Chapter 14: The Fiery Reptile
The Legend of Sunset Shimmer: Majora's Mask
By Ganondorf8
November 8, 2015 (Written), June 6, 2016 (Published)
Chapter 14: The Fiery Reptile.
Twilight was still freaking out over being locked inside of a room, not to mention being surrounded by three Snappers. Thinking fast on my feet, I took out my shield and propped myself up against the wall. Each Snapper collided with it, causing them to bounce back to the other side of the room. I breathed a sigh of relief knowing I had some room to maneuver. That's when I noticed the three monsters began ignoring me, as though I wasn't even there to begin with. This revelation began making me think that perhaps their vision wasn't very good or they only attack when prey enters their territory.
This could prove to be very useful, but probably just for this part of Termina. I doubted these Snappers exist anywhere else. I then looked at my shield. Despite it having a few dents, it remained as strong as ever--something I'm now appreciating. It meant my journey had gotten slightly easier, but then I was still at the start. More difficult challenges awaited further ahead. Turning my attention towards Her Highness, she had spent the last few moments ramming into the bars of the locked door. While scenarios like this were ones I had gotten adjusted to from last time, she wasn't used to it.
Knowing she would likely give herself a concussion, I reached out with my hand, planting it in front of her flight. She collided with a soft thud, and looked up at me wondering what just happened.
" Why did you stop me?" Twilight asked.
" Because if I hadn't, you'd have flung yourself straight into those iron bars. Like I said, we can't open the door until the problem in this room has been resolved." I answered, prompting Twilight to take a look for herself. " I figured that they only attack when something enters their territory, so right now we can plan some kind of strategy."
" Guess I'm no good under pressure."
" I figured that out some time ago."
" Okay, since we know that they have to be struck from below, you can use the Deku Flowers scattered across the room. However, you'll need to attract their attention, so that means getting up close to one. Otherwise, you'll miss your chance, and could possibly receive some kind of counterattack." Twilight said.
" See? Quite simple, isn't it?"
" Are you serious, Sunset? We've only just started this temple, and already I'm losing my nerves because of all the monsters, puzzles, confusion, and traps getting in the way." Twilight answered, hyperventilating for a few moments. " I know you're used to this, given your previous experience, yet even though I've faced similar odds back in Equestria, those are nothing compared to this." Twilight realized that what she said was nothing more than an excuse. She turned towards me, my arms folded, a smug expression on my face. " Is my 'freaking out' really that obvious?"
" Without a doubt."
" I must look like a fool to you."
" Not at all! You're just frustrated as this is an environment you've never experienced before. When I was exploring Hyrule in my previous journey, I experienced the same feelings you are right now. Logic from both worlds made no sense, so I quickly adapted knowing there was no other choice. It became part of me, and a small portion wish that it could have stayed that way, but I knew things had to change back to normal." I said.
" You enjoyed being in Hyrule?"
" Running around the field, exploring dungeons, using magic, and fighting against monsters. It reminds me so much of--" I answered before Twilight cut me off
" Equestria?"
" Yeah, but how did you--?" I asked, being cut off again.
" You've been gone from Equestria for so long, Sunset, that you've been using these video game worlds as a substitute, yet they can never measure up to the real thing that is our true home. I know it's a rather sensitive subject, but you will have to face Princess Celestia one day so that you can finally bring about a conclusion to what can be described as a critical part of your past." Twilight answered.
" Guess all I'm doing is avoiding her, huh?"
" It's something you're not comfortable with right now, but you can't keep hiding behind this fantasy forever. One day, you will have to face Celestia, and ultimately, the only one who can end the problem, is you." Twilight answered. Was it any wonder why she became my mentor? Twilight was right in that I can't use these video game worlds as a substitute for my desires.
I left on bad terms with Princess Celestia, and not a day goes by that I regret my actions. When this is all said and done, and there are no problems that need solving in the human world, I'm going back to Equestria at least to reconcile with my former mentor. I owe her that much, and an apology for having strayed away from my path.
" She had every right to bring an end to my studies."
" I know it still eats away at you, but that's in the past, and what happened can't be undone."
" Which is why I need to make sure no one else experiences my biggest mistake for themselves."
" That's the spirit! We'll have another discussion about this later, but right now I just want to get out of this room!" Twilight said. In some ways, what I just went through was exactly what Ganondorf wanted me to experience: to suffer because of my past actions. I may have passed this small hurdle, yet there were many more that needed to be jumped over. " Sunset, in order to defeat these Snappers, it's best to take them down one at a time. Focusing on all three at once will cause you to lose track of them."
" So I'll need to pick the right Deku Flower based on where they are positioned?"
" Or, just stick with one, and corral them towards it." Twilight answered. Looking around the room at the Deku Flowers on the floor, the one that was the closest to the door looked to be a sure bet. I walked towards it and the Snappers took notice before ducking into their shells. They proceeded to charge at me, yet I was much faster, and dove into the flower just in time. They then began charging back and forth thinking they could reach me within the safety of the flower, but their actions were, in truth, pitiful.
As soon as one of the Snappers charged, the moment its body covered the flower, I launched myself striking its underbelly, and defeated it in the process. I had a slight problem in that I was now flying above the floor, and the other two Snappers were charging about below.
" Now what?"
" You do know that you can drop down when airborne, right?"
" I assumed that flying the entire distance was the better course of action."
" That's for when you're trying to reach a platform, but if you hold the flowers forward, you'll drop straight down. Deku Scrubs aren't fond of falling from great heights, so you'll take some slight damage if you do that." Twilight said.
Pushing the flowers forward, they folded up, and my body dropped down where the Snappers were waiting. I ended up getting hit by both of them, causing me to crash into a nearby wall.
" Well that didn't go over well."
" Perhaps the one main drawback of flying is when you fall down by choosing to end your flight early, you become vulnerable to attacks from all sides when you land." Twilight said. At least I've learned this information now instead of later otherwise if I had discovered this during a more intense situation, my life would be in peril.
