flash Sentry's owl companion. Sure enough, the pair appeared on the opposite side before landing on what looked like a barricade. "It has been quite some time since our last meeting, child. I can tell that you have become much stronger though strength alone is not enough to awaken the Wind Fish."
"I've been wondering as to where you were." I said.
"When you have need of me, I shall appear." Flash Sentry said.
"Then perhaps you can tell me where to find the two shrines."
Looking at his owl companion and then looking back at me, Flash Sentry smirked which made me think he was annoyed at not getting to share his knowledge. "Ah, you have decided to take the initiative by learning that which I was going to tell you about. But, judging from that expression on your face, you don't know which way you should go. There are two shrines as you know: one to the north and one to the south. First head south towards the southern shrine. There, ruins can be found which speak of the Wind Fish."
"I'm actually glad you mentioned the Wind Fish.
"And why is that?"
"I want to know what's up with this island!"
Flash Sentry was surprised by my sudden outburst. "You have been informed by one of the Nightmares about what Koholint Island is all about." He paused and began to think about how best to explain himself. I knew he would have the answers to my question and for his sake, I hoped he wouldn't give me the run around. "You deserve to know the truth of the island as you have come so far in this journey yet I cannot tell you what you desire. Instead, you must discover the truth yourself."
"Not exactly the answer I was looking for but at least I will get one."
"However, I must warn you now."
"Of what?"
"What you discover at the ruins will change you forever." Flash Sentry answered, his voice becoming stern. "I will also tell you that I shall be ready to see you once you make your discovery. I do not hope to understand what goes on within your heart but it shall be tested beyond the limits of endurance." His words belied what appeared to be regret as though he knew I would say something I'd end up regretting later. Whatever was in this southern shrine had to be dead serious if it was to change me. "There is also something else you need in the ruins."
"What?"
"A key that you help you progress."
"Just a key?"
"You will understand upon obtaining it."
Princess Twilight then spoke up, blushing ever so slightly, a reminder that she still had some romantic feelings towards him. "You said that Sunset needed to go south in order to reach the southern shrine, correct? By that logic, heading south would take her back to the Animal Village unless you meant going in a different southerly direction?" Wow... Her Highness certainly knew how to ask the right question in the right manner. "Also, something you said has been bothering me. Clearly, something is happening on this island yet you act like you're forced to remain silent until Sunset figures it out. Why else would you say she has to discover the truth for herself?"
That surprised Flash Sentry prompting him to take a few moments to respond accordingly. "It seems you are much wiser than appearances suggest, little fairy. When the time comes, the child will understand everything. Until then, you must continue on and discover the truth which you seek. You must be prepared. Now... Continue on this path and you will find a place that has been forgotten by history." Without saying another word, he commanded his owl companion to take off and they both flew eastward until they were out of sight.
"I think I might have touched a nerve."
I nodded slightly. "Yeah. I think that's the first time I've ever seen him react like that."
"Well I had to say something otherwise it was going to bother me to no end."
"At least he was able to tell us where to go before he left."
"What do you think, Sunset..."
"About what?"
"About his being silent when you ask him specific questions?"
"Well..." I began, struggling a little to come up with a good answer. "I'll admit that I have been annoyed with Flash Sentry not being honest with me but I also kind of let it slide simply because he was doing it so often. I never really thought it was an issue until you confronted him about it just now. I mean, even now, I still don't see it as a problem as such, but maybe that was wrong of me?" I had pretty much trapped myself in a corner so I opted to stop saying anything in the hopes of moving on with this.
"That's your answer?" Princess Twilight asked and I nodded in a sheepish manner. Her Highness sighed a little in response. "I'm not going to scold you or anything, Sunset. After all, you have plenty of things to worry about since you're the heroine of this story. At least you acknowledged that you were concerned about his behaviour so I suppose that's better than being ignorant about it." She then changed the subject. "We might as well go to this southern shrine and get this key."
Walking along the riverbank, something caught my eye and I looked to my left. Situated in the middle of the river was a rectangular shaped island which featured two strange statues and a staircase leading up to it from the water. I could clearly get there what with the stairs on one side but from which direction? I asked Princess Twilight and while she didn't have an answer, she was also curious. She made another mental note (The third or fourth one) before I continued walking until I reached some unusual boulders. I tried picking one up only to find they were too heavy to be lifted even with the Power Bracelets.