Getting myself up, and dusting off some dirt which caked itself across my shorts, I made my way back over to where the Deku Flower was, the Snappers taking offence to my actions.
Jumping into the Deku Flower, I launched myself when the next one charged, defeating it, and immediately dropped down before quickly taking out my shield. The remaining Snapper collided into it, bounced back the other way, allowing me the chance to dive into the flower again. With one more repeat performance from it, I launched myself upward, striking its underbelly, and defeating it where it burned away. Twilight bopped me on the head--much to my annoyance--to acknowledge that something was happening back at the door.
Turning towards the door, the iron bars rose up, and no doubt this was a huge sigh of relief for Twilight given how she had been trying in vain to open it.
" Like I said, upon solving the puzzle, the iron bars rise up, and we can now leave."
" Then why don't we?"
" Because I have a suspicion that we'll be getting something in here." I answered. Sure enough, a giant treasure chest materialized in the middle of the room. It was a pleasant sight to see, as it meant it would contain one of the key items one needs to be able to progress through one of these dungeons.
" That's quite the large chest."
" A reward for having solved the puzzle here." I said, walking over to the chest before kicking it open. I jumped inside, picked something up, jumped back out, and showed Twilight a piece of paper. She was expecting something better than this--hence her disapproving expression. " This is the Dungeon Map, which shows all of the different rooms located inside of the temple. Believe me, this thing is going to be very handy."
" I suppose this makes up for it considering that it's just a piece of paper." Twilight said. We both then took a look at the map, and discovered that Woodfall Temple was surprisingly small, an indication that things may not be as difficult as originally suspected. The layout was rather simple in design and, apart from an unusual second floor--it comprised of just three rooms with one of them cut off from the other two--much of the temple was situated on the first floor.
" Here Sunset--" Twilight began, " Let me mark off where the Stray Fairies were found, so that we know that they have been collected." I held out the map andshe used her fairy magic to create a few colourful specks that indicated where the fairies were.
" This place isn't really all that big."
" Perhaps it was intentional when this game was designed?"
" I remember during my last adventure, the first three dungeons were just as short as this temple. Despite some troubles along the way, they weren't all that complicated. Woodfall Temple must have been created to give off a sense of what the dungeons are going to be like before the size, and overall difficulty are increased," I said.
" So, things will be getting harder later?"
" I did say something to that effect."
" Guess there's no point in denying it, but promise me that you'll be prepared to handle it."
" You have my word Twilight."
" Okay then. We have a map of the temple, and we have that small key, so it's just a matter of getting back to that locked door we found earlier." Twilight said. Making sure there was nothing else of interest in the room, I proceeded back to the previous room, and that meant hopping across the poison water. If only I could find a means of getting rid of that poison. It would make traversing across these pools of water a more comforting experience.
After crossing over the pool using the Deku Flower, I reached the other door, and opened it to go back to the central chamber. " Now how are we going to get over there?" Twilight asked, both of us reaching that very conclusion. There was no actual pathway to the other side, and the slope she mentioned was on the upper ledge.
" What about those weird flowers in the water?"
" I suppose you could use them as stepping stones, but then it depends on whether they will attack you or not."
" Why would they attack me?"
" Because they have a row of teeth that go around the outer rim of the plant." Twilight answered sarcastically, prompting me to take a closer look. The flowers did possess teeth, resulting from being contaminated by all that poison. Despite being warped versions of themselves, they were still plants, so would that mean they would accept a fellow plant, and allow them to cross safely? I explained this to Twilight, who began to pace back and forth in order to process all of this information. " If you attempted to cross as a human, they might attack, and you would take damage from the poison."
" I'd rather not do that."
" Then I guess you've no choice, but to jump onto one in your current form." Twilight said. In my mind, I was nervous about jumping onto these flowers. What if my idea doesn't work? What if they chew me up and spit me out into the poisonous water? No, I need to cross otherwise I'm pretty much stuck here, and this journey would end all because of a warped flower.
Closing my eyes, I jumped over, landed on a flower, and nothing happened. Upon opening my eyes, I made my way over to the other side of the water, and something was waiting for me which lunged out at me in an attempt to bite my head off.
" Figures I'd end up facing this again."
" This is a Deku Baba, and unlike the one that had a withered stem, this one has a fully flexible stem that allows it to rear its mouth back before attacking by lunging forward. If you use any kind of shield, it will bounce it back, yet it will immediately attack again, so I wouldn't recommend you doing that." Twilight said. I remembered this version from before, and they were among the first monsters I had to deal with. It didn't go over very well given I had no idea what I was doing back then; everything was still new to me.
" Deku Babas do have a limit to their range, and when they reach it, they instinctively bite at you before moving their heads back to attack again. If you can stun them, you can easily cut down the stem, and will produce a Deku Stick. If defeated without relying on that strategy, you'll get a Deku Nut instead." Twilight said.
" Do you think I should ignore it, and unlock the door?"
" Maybe, but then why place a Deku Baba right here for no apparent reason?"
" That does sound strange when you say it like that, so maybe something will happen if I defeat it?"
" You can use your spinning attack that should protect you from its biting, but don't go crazy otherwise you might accidentally fall into the poison." Twilight answered. I walked around until I was at an angle where I couldn't plunge into the poison, yet the Deku Baba constantly lunged at me. With one timely spin attack, it was defeated and shattered into dead leaves. A Stray Fairy appeared that I immediately grabbed before it could get away. " That was ironic wasn't it, Sunset?"
" Good thing you convinced me otherwise we would have left that fairy behind." I answered. Twilight then asked to see the map, and I held it out for her so that she could mark down this Stray Fairy. " Four fairies down, and only eleven more to go. By the way, I wonder how much time has passed since we first entered this temple? I mean, there aren't any clocks around here to tell us."