Upon closer inspection, Princess Twilight revealed that the boulders were firmly stuck in the ground and that no amount of strength could lift them up. I was disappointed but I supposed that not everything could be solved by tossing them around. Luckily, the Blue Tektites bouncing around in the area were unable to leap over the boulders to attack. Ignoring the one north of me, I cut down a bush, picked up a stone which was well within my strength range, and tossed it where it destroyed the Blue Tektite in front of me. Picking up a blue rupee which it dropped (It was going to take me a very long time to recoup my rupee total), I continued on before turning south and entering a new area.
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"How does it feel to see your past self before your eyes, Generous one?"
"No... I cannot have done these things!" Rarity shouted.
"Oh but you did and so much more. You claim to be of a generous spirit who helps out those who are struggling, and yet, in truth, you do these things in order to further your own goals and to strengthen your status. Heh, heh, heh... How amusing and also pitiful. You use others only to better yourself."
"It's not true! I refuse to believe it!"
"What I am showing you is the truth about yourself, Generous one. You cannot deny your past sins no matter how strong you may think you are. Even the strongest of wills will succumb to the truth."
"Why are you doing this to us?"
"Why? Because I am Ganondorf! The Demon King!" He then spoke in a much softer tone. "But the real reason is because you six are the ones that have helped the child through the darkest moments of her life. If not for your influence, she would've succumbed to the desire for wanting power. My acquiring some of your precious magic is merely a bonus that serves only to slightly strengthen me further. Without you six around, the child, your Sunset Shimmer, would be a broken soul without guidance. She would be nothing without you." He then clenched his hand into a fist. "To make her mine, I shall take that which she loves more than anything else."
That made Rarity freak out. "What!? You would destroy us to get to Sunset?"
Ganondorf shook his head in response. "Kill the six of you? I could have done so when I first made my presence known to you all. To kill all of you would be an effortless venture on my part though it would also be a waste of such good magic that is being wasted by mere children." This was followed by a laugh before he snapped his finger and Rarity could see a reflection of a younger version of herself. "Remember this moment of your life? You claimed to have helped those poor children but in reality you desired to reap the benefits yourself. They did all the work and you took it from them just to improve your own ego."
Rarity then snapped, the image of her past actions being too much. "It's true! I used them to further my own dreams! Oh why! Why did I do that to them?" She then dropped to her knees and began sobbing, her magic slowly being drained from her body though she was more worried about her mental state than her magic. "One should be generous and not ask for anything in return and what did I do? Once I finished helping them, I... I... Sabotaged their efforts because I wanted to make sure that I would be more successful. They could've had a future but instead they were given a harsh reality."
"The hand that feeds one can also take it away."
"I should have just stayed away from them!"
"But you did not."
Rarity sighed knowing that she had been beaten. "No... I helped them because I thought they would take their new-found knowledge and do something else, but once I learned that they were after what I wanted as well, I couldn't help myself."
Ganondorf laughed before waving his hand to return Rarity back to the others. "What one does in the world can be a reflection of their true self. Generous one... You only wanted the glory and despised others who sought the same thing. It was not enough that you had to ruin their lives but to also rub it in their faces. You chose to hide this shame behind a mask but it can only last so long before shattering and exposing the truth." He then turned his attention towards the two who had yet to endure his power. "Kindness and Magic remain... It is obvious as to my choice now."
Moving his hand towards himself as though he were pulling something, Fluttershy was surprised to find that she was the next one to go before him. She immediately turned away in hopes of avoiding seeing the Demon King's face but was forced to face him when he used his magic. As she stared him down, peering into his hatred filled eyes, Fluttershy couldn't help but continue staring as though her famous stare had been used against her. She continued staring until a forced blink broke the connection and she placed both palms over her eyes as though they were writhing in agony.
"Your stare is too much." Fluttershy began. "Um... Could you please tone it down?"
That prompted a laughter from Ganondorf that almost caused him to burst into a fit of laugher. "Such a modest character you are, Kind one. You are perhaps the most intriguing amongst you and your fellow Elements. You possess a strong power though you do not unleash your full potential. Why hold back? Doing so is a form of weakness. One must embrace their power, not hide it away. There is also something more to you... A chaotic presence that has crossed the dimensional rift and desires your safety."