Before, I would spend many hours--if not an entire day--in a dungeon, yet I could take my time given there was no constraints. Because I only had three days, time had become important. Knowing the current time would be a blessing, so how would I go about knowing without having to leave and come back later?
" I'd say we've been in here for about a couple of hours."
" That's just it though! That's just an assumption on your part, yet we need the exact answer! I know we're still on the first day, but it's best to figure it out now, and not later on." I said.
" Since this is a video game world, is there some way you can access certain things that a player can see?"
" Not that I know of. I'm portraying a character within the game... all of us are, Twilight. There are certain perspectives we can't access due to them being beyond our realm of understanding." I answered
" You never know until you try, Sunset." Twilight smiled. Her words prompted me to begin checking my gear to see if there was something that could help me figure out the current time. That's when I took out something that looked like an hourglass, but was slightly different in appearance. " I think you just found what we need, yet I wasn't expecting that." Twilight commented, her expression one of disappointment. How was I supposed to figure out how to use an hourglass?
" Any ideas?"
" Not a clue."
" Guess we won't know the correct time until someone can tell us how we use this thing."
" At least we have the howling of wolves to indicate nightfall." Twilight said. Okay, that was a little reassuring, but it'd be better if we had the correct time. Putting the hourglass away, making sure not to drop it, I took out the small key, and used it to unlock the door. I opened it, and entered the next room that featured even more poisonous water. There were some steps that went up to a higher level, a strange block which featured Majora's Mask as a symbol, and a few Skulltulas situated here and there.
" There's something down there under the water." I said, pointing towards some kind of sphere located underneath the wooden catwalk in the middle of the room. It looked like a bubble--which made no sense--but then I noticed something moving around inside it.
" I think that's a Stray Fairy."
" Do you suppose one of my bubbles can pop that one?"
" No, I think something more powerful is in order. We'll have to make a note of this fairy, and come back here later." Twilight answered. I then walked up to the strange block, and began pushing to see if I could move it. It slid along until it became lodged in place. " Okay, we've established that you don't need to switch back to a human to push it, but don't think that you've made a mistake. You can easily go around the outer edges of the room, and push it back the other way."
" Hopefully I've got enough magic to deal with those Skulltulas."
" The pathway is too narrow so avoiding them isn't an option." Twilight said. Sighing, I began to make my way over to the corner of the room where one of the Skulltulas was waiting for me. Since I had to hit it from behind, I inched closer until it dropped down from above, and spun around using that barrier it had. The moment its back was facing me, I fired a bubble which destroyed it, but that was just one of them in this room. " You know, I don't understand why those skeletal spiders turn around, and expose their weakness like that." Twilight said.
" It doesn't make any sense to me either, so I don't bother thinking it, and just go with it," I said.
" I mean, it isn't a concern, but aren't you just curious as to why they have such an unusual quirk?"
" My guess is that whoever made this game wanted some easy monsters, but don't think for a second that this means we can drop our guard, Twilight. There are some powerful monsters out there waiting for us to run into them." I answered. Walking further until stopping due to another Skulltula lying in wait on the ceiling, I repeated the same process from before and defeated it, yet this one revealed a Stray Fairy when it burned away to nothing. I collected it which now made five altogether with another ten more remaining--nine if you don't include the one located in the poisonous water. Twilight then used her fairy magic to mark this room down on the map before I put it away, and walked onward until I came back to where I started.
" Now push it forward, and we can go to the right."
" Makes you think there could have been an easier way, but then doing that would ruin the whole experience."
" Nothing ever works out when you want to cheat." Twilight said. Heading down the next walkway, I soon came to a stop at another door, but it had iron bars which meant we weren't opening it until we figured out what needed to be done. A nearby torch indicated that fire was needed, and while Twilight cursed under her breath about me not having access to my fire magic, I pretty much figured out what we had to do. To my right, a withered Deku Baba was, rooted into the ground, so defeating it should give me a Deku Stick which can be used to light up this torch.
" Now we just need a torch." I said, using my spin attack, cutting down the Deku Baba. It left behind a Deku Stick that I picked up.
" There was one back there where the first Skulltula was." Twilight said, prompting me to look in that direction. " I don't think you can use one of those sticks in your current form, so changing back into a human is the best course of action." Grabbing my face and pulling on it, I removed the Deku Mask where I breathed a sigh of relief.
I knew I'd have to put it on again, yet it was a matter of when rather than where. Running over to the torch, I took out the Deku Stick, placed it into the flames, and immediately pulled it back out before running back to the unlit torch. " Why do all of this needless running, Sunset?" Twilight asked.
" Isn't it obvious?"
" The stick doesn't last that long?"
" It can only stay lit for about thirty seconds before it burns away, yet if you manage to maintain the lit flame, you could keep it going for as long as you want. Also, I learned from Rainbow Dash that a Deku Stick can be used as a substitute for a sword, but she recommended not using it as one. They break in two upon contact with anything, yet they do inflict a lot of damage." I answered. Once I reached the other torch, I lit it causing the door to unlock, but then I immediately put the stick away. It left Twilight feeling concerned as she assumed the flame would burn my tunic to ashes, yet I reassured her that wasn't going to happen. When it gets put away, the Deku Stick extinguishes itself which allows me to use it again later
" For such a simple item, it certainly has a lot of uses."
" It's pretty good during the early stages, but it's usefulness will diminish as better items come along. I might as well use it for all its worth until there's no real need to use it anymore." I said.
" Where to next?"
" I was thinking we could check out the room behind the door now that the iron bars have risen up." I answered. Twilight nodded in agreement, and I opened the door leading me into another small room containing two Dragonflies. Before I could anything, the door closed behind me with iron bars, yet Twilight didn't freak out. She was a pretty fast learner given all she's been through so far in her life.
" Since you have plenty of room, you should have no problems dealing with these two monsters. I do suggest fighting them as a human, as you don't want to neglect your skills with a sword and shield, right? Even though those Dragonflies use electrical attacks when they swing their tails, it's completely harmless upon your shield. You can then follow through with a single strike of your sword." Twilight said. While my skills with a sword have gotten better, I still wouldn't consider myself an expert as I could easily screw up.
Walking forward caught the Dragonflies attention, one of them flew over before striking with its tail, and I raised my shield just as the tip sunk into it where nothing happened. As it struggled to lodge itself loose, I swung my sword, striking it down where it burned away to nothing--quite a common trend I've been seeing so far. I had no time to ponder over it as the other one came over with every intent on getting revenge or because it now had no competition in terms of getting another meal.
It flew over slowly where it used its tail, and I raised my shield causing its tail to get sunk in. That allowed me to swing my sword destroying it. To think these Dragonflies are only really a problem whenever I'm flying in the air as a Deku Scrub, yet on the ground they are non-threatening. The moment it burned away, I looked back at the door where the iron bars raised up meaning we could now leave, but when a large treasure chest materialized before me, I had a suspicion that I knew what was contained inside.
Opening it up with some slight difficulty, I lunged into the chest where I took out a compass which made me smile as I remember how these things worked, yet my friend was about to express her disappointment as I suspect she wanted me to get something else.
" A compass!? Seriously!?"
" What's wrong with that?"
" We don't need a compass to figure out which way to go."
" This one doesn't follow that trope, Twilight. First of all, this compass will allow us to know exactly where we are in the temple
which is going to be immensely useful. Second, the map will now display icons that represent unopened treasure chests, and even though that doesn't sound possible, I learned to not question how this world works. Finally, it will also have a skull icon which is where the location of the boss is." I said.
" How?"
" That I know so much information? Well, you can thank Spike for showing me the ropes." I answered. Putting the compass away, and going through the door back into the previous room, I noticed something different which wasn't there before. A few butterflies had suddenly appeared, and were flying in a circle around the torch which I had lit a few moments ago. They appeared completely mesmerized by the spectacle. " Why do you suppose those butterflies are there?"
" Uh-oh... This could be problematic."
" Why?"
" According to Tatl's memories, butterflies for some reason are drawn to flames, and when they settle down near any kind of torch, they will instinctively protect it. While it may seem that these little creatures are innocent, they can and will inflict tiny amounts of damage which can quickly build up." Twilight answered. I never would have guessed that butterflies were capable of causing problems, but then Termina has already proven to not follow specific standards when it came to how certain things worked.
I then decided to ignore the torch as I didn't want to be pursued by butterflies, yet I would soon learn the hard way that trying to take the easy way out ends up not being an option. Walking up the stairs, I came across another unlit torch, along with a platform that had been raised up by a massive column coming from below. There was a giant spider-web blocking another passageway which must be the way forward.
" Guess I need to bring fire up here by lighting this other torch, and then using the same fire to burn away the webbing."
" If you do that, you'll get chased."
" Like I have any other choice." I said, taking out the Deku Stick I used earlier. Rather than plunge it into the flames, I decided to hold it out, and allow the stick to be caught on fire, and keep me from those butterflies. Brandishing it like it were a sword, I ran past the torch where the stick caught fire, and up the stairs before turning around to see if I had been followed. The butterflies followed along at a fast pace, yet weren't able to catch me.
Lighting the torch, I jumped over to the platform before jumping again, burning the spider-web away, and giving us access to what looked to be a staircase that went up to the next level. However, my joy was shortly lived not because of the butterflies--they got distracted by the second torch--but rather the Deku Stick burned away in my hands. Since I only had the one stick due to resetting time, if I run into another puzzle that involves lighting torches, I would be stuck.
One thing that only now just struck my mind as I walked up the stairs was that there was an actual staircase. That was something that never happened in Hyrule.
" There's a Deku Baba to your left, Sunset, tucked away in that small alcove."
" No, I'll take care of it."
" Why even bother? It would just be a waste of time."
" I could do with another Deku Stick, as the one that burned away was my only one."
" Oh..." Twilight said, blushing. Cutting down the Deku Baba with a simple swing of my sword, and almost clanging it into the wall, a Deku Stick appeared when the Deku Baba became scattered leaves. I picked up, and began walking up the stairs to the next level where everything suddenly went dark.
It was so pitch-black that I couldn't even see my own hands, but then Twilight moved slightly ahead where she glowed brighter to give us a sense of where we were going. I had a smug look on my face which meant that I told her so about needing a Deku Stick. " Okay, so you made the right choice by taking that Deku Baba down, but be careful as I'm sensing a lot of evil around here."
" Do you know what kind?"
" I can see... a lot of those Black Boes up ahead." Twilight answered. That wasn't what I would call evil, but then if there are a lot of them coming this way, I suppose it would count especially since I'll be outnumbered until I can clear them all out. " I'm also seeing the faint light of a torch at the end of this corridor, but that probably won't do us any good until we actually get close to it."
" Guess we're going through at least a dozen monsters."
" Or rather, you are." Twilight added. I chose not to acknowledge that response because I knew she was teasing me. Deciding that the best course of action would be running down the corridor, my sword connected with most of the Black Boes--who were really good at hiding amongst the darkness--yet each one fell upon my blade although a few did manage to strike me. Due to the corridor being too narrow, my sword clanged off the walls far more often than I was hoping. Eventually, I reached the end of the corridor where the room opened up into a slightly bigger one, and the torch looked rather unusually positioned.
" Okay, so what exactly do we do now?" I asked, striking down more Black Boes that were popping up all over the place.
" There's a locked door over there to our left, and it looks as though we'll need to light the torches in order to unlock it. Good thing then you brought that Deku Stick along despite my initial protests, but I feel as though something else is in this room." Twilight answered.
" What makes you think that?"
" Oh, I'd say those Black Boes." Twilight answered, pointing at many more which were situated by the unlit torches, and proceeded to gang up on me. This would be a perfect time to use my fire magic, but that's not going to happen, so thinking quickly, I stuck my sword arm out where it began to glow. I then unleashed a powerful spin attack--it wasn't really powerful--yet it did get the job done,and I ended up dropping my sword on the ground when the last one was defeated.