"I'm not sure I understand."
"No... You wouldn't as you have no knowledge of this chaotic presence." Ganondorf sighed which made Fluttershy confused even more. "Perhaps I was wrong... It is of no matter to me as such chaos pales in comparison to my power. Still..." Again, he felt dejected but quickly regained his composure. Whatever he was thinking about wasn't going to happen and so he ignored it and focused on her. "The one who is the most quiet often is the most powerful, but is this is a true reflection of yourself?"
"I like to be positive." Fluttershy answered with a smile.
Tilting his head to one side, Ganondorf looked like he would crack a smile but instead he brushed it off and leaned closer to Fluttershy. "You say one thing but your mind tells me you have lost control of your emotions more often than you admit."
"Oh my."
"As I thought..." He laughed again. "Breaking you down is going to be very amusing." Ganondorf then looked over at Twilight Sparkle, the only one he had yet to torment. "I have not forgotten about you, Magical One. You are the most special of all. You have something that I personally need and it shall be mine." He then used his magic and created a brief image of a familiar looking set of eyes before crushing it with his hand. "Reviving that one is not my intention but the power is. Breaking you will be easy. Such is when dealing with one who possesses a frightened mind."
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Heading south, I entered an area where no grass was growing and pillars were scattered about everywhere, some being in rows while others just stood alone. Some were even damage signaling that much time had passed. According to Princess Twilight, I had entered a place called the Ancient Ruins, and the name really said it all. Could this have been the remnants of an ancient civilization? Or was just a place that had been forgotten about? Either way, Her Highness was going to have a field day thought she had to be reminded that our first priority was to find this shrine that housed a key which I needed.
There were other, smaller statues situated in-between the pillars that depicted some kind of soldier armed with a sword and shield. They looked so incredibly life-like that I could swear they could move on their own. Her Highness said that these were in fact monsters pretending to be immobile, Armos. The name sounded familiar and she reminded me of the previous adventure where they would explode upon defeat. I shuddered as I remembered that experience but she informed me that these ones couldn't do that. However, attacking from the front would do nothing because of their shields.
Since there were so many Armos around, I had to move about carefully and only attack when it was necessary to move on. Walking forward, I raised my shield and made sure no part of my body touched anything as that's how one could make it move. They do eventually go back to being statues if left alone but that was going to be doubtful as space was limited around here because of the pillars. As I moved, Green Zols popped up from the ground and while I took them out, I had to do so carefully because of my surroundings. At least they were dropping green rupees as I needed money for the future.
Turning right, I could see the vast expanse of the Ancient Ruins, and it was much bigger than I thought. Way off in the distance was a building (It was the shrine) but getting there would involve some work. Continuing on, some pillars had collapsed or remnants of other buildings were blocking my path which meant being forced to awaken an Armos. One such instance occurred moments later as one was blocking the way forward. Touching the shield, it quickly sprang to life and began hopping towards me. My reaction was slow and it managed to get a couple of hits in before I responded in kind.
As expected, its shield was pretty sturdy so all I was doing was pushing it back until it hit a nearby wall. Given how it lacked depth perception, I stood to the side and watched it move back to its previous location and resume its statue disguise. Moving forward again, more Green Zols popped up and I took care of them without incident, yet whilst defeating one, my sword accidentally hit an Armos resulting in me getting hit with its shield (Strange how they don't swing those swords). In frustration from getting hurt, I kept swinging at it knowing it was futile as attacking from the front was useless.
Letting it move by, Princess Twilight began flittering about to get a better look at the ruins. "Isn't this just exciting, Sunset?" She asked. "I feel like I'm breaching new frontiers by seeing remnants that could have existed here for thousands of years."
"Only you would be interested in a place like this." I said whilst rolling my eyes.
Sticking out her tongue, Princess Twilight continued with her observation. "These Armos though are the one thing that seem out of place. I have a working theory that they were used to protect whatever existed here and because what was here is gone, they continue defending it. I suppose I feel sorry for them. Anyway, we're almost at the shrine so continue to be cautious." Feeling sorry for them? She was beginning to sound like Fluttershy. She (Fluttershy) felt sorry for just about everything whether it threatened our lives or not but that was just the kind of person she was... Kind.