" I knew that was going to happen eventually."
" You weren't kidding when you said that happened before."
" Let's just hope it doesn't become a recurring theme." I said, moaning. The moment the last Black Boe was defeated, a treasure chest materialized in front of the torch. I walked over and kicked it open where a Stray Fairy came out before entering my body. " Six down, and only nine more to find, or should we just say eight left because there is that one downstairs trapped in that bubble."
" Better stick with nine otherwise we might confuse ourselves, so allow me to mark down this one on the map." Twilight said. That now left the obvious puzzle to solve which involved taking out the Deku Stick, and upon doing so, I plunged it into the fire before running around clockwise lighting the remaining torches. Upon lighting the last one, the iron bars rose up allowing me to proceed into the next room where everything got brighter, and was much more roomier.
" There's more of those Dragonflies up ahead."
" I'd look down at the ground first, Sunset, as there's something you need to see." Twilight said. Taking her advice, I looked down and noticed a number of holes in the ground. It made me wonder if this room had fallen into disrepair, but then judging from the positions of the Dragonflies, they were situated above the holes. Were I to be knocked down into one of them, I'm likely to end up back on the lower level, and perhaps in an even worse position than before.
" If you're thinking what I'm thinking, taking care of those Dragonflies is imperative otherwise you'll be backtracking. On another note, I can see a Stray Fairy trapped in a bubble down there." It took me a moment to find this fairy myself, and when I did, I ran down the stairs in front of me making sure not to fall down into the hole. I released it by popping the bubble using my sword. As soon as it entered my body, I ran back to where I was before to plan my next strategy.
" Guess I've got to become a Deku Scrub again."
" You have no choice, as you need to use those Deku Flowers to get across." Twilight said. The problem here was that if I fly across, one of those Dragonflies could hit me along the way with its tail, and I'll be helpless as I plummet down one of those holes below. Maybe, if I could somehow lure them towards me, I should be able to pick them off. That meant flying over to one of those moving platforms as I doubt they would follow me all the way down below.
Taking out the Deku Mask and putting it on again, I experienced the same convulsions as always--I was starting to get adjusted to it--and after a few seconds, I screamed out loud before completing my transformation, yet the transition still feels really awkward.
" If I want to take down those Dragonflies, I'll need to use my bubbles on them when I make it over to the first moving platform."
" Just be careful they don't hit you."
" Yeah. I do need to watch myself as I really don't want to backtrack up here." I said, diving into the Deku Flower at the edge of the ledge before launching myself when my flowers appeared, granting me the ability of flight. " I just need a clear shot to take them down." Landing on the moving platform, one of the Dragonflies flew closer when it noticed my approach. I used my shield to deflect its tail, and when it found itself stuck, I tried a different tactic that involved throwing my shield on the ground stunning it in the process. From there, I fired a bubble which burned it away, but then the other one had suddenly disappeared.
" Where did it go?"
" I know there were two of them as we saw them upon entering." I answered. My answer quickly came in the form of a tail attack from behind electrocuting me, but I managed to drop to my knees instead of being knocked off the platform. It felt as though every fibre of my being was shaking, and I did struggle to get back onto my feet that gave the Dragonfly some momentum before it struck me again.
" Are you alright?"
" I've been better." I answered, climbing onto my feet. The Dragonfly proceeded to attack me for the third time, but my response was to simply drop to the ground, and its tail sailed past my head in a harmless manner. I quickly jumped onto my feet again, and fired a bubble which destroyed it before it could do anything. " Whew! I am really starting to not like those things as that electricity in their tails really does go through your body."
" The damage was probably minor to you at best given that plants can handle some electricity." Twilight said. The fact that my internal organs felt like they've been turned into jelly, I wouldn't exactly call it that! In any case, I waited until this moving platform was close to the other one before diving into the Deku Flower present, and launched myself over before landing on the second platform. It slowly made its way over to a ledge where stairs were leading downwards. Twilight was concerned about my health, but I shrugged off her concerns. It would take more than an electric shock to bring me down. " Looks like we're heading back down to the first floor again."
" I have this feeling we're getting closer to the end."
" What makes you think that?"
" I've two of the four important items one would find in a dungeon, the map and compass."
" And what would that make the other two?"
" The dungeon item solve specific puzzles, and the boss key to open a special door." I answered. Deep down in my heart, I was getting nervous about what I would face in the room that housed the dungeon item. I remembered my previous experiences, and none of them were particularly pleasant, especially the fights against the Iron Knuckles, and Sunset Demon. " All other chests contain small keys, stray fairies, ammunition for items, rupees, recovery hearts, and anything else which can be deemed useful."
" Quite the diversity."
" It makes it a very exciting experience." I smiled. Once the second platform got close to the ledge, I dove into the Deku Flower, launched myself, and just barely made it onto the ledge. I took off the Deku Mask at that point, as I felt that being a human would be better. Once I was back to normal, I ran down the stairs, and found myself on the other side of the central chamber where that flower-like structure was in the poison water.
" There's a Stray Fairy trapped in a bubble to the right."
" Well that's pretty convenient." I said. Heading in that direction, I grabbed the fairy after using my sword to pop the bubble, so this now gave me a total of eight of them in total with seven more remaining to find. That's when I took notice of what was over here apart from the door with iron bars covering it. There was a unlit torch that I couldn't reach along with a switch that was close by.
" I don't think we can do anything here right now."
" Without a ranged weapon that hits hard and fast, guess going back the other way is where we should go." I said. Heading back in the opposite direction before turning to the right, a lone switch was situated right in front of the door I need to use. " Strange that a switch would be located right here, but I suppose it couldn't hurt activating it to see what happens."
" Are you sure that's a good idea?"