Walking past a few more Armos, I had to question if they could be defeated. "Are they invincible?"
Princess Twilight shook her head. "No, but you would need a special item in order to defeat them. I wouldn't dwell on it since they aren't all that threatening and as long as you don't touch them, they won't do anything."
After getting past a few more Armos and defeating several Green Zols, I had successfully reached the shrine. "Compared to everything else around here..." I began upon observing the building. "It's almost completely intact."
"Take a look at the statues carved on each side of the door."
Both depicted the same thing, a creature with large horns. "What do you suppose it could be?"
"I don't know." Princess Twilight answered. "Without anything to go on around here apart from my theory, these statues could be referring to some kind of guardian, maybe an ancient deity, or maybe something that was worshipped before whatever was here faded away."
"Theory not working out for you?"
"Not in the least."
"It was worth a try." Walking into the shrine, I was in awe of how everything looked like it hadn't been touched for centuries barring the occasional cracks. "Even the inside of this place is almost completely intact, like someone wanted to make sure this building survived at the cost of everything else."
Princess Twilight was much more observant. "The lit torches tell me that someone or something is currently making this shrine their residence. Think about it, Sunset. Why would you have torches in a place that no one has been to in centuries? Okay, tombs might contain a torch though that's a rare occurrence." Her Highness then stopped when she began shivering before she flew on top of my hat to keep warm. "I'm sensing a powerful presence in the next room."
Taking her words to heart (Maybe I should've gotten another medicine from Sugar Belle prior to coming here), I slowly walked into the next room only to be confronted by a large statue that looked just like the two that were on either side of the shrine's entrance. "Guess we now know what those statues outside were depicting." Armed with a giant shield and sporting armour everywhere aside from its head, this statue looked menacing, but was it just that or something else?
"It could be alive, Sunset."
"Is this the presence you were sensing?"
Princess Twilight nodded. "This is more than just a statue."
Sure enough, both doors suddenly locked trapping me inside, and the statue began to vibrate before it lifted its head to signal that it was alive. "I have been waiting for you to reach this sanctum, Outsider!" The statue said in a booming voice. "You have progressed much further than expected but your journey shall end here."
"What are you?" I asked.
"I am the guardian of the Face Key!"
"Face Key?"
"You are planning on entering the Face Shrine, correct?" The statue asked. I nodded and its eyes glowed in response. "Yes... I knew that would be your answer. In order to enter that sacred place, the Face Key is required, but you will never get your hands on it. This shrine shall be your grave! The Nightmares have granted me tremendous power for they knew of your coming here." It then slammed its shield into the ground as a means of intimidation. "If you should defeat me, the Armos Knight, I shall relinquish the Face Key. You shall also learn the truth about Koholint Island."
"Do you guard that secret too?"
The Armos Knight slowly nodded, the sound of creaking steel caused a grating sound in my ears. "Defeat me and you will learn the secret but knowing the truth shall destroy you! You should leave this place and never return if you value your mind and of those who dwell here."
"I can't do that."
"Then you shall die!" The Armos Knight then began hopping forward towards me in a very quick manner (I was honestly surprised that it could move so fast considering that armour had to be pretty heavy and lacked any kind of mobility) but I was able to move aside which is when it suddenly jumped upward before crashing back down on the ground. The impact of its landing caused the ground to tremor which made me trip and fall on my butt. As I got back up, I noticed that it waited about a second before it began moving again which gave me an idea on how I could fight it.
Because it could cause tremors, I needed to jump at just the right time, so I took out the Roc's Feather but placed it on my hat as a feather (Naturally) as I needed both hands to use my sword and shield. Swinging my sword at the Armos Knight, it collided with its giant shield and I felt my entire body vibrated which felt really weird. It then jumped up so I jumped just as it crashed into the ground and proceeded to attack it from behind. Again, my body vibrated from the shock which made me wonder just what this thing was made from. It dawned on me that straight up attacking it wasn't working.
"So far, I'm doing no damage to it." I said as I avoided getting trampled over by its hopping.