" I'll admit that sometimes pressing these can cause problems, but other times they are incredibly useful." I answered, stepping on the switch. It caused two ladders to materialize close by on opposite sides of the next door I needed to walk through. " Convenient they would appear close by, so now we can climb up here without having to go the long way around." That was a huge sigh of relief, as it meant a lot of backtracking had just been avoided.
Opening the door behind the switch, I found myself back in the room where the chest with the small key was located, yet now I could see what the rest of the room contained. There were two additional doors, to my left and to my right, yet it seemed I can only go right. Going left wasn't possible given the door was located on a ledge that was just too far away.
" What's that thing over there on the wall?" Twilight asked, floating over to what looked like a switch, but with an eye embedded in it.
" I remember those switches from before. " I answered, walking around the corner to get a better view of it. " Those do all kinds of things, yet they require an arrow in order to activate them. If one of those is in this temple, I have a pretty good idea as to what kind of dungeon item awaits me." Right away, I knew that this meant getting my hands on a bow, and thanks to the training I received during gym class, I'm better now at using one as opposed to before.
" So there's nothing we can do about that switch now?"
" We just have to come back to it."
" By the way, there's a beehive right above your head." Twilight said. I then looked up to see the beehive in question, yet why have something like this placed above a door? I didn't hear any sounds coming from it which made me wonder if it had been abandoned or perhaps something else has decided to take up residence. " You won't be able to reach it even if you were to extend your sword out, so it looks like you'll have to switch over to the Deku Mask for just a brief moment."
" I've got a better idea."
" What's that?"
" Throw my sword up at the beehive, and cut it down."
" Isn't that being somewhat reckless, Sunset? I know you've told me all about those incidents where you accidentally threw your sword across the room, but if you were to do a stunt like that, and end up tossing the sword down into the poisonous water below, you'll never get it back again." Twilight said.
She did have a good point. While throwing my sword sounded good in theory, because I wasn't good with it, the chances of me missing were pretty high. Still, Twilight should know that when I come up with an idea, nothing anyone else says or does could change my mind. I unsheathed the Kokiri Sword from its scabbard, yet instead of just tossing it at the wall, I chose to throw it slightly upwards from below.
" By throwing it up from this position, I can cut down the beehive, and my sword will land back down on the ground provided that I get out of the way before I end up skewering myself." I said.
" Okay, that actually sounds more feasible than had you just tossed it."
" I've come a long way you know, Twilight. While I won't change my mind on something, I'm not exactly being stupid about it. If I believe that I can't resolve something, then I'll simply move on with my journey as all I'd be doing is wasting precious time." I said. Stepping underneath the beehive, and tossing slightly upwards, my sword cut it down, shattered on the ground revealing a Stray Fairy. My sword then dropped and landed with a loud clanging sound before I picked it back up. " That went better than expected."
" You did have me worried for a moment there."
" To be honest, I felt the same way." I said. Walking over to the door that was at the end of the walkway, there were several pots lined up in a row. I smashed each of them that gave me a magic jar, a recovery heart, and two blue rupees, yet I knew this meant something strong was waiting for me behind the door. In the next room upon, it would lock itself behind me via iron bars, but things felt quiet, perhaps too quiet as though I were being watched from somewhere.
" What do we do in here?"
" I'm not sure as we're the only ones in here right now." I answered. Unfortunately, I was about to be proven wrong when the sound of something reptilian suddenly echoed around us. That's when something dropped down from the ceiling. It looked like a bipedal lizard wearing armour and held a rather crude sword, yet the way it was posed reminded me of what I dealt with back in Hyrule. Without warning, it suddenly breathed out a burst of flame from its gaping maw that took me by surprise, and then it dashed forward striking me with its blade before I could even react. I got knocked back a few inches before it jumped back to its original position.
" Are you alright?"
" I've been better."
" That's a Dinolfols--"
" I remember them from before, yet why are they different?"
" That's something I don't know, Sunset. I wasn't there with you at the time. Anyway, you need to be careful when it comes to this monster. Use your shield well in order to block its sword strikes, and attack whenever it drops its guard which is easy enough to figure out once you've memorized its movement. I should also mention that it will breathe out fire whenever you strike it as a means of self-defence to keep you away from it.
" Don't spend too much time up close even though that's how you fight it, as it has a tendency to jump over you, and attack from behind. Unless you've got some good reaction skills, don't try anything reckless." Twilight answered. This did feel exactly the same as the ones I saw in Hyrule apart from the fire breathing.
" Changing into a Deku Scrub would be nothing short of suicide."
" Agreed, so staying in human form is the best way to go." Twilight said. As I drew my sword and shield from my back, the Dinolfols immediately took this as a sign, so it dashed forward and struck me in the chest. The blew sent me flying into a nearby wall, hurting my back in the process. The Dinolfos then moved forward and I managed to raise my shield just in time as it's sword strikes clashed against my shield, sparks were flying as metal clanged against metal. While my shield could last a long time given how sturdy it was, I couldn't play a defensive game forever as that meant wasting precious time.
" This is where my magic could have helped." I moaned, struggling to keep my shield up as blow after blow continued.
" Well, you don't have access to it, so you'll have to try another tactic." Twilight said. Looking to my left and right in the hopes of seeing some kind of solution, I saw nothing, but maybe I could go use an unexpected method instead. It had occurred to me that its legs were apart which made for an opening in terms of escape, and since I was already on the floor, I was in a pretty good position already.
Once its sword clanged against my shield yet again, I took the initiative where I slid underneath its legs, enabling to emerge behind it, and struck it with my sword. It was able to do the same thing when it suddenly turned around, and breathed fire all over me which surprisingly didn't hurt all that much.
" You're covered in flames!"
" I know, but I feel completely fine."
" Really? Is it possible that despite not having your magic, your resistance to fire remains intact?" Twilight asked. This was a special gift I had back in Hyrule. I didn't take much damage against anything fire based, and while it didn't grant me an immunity, I could handle some pretty hard fire attacks. There was one catch, however. I would stand no chance in lava, and my immunity didn't apply with magic fire. While I may have resistance to fire, the same can't be said about swords, and the Dinolfos made sure to remind me of that. It jumped over me before turning around, striking me in the back, and I landed flat on my face.
" I deserved that."
" Get out of the way!"
" Whoa!" I shouted as I quickly rolled to the side just as the Dinolfos' sword came crashing down into the ground, yet I kept on rolling without the common sense to stop. Eventually, I rolled into another wall and got up just as the Dinolfos was making its way over to me using that incredible speed which made me somewhat jealous. Then it swung its sword prompting to raise my shield in response, and we were back at it again with metal clashing with metal. This time I was standing uprather than being on the ground. " When do you suppose this creature drops its guard?"
" You just need to watch it carefully."
" Kind of hard for me considering I'm defending myself here."
" Maybe you should move back a little, or lower your shield, and see what happens." Twilight said. Lower my shield? That would mean getting hit, but then if I were to move back just before its sword comes down, that should give me the answer. Lowering my shield, the Dinolfos saw it as an opportunity to strike, and just before it could, I jumped back where its guard dropped. That allowed me to strike it in the chest where it reeled back a few steps. Of course, I completely forgot about its fire breath that it used against me at point-blank range, and despite not feeling much pain, it still caused some damage. " Did you see when it dropped its guard?" Twilight asked.
" There's a vulnerable moment in-between when its sword goes down and then rises again."
" That's when you have to strike even though you have a mere second." Twilight said. The only problem with this strategy, is that I had to get up close in order for it to use its sword otherwise it will just move around without doing anything. It also meant my chances of being hit increase, but I've no choice in the matter but to take the chance. Moving forward while the Dinolfos did the same thing, we both met halfway, and we swung our respective swords which bounced off each other. " That won't do much good here, Sunset!"
" Maybe, but perhaps I can overpower it?"
" Don't always use brute force when you can use your wits." Twilight answered. I knew she was right, and I completely agreed which is why when I said overpower, I wasn't referring to strength, but rather turn its own weight against it. As we continued to parry one another, I decided to change the angle of my sword in hopes it would cause some slight unbalance. My plan succeeded although I did get nicked in the shoulder. Despite Twilight protesting that I don't act reckless, she needed to have more faith in me than that. I had seen things that she most likely witnessed through reading one of her books. Fighting monsters like this had become something I'd long gotten used to, yet I still didn't enjoy it because my life was on the line.
The Dinolfos reared back again, and I swung my sword in an arc shape, striking it in the chest again, and it answered back by breathing fire all over me. This time, in the midst of the confusion, it jumped over me, and hit me in the back. I slammed against the wall, landing on my back.
" Someone is getting desperate."
" You'd better get up quickly." Twilight said. Before I could, I felt something sharp hitting me in my arm, and it turned out to be the Dinolfos' sword having gone through my arm--the tip of the blade protruding from the other side. While Twilight freaked out over seeing my grievous wound, I began using the hilt of my sword in an attempt to knock it away. It looked like my plan wasn't working, but after hitting it a dozen times, it fell backwards allowing me to get back up and resume.
I had to end this quickly before things got even worse, so when we clashed with our swords again, we both parried one another until I managed to turn its weight against it, but not by changing my sword swing. This time, I just simply pushed back with a bit of my own weight, and when its guard dropped, I swung one more time, striking the Dinolfos where it reared back again. Instead of continuing, it made a noise similar to what it did before dropping down from the ceiling. Was it a sign that I had prevailed? I wasn't sure so I held my sword firmly in case it was trying to psyche me out.
It then toppled over and landed hard on the ground, a sign that I had prevailed despite receiving some nasty wounds. My arm continued bleeding, but that's when I noticed several recovery hearts had appeared where the Dinolfos had fallen. Walking over to pick them up, it caused the blood to stop flowing, and my arm to slightly heal, yet I knew that restoring my health to full was what I needed otherwise I could risk the wound opening up again. The iron bars then rose up allowing us to leave this room, and as was expected, a large treasure chest materialized in the centre of the room.
" And there is my prize."
" That was pretty intense."
" You freaked out you know."
" Sorry... I'm just not used to seeing you get hurt like that."
" This is what I meant when I said that I'm used to this, but I'll admit that I do need more practice as that was pretty sloppy. Anyway, those recovery hearts have stopped the bleeding for now, but I'll need more health to fully close up the wound." I said.
" Is that the reward you get for winning?"
" You were expecting something more?"
" Yes, if I must be honest."
" It may only be the one treasure chest, but it holds what we need to get through." I said. Walking over to the treasure chest and opening it up, I jumped in slightly--my legs dangled out a little bit--and upon pulling myself back out, I was holding a rather beautiful looking bow that immediately made me think of what I had before in Hyrule. " This bow feels so right in my hand right now. Twilight, and it's small in size compared to the last one I used."
" You've used a bow before? Since when?"
" In Hyrule, I used a much larger bow, yet I had complications using it."
" What kind of 'complications'?"
" I didn't know how to use it."
" Then how did you succeed knowing that?"
" I was taught how to use a bow, and I guess the lessons just stuck with me the rest of the way."
" I assumed you used a bow during the Friendship Games."
" No. That was Fluttershy and Applejack who handled the archery segment of the Tri-Cross Relay." I said. Twilight then looked at me, confusion spread across her face. I explained that Rainbow and I handled the motocross, and her reaction wasn't what I was expecting. She honestly couldn't see me riding a motorbike, but at least I could unlike herself. She still hadn't gotten used to having fingers and feet as opposed to the hooves of Equestria.
After looking over my new bow for a couple of minutes, I was thrilled at having a new weapon, yet I wasn't sure what exactly to call it. I remember the previous one being called the Fairy Bow, so perhaps this one had a similar name? " Twilight, do you know the name of this weapon?" I asked.