"This Armos Knight is a tough one."
"Don't I know it!"
"Most of your items are going to do no damage at all." Princess Twilight quickly flew over to check the Armos Knight for herself before flying back when it suddenly turned around and jumped up again. It landed on me which also knocked me down but I managed to get back up and took cover. Her Highness asked me if I was okay and I nodded though the side of my body was beginning to ache. "I think I know how you can defeat this creature."
"I'm all ears."
Before she could say anything, I had to quickly move aside as it hopped up to me. It then jumped prompting me to do the same and I avoided the tremor though I was clearly starting to get a little frustrated. "It does have a weak point though its very small and requires exact precision. You must hit it from behind by striking its back near where its shoulder blades are."
"Can I use a bomb from a distance?"
"No as that armour is pretty sturdy."
"What about using an arrow?"
"Hmmm... I suppose an arrow can work but you might not have enough time to fire one." Princess Twilight felt unsure about using arrows but it was an option for me to consider. I mean, why not use something that cost me a fortune by simply carrying it around? "You try running into it using the Pegasus Boots but you will need to set that up first. As long as that shield remains intact, the front is completely immune to all damage."
Two options and both were pretty difficult to use. In any case, I had to do something otherwise this was going to be where I died. Switching over to the bow and nocking an arrow for firing, the Armos Knight took notice and responded by hopping and knocking me over. My arrow fired by accident and bounced harmlessly off the shield leaving me feel dejected. I tried preparing another one but it jumped up and crashed on top of me. The pain I felt on my legs was something fierce (I really should've gotten some medicine before coming here) but it was something I had to shake off.
Getting back up, I fired a few more arrows that bounced off the shield. Yeah... That was pretty stupid of me. I then moved to the side and tried firing at it from behind but this also proved ineffective. Her Highness said I could attack its weak point but where exactly was it? She didn't give me the exact details so I felt like I was just firing for the sake of it until finally connecting. I considered using the Pegasus Boots instead but I doubted I had enough time to charge at it let alone switching over to them. It then jumped again and I managed to avoid getting flattened for a third time.
Moving around to the other side, I fired a few more arrows hoping to hit the weak point and again I came up empty. Now I had to start conserving my arrows as I only had a limited number of them and no quiver upgrades this time around. I knew Her Highness said where its shoulder blades meet up with its back but there was an awful lot of it to go around and time wasn't on my side. As the Armos Knight prepared to jump again, Princess Twilight pointed at a particular spot on the armour and continued pointing to grab my attention. After catching on to what she was getting at, I ran around behind it and fired another arrow.
This time I scored a direct hit (How did that even happen when my previous shots were mostly duds!?) causing it to get pushed back. Now that I had somewhat of an idea on exactly where to aim my arrows, I fired another one which bounced off the armour. I then stood there in complete silence knowing what just happened and Her Highness patted me on the back out of sympathy. Great, just great! Why did it have to be a specific spot!? The thought of throwing the bow on the ground in anger was very tempting but it was expensive and I doubted I could get it repaired or even replaced.
Was it frustration or was it me simply being lucky? Whatever it was, my next arrow somehow struck the weak point which caused the Armos Knight's shield to break, and it wasn't happy about me doing that. "You destroyed a part of my impenetrable defence!"
"Guess it wasn't all that defensive." I said without laughing.
"I am still resilient to your attacks so try all you like."
"I'd be glad to."
"Let us see if you can!"
It then suddenly got a lot faster which meant I really had to be on my toes. "I'm guessing things will get easier now?"
Princess Twilight nodded from the safety of my hat. "Without that shield, it's more vulnerable to your sword and arrows. It still has immunity to your other items but now you can attack it from anywhere without worry. It has gotten faster now so you need to watch the shadow it makes when jumping. That should give you an idea of where it's going to land. I have no idea how many hits it will take however."
That last bit wasn't reassuring but at least I could be a bit more offensive. The Armos Knight suddenly jumped and landed on the ground so quickly, I barely had enough time to get out of the way. Had I been just a couple of inches closer, my legs would've surely been broken. Swinging my sword in hopes of keeping it away whilst I got back up, its helmet cracked a bit on impact. Really? Was its armour not as sturdy as it claimed? Perhaps lying dormant for so many centuries had made it brittle... This battle had just gotten a lot less stressful though it could still hit pretty hard.