" It's known as the Hero's Bow, a powerful weapon which can allow you to shoot arrows at all kinds of things, and can even be used in creative ways such as firing an arrow through a torch in order to get a temporary fire arrow. This thing has incredible versatility which makes it an invaluable addition to your items, for now you can do things that weren't possible before." Twilight said. She then noticed my lack of enthusiasm towards her words and took offence to it. " Why are you acting like you're bored? You asked to tell you what it was called, and I did just that."
" I already know how to do that stuff?"
" It couldn't hurt to be reminded, could it?"
" No, I guess not."
" So there you go."
" Guess I know what needs to be done first."
" That switch in the previous room?"
" Might as well see what that does." I answered. Heading into the other room, I could see the yellow eye switch more clearly, and it was practically begging for something to be shot at it. I took my new Hero's Bow, placed the quiver on my back, and notched an arrow before aiming for my target. It looked difficult, but, in truth, it really wasn't. I received instruction from Iron Will, yet I couldn't tell Her Highness that he was the one who showed me the ropes.
The Equestrian version of Iron Will was well known for his assertiveness training seminars--a fact Her Highness brought up one time when she responded to one of my Friendship Reports.
Once my sight was lined up with the switch, I fired the arrow where it sailed through the air before hitting the center of the eye, and it caused the platform in the poisonous water to start rising. It then stopped and started going downwards, then stopped before going back up again. At first this didn't make sense, but I quickly figured out what was going on.
" Yet another shortcut that can help you get back up here quickly."
" And to allow us to reach the door over there at the far end of the room." I added. I needed to fly across to reach it, and that meant changing forms. I put the Hero's Bow away, took out the Deku Mask, and placed on my face. The change from human to Deku still caused me to suffer from convulsions, but I was slowly getting used to it. " I know my screaming can get annoying after a while, but I can't help it. Every time I put this mask on, it feels like my body is being twisted all about."
Diving into the Deku Flower, I waited for the moving platform to reach its highest point, and when it began dropping, I launched myself and landed safely several seconds later. I dove into the next flower and did the same thing all over again--this was going to become a consistent trend by the looks of it--landing on the ledge that lead up to the door. I did have one slight mishap, however. When I landed, my foot slipped and I almost fell into the water. Luckily, my reaction was quick enough to prevent tragedy from happening.
" You really need to work on that."
" It's on my list."
" Want to change back?"
" No, I think I'll stay this way for now, as I might need my Deku skills soon." I answered. Walking up to the door, I stopped due to hearing something weird coming from the other side. It sounded like a frog was in there, but they didn't sound anything like that. Something strange was no doubt waiting for me, and I had no choice but to go through and confront it. Opening the door, and entering the next room, it closed behind me with iron bars--another trend--but when I looked forward, my mouth dropped open upon seeing what it was that had been making that awful croaking.
To Be Continued...
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7252264
Ganondorf is going to be facing a much stronger Sunset when she faces him at a later point in the story. She has grown much stronger since her previous adventure, so she won't be a pushover like before. The Dark Lord may actually find himself unable to overcome what Sunset is capable of, or perhaps there is something else at play that only I know about.
You're back! Also, did you know that you can destroy the butterflies using a bomb or blast mask? Awesome story as always.
It's Is Good to see you working on This Story Again.
I Know That You've Wanted to Finish Another Story First before you start working on this one again. It's Been Forever Since the Last Update and I'm Eager to see More in the Future. (Provided if [IF] you don't either lose motivation to continue or receive Revoke Demands.)
Anyway...I'm Glad that you working on this story again, Hope to see some more in the Future and congrats on finishing your other story.
Good work as always, even if maybe it could be good to some of us re-read previous chapter to remember what happened
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I'm going to be adding a new chapter every Monday (maybe twice a week in some cases depending on my schedule), so I have no intention of delaying this again. I'll also be starting another story later this week, but this one has become priority one--the urge to continue it is strong once more. Hopefully, no one gets confused by the sudden shift in writing style. I don't see this story being revoked given how the prequel got through its entirety without any problems.
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I've had to do that just to remember where I got up to. This chapter took me a day to change it to my current writing style, and it works so much better than it did before. Chapter 15 is going to be abysmal for me, but it must go through the same procedure. After that, I'm free to apply my new style without having to drastically change so much. I hope this story continues to gain in popularity especially since it's resuming once more.
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I don't think Twilight would appreciate Sunset doing that if you know what I mean.
7282046 Hahaha. But if Sunset actually did that, Twilight's reaction would be funny. Lol.
This might as well be the closest thing to actually playing Majora's Mask for me. I'm not that surprised that Twilight is an Exposition Parrot even in canon.
7282038 That's good to hear.
We Understand if your really busy with work and unable to make the appointed time to update. We've Waited for an Update, I'm pretty sure we can wait again.
And Point Taken...
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I'll consider including that sometime in the future.
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As you can see, most chapters go over 10,000 words, and can you picture that going on for some 50+ chapters? I've got my work cut out for me, but I look forward to the challenge. Already, I know what Chapter 16 will be about, but I need to know what I wrote in the chapter prior to ensure that I'm at the right point.
I'm also going to start writing down which masks Sunset has. I'm starting to forget which ones they are, and we're not even done with the first dungeon yet. As for how long this will be... It won't be as long as the prequel I don't think. Majora's Mask is shorter than Ocarina of Time (even with the sidequests), so seeing this get past 50 chapters would be a miracle.
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You can thank her portrayal of Tatl for that, minus the insults.
7282605 I'm not surprised that Twilight is nicer than Tatl.
7282604 Indeed...
Shame That It Won't Be Longer than "Ocarina of Time", Be It's Still Legend of Zelda Though. (One of my Favorite Nintendo Games to play in my Childhood.)
When We First Got Majora's Mask, Me & my Older Sister Shared it, Play It and Beat It. Heck When Majora's Mask came out for the 3DS, I Got her a copy of it for her 3DS.
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In terms of chapters, this one will be shorter, but in terms of word count...