Come to think of it, I wasn't as injured as I thought I was. After all, I had chosen the blue mail upon completing the Colour Dungeon. Had I gone with the red mail, I'd have more power but my body probably would've been broken about five minutes earlier. Defence once again had come to my rescue. Jumping in response to it jumping, it landed at the same time I did which caused me to land on my butt again. Getting back up and swinging, I connected and the helmet cracked a bit more. Since I felt like I had nothing to lose at that point, I continued striking the armour, each blow further cracked it.
On my next hit, the helmet cracked completely, exposing its head, or rather a lack of one. Behind its helmet was nothing but a pair of eyes surrounded in darkness. It was terrifying to say the least as I wasn't expecting it. It roared in response and began moving even faster. Moving out of the way to avoid being trampled, I turned out to attack only to be pushed into a wall by its sheer size. It definitely wanted me dead now. A combination of hopping and jumping made things more difficult and I began falling behind for a while until I regained my composure and fired an arrow into the darkness.
I hit something in there as it winced in pain so I fired another one only for it to do nothing. Crap! I had just experienced one of the most annoying aspects in video games which continues to give players grief. Enemies had a tendency to have what were known as invincibility frames, moments where they were invincible and couldn't be attacked in rapid succession to balance out the difficulty. I benefited from such frames (Though I didn't know how I could use them) but it was more useful to enemies as it gave them some help. Such frames lasted for roughly three seconds before they could be attacked again.
The Armos Knight hopped towards me and I responded with another arrow which made it come to a stop. "How!? How did you break my armour? No one has been able to break it before until you came along."
Breathing heavily, I pointed at its body. "You've been here for so long that your armour has gone brittle over the centuries."
" But the Nightmares made me stronger!"
"I guess they didn't take age into account."
The Armos Knight sighed knowing that it had been defeated. "I gave you quite the challenge, Outsider, and you cannot deny this. You may be strong but even you have your limits to which have been exposed by me. The Nightmares will take this knowledge and you shall die a terrible death. Take the Face Key and enter the Face Shrine!"
"What about the island's secret?"
The Armos Knight's eyes looked back at the now unlocked door behind. "In that room, you will get your answer. Now... I must rest... In eternal slumber." Breathing its last, it started exploding multiple times before exploding entirely leaving behind a key whose head looked like a weirdly shaped clown face. It was a difficult battle until its weakness truly showed but what had me worried was the fact that the Nightmares had somehow influenced it. Grogar had to be desperate to do something like this.
Walking up to the key, I picked it up and cradled it in my hands. "So this is the Face Key?"
Princess Twilight took a look for herself and nodded her confirmation. "It's definitely a creepy looking key but it's what you need to access the next dungeon. I must admit that you had to go through an awful just to get this, yet I know you're bothered by what the Armos Knight said about the Nightmares. After all this time, Sunset, your expressions are so easy to read that's become second nature."
"Grogar must be panicking."
"And that means he will do whatever it takes to kill you."
"I'm ready for him."
"Speaking of being ready..." Princess Twilight's eyes looked at the unlocked door. "We will soon get to see what this secret is about Koholint Island. Be prepared for anything as you know that can happen."
Nodding and gulping, I entered the next room where it suddenly became dark. "If they were trying to be scary, they didn't do a pretty good job of it." In truth, the two torches in the room hadn't been lit up. "Gotta give them credit for applying some mystery." I then took out the Magic Powder and lit up both torches revealing the room to be quite dark, and that's when my jaw dropped in amazement upon what could be seen on the back wall. "Whoa... Take a look at this, Twilight!" On the back wall was a large mural depicting what looked like a giant whale, yet it didn't look like any whale I'd seen in books and online.
Princess Twilight decided to take a closer look for herself. "Sunset..." She began. "I think this is supposed to be the Wind Fish."
I was shocked. "Are you serious!?"
"I mean, it doesn't look like anything I've ever seen before and believe me, Equestria has its fair share of strange creatures." Princess Twilight then noticed something else on the mural that caught her eye. "Look at this! That's Flash Sentry and his owl companion!"
"What are they doing on this thing?"
"I don't know."
"And is that ancient writing?"
"Yes, but it looks like it's aged quite a bit." Princess Twilight then smiled. "Luckily, it's not faded away so it can be read. Good thing you have me around to translate this text. I just need a couple of minutes." She began combing over each letter making certain not to overlook anything. As Her Highness continued to translate, I felt uneasy as to this whole thing. Why was Flash Sentry depicted here? Did he have some kind of connection with the Wind Fish? More importantly, just what kind of creature was this Wind Fish? Her Highness then looked up at me. "I've finished translating."
"And?"
"If I'm right about this, this is what it says. 'To the finder... The isle of Koholint is but an illusion. Human, monster, sea, sky... A scene on the lid of a sleeper's eye. Awake the dreamer and Koholint will vanish much like a bubble on a needle. Castaway... You should know the truth!'" Princess Twilight stood there, her face looking like she had witnessed some kind of terrible tragedy, and then she dropped to the ground before finally addressing me. "Sunset... This island... It doesn't exist."
"What do you mean?"
Princess Twilight's eyes widened in horror. "What I'm saying is that this entire island, everything on it, is just an illusion. None of it is real!"
It took me a moment for it to finally sink in. "So you're saying that everything I've done here didn't mean a thing!? I've just been galaventing around in someone's dream!? No... No, it can't be true, Twilight." As Her Highness sadly nodded her head, my heart felt like it had just received a huge blow. "That's what the Slime Eel meant about the truth. It knew... The Nightmares have known what Koholint Island was all along. But... What about Starlight? Sunburst? Everyone else who lives here?"
"They don't know that they are an illusion."
I dropped to my hands and knees and tears began streaming down my face. "Then it's over, Twilight! If we awaken the Wind Fish, this island will disappear. Everyone on it will disappear and never exist again. How can I change things back to the way they were before if they cease to exist!?"
"I've no answer for that."
"I can't continue!"
"Sunset... I am sure there's a logical explanation here."
"Is there, Twilight!?
Her silence meant that she had no answer, but then her voice took on a different tone. "Now I'm beginning to understand what you meant when you said that you have to endure so much agony on these adventures." Princess Twilight looked like she was about to cry so I chose to comfort her. "You poor girl. No wonder all that bravado and confidence is but an act you use to stay strong as otherwise you would've spiraled into madness a long time ago."
Princess Twilight was right about me using all of that to remain strong and not allow Ganondorf's machinations to bring me down. I mean, this was just the latest incident of me enduring some kind of personal torment (It wouldn't be the last one either) where Her Highness would comfort me (Which she had done many times before) and tell me not to question my actions or my purpose, and ever time she did so, I recovered, but this was on a whole other level. This revelation had completely shattered me. Knowing now what Koholint Island was had changed me and I immediately had to question my current course of action.
How could I go about awakening something which had apparently created an entire island? All those people I had been interacting with and even befriended. I could never see or talk to them in the same manner now knowing they weren't real. But what if they were real and this mural had been lying? No... How could it be lying? Why even have it here in the first place if was nothing more than a means of deceiving me? Then perhaps the scariest question came to mind... What if I were an illusion? I shook my head of such a thought. I'm most certainly real otherwise I wouldn't even be here.
Getting back onto my feet, I clenched my hand into a fist. "I know what we need to do, Twilight."
"You do?"
"We need to speak to Flash Sentry again."
Coming to her senses, Princess Twilight looked at me with surprise. "Do you think that he will answer your questions about this new revelation?"
I nodded. "He has no choice but to answer them."
"I'm not sure about that, Sunset." Princess Twilight said, concern clearly echoing in her voice. "From what we've surmised about him in this world, Flash Sentry can only tell you certain things when he feels you are ready to know about them."
"I think he's going to be more willing this time around." I said with a smile though it quickly faded. "After all, we discovered what Koholint Island is and we deserve to have answers or else there's no point in continuing." I then looked up at the ceiling to clear my head and to reflect upon everything that had transpired. "We must find him as soon as possible otherwise we could become consumed with what we've learned. Believe me, that's the last thing I want right now." It would all depend on Flash Sentry and what he had to say. If it wasn't good enough, I'm not sure what I would do.
To Be Continued.