End of Legend of FIVE #2-Legend of FIVE #3

The graveyard truly belonged to the dead. Silence ruled every tombstone in the lonely area in the back of the village. The markers lined up perfectly on a solemn green hill threaded with cobblestones and dirt patches. Otherwise forgotten names were etched into the stone, all in ancient Hylian script. Link assumed this was a tradition of the land. A few of the forest’s books contained such writing, but he usually saw a different kind of Hylian in most other scrolls and tomes. Ages after it stopped being the nation’s language, a few people remembered the old words. They retained them and made sure to honor the dearly departed with a piece of the past. They went into eternity with a breath of ancient heritage attached to them. Link walked on the cobblestone path. Fencing separated different levels of the hill. Wilted flowers rested against the bases of some graves. Thunder rolled in the distance. The clouds slowly turned overcast. After a brief walk and search, Link stopped in front of a particular tombstone. He again recognized ancient Hyrulean from his classes in the woods. Saria taught them as he grew up. She was one of a few teachers in the Kokiri Forest. The others were the know-it-all brothers, the most knowledgeable members of the Kokiri. Link remembered everyone from the woods. Their voices rang in his head like bells. The echo of every conversation he had with them haunted his head. He even remembered the story of how Kokiri child was born: When a Kokiri comes into the world, they sprouted out of the ground in a closed bulb. When the time is right, the bulb bursts open into a bloom, revealing a baby. The baby is pulled out by forest nymphs and laid down before the Deku Tree. The Deku Tree gives them a name. A fairy comes by and they are made a guardian for the child .All becomes well because the child is no longer alone. They have their companion and they grow up to become of the Kokiri, the children of the woods. Every fairy knows about every Kokiri child. Link remembered that last line the most. The forest children always told stories. He looked down at the grave, reading the text:Dampe. Beloved member of Kakariko. Keeper of the Grounds. Caretaker of the Dead. May he rest in the same way his charges have. Link stared at the grave with clenched fists. What Sheik seemed to ask of him was asinine. Still, Link knew he had to move forward with the task at hand. He went behind the gravestone, clutched it by its sides and pulled. The gravestone was dragged away from its rooted spot. When Link finished heaving the tombstone towards him, a hole remained. It looked deep and dark. Everything implied that the descent would be bottomless with no certain way out. Navi watched Link do this. She witnessed her charge going after the task without a word. The two made eye contact for a brief moment. Then, Link looked away and walked around the grave. “Link,” Navi said. “We have to see what’s in this grave,” Link said, keeping his eyes on the opening in the ground. Navi floated closer to Link. “We should talk. I know you want to.” “I’m wondering what’s in the grave.” “Link, please…you’re closing yourself off. You’ve done it before. Don’t do it again. Don’t let hard times keep you from growing…” “You haven’t been my fairy for too long.” Link looked over his shoulder at Navi. “Even after seven years. I’m seventeen years old. That’s very obvious. And you can’t say you’ve known me like that all my life. You don’t know a lot about me at all. But in some ways, you do.” Navi trembled. She feared this day. She knew it would come. All the issues Link felt in his core slowly came out in this moment and Navi had to face her role in all of it. “Link…I…” “I hope we have a soft landing.” Link dropped himself through the hole in the ground. Navi gasped. It was like watching death take someone. Navi had seen that before…twice. Once when the Deku Tree died seven years ago. Twice…another time ten years before that. No one in the forest spoke of it. Absolute darkness surrounded the two as the descent continued. The fall went on forever. Link let his body loosen. He kept his eyes open, only for his sight to be greeted by an endless vision of pitch black. Eventually, Link closed his eyes and let himself fall and fall and fall. Then he landed. Link hit the ground hard, but it felt as if he fell from a short height. The result of the fall knocked the wind out of him, but he regained his centeredness quickly. Link opened his eyes and saw himself in a dark cavern-like room. The floor was cold and damp. He felt an equally frigid air wrap around him, clutching at his bones. Link looked around and wondered what was in the space for him. Then, he saw the ghost. A strange apparition floated several paces ahead. Link squinted his eyes at it. He didn’t think he knew the figure at all. When Link stepped closer to it, he realized the figure was a broad armed, brutish looking man. His jaw jutted out and his eyes seemed to sag with a keen laziness. A halo encircled the crown of the apparition’s head, hovering above it. When Link approached the apparition, he heard a voice from behind him: “What have we fallen into?” Link looked over his shoulder and found Navi with him again. He didn’t want to talk to her. His heart swelled with an anger that made him realize that this was how Trevor felt. Both he and Navi had things to answer for. Link answered for his mistake. Navi now needed to do the same. “I don’t know,” Link murmured. He tracked ahead to the spectral spectacle before him. The hero would have reached out to touch the figure but suddenly the figure spoke: “Do you have enough light to bring yourself out of here?” the spectral shape asked. Link’s heart leapt. It pounded once he realized the apparition wasn’t just real–it looked right at him. “If not,” said the spectral shape. “How about my torch, then? Would that do?” Link just stood and stared at what he confirmed to be a ghost. Furthermore, this looked like Dampe, the grave keeper Link caught a glimpse of when he came into Kakariko the other day seven years ago. “My eternal flame can help you,” said the ghost. “For a time at least.” The ghost moved closer to Link. He squinted his eyes at Link and shook his head. “A living body in my grave,” said the ghost. “What a violation…but I admire the boldness. Where do you hail from?” Link hesitated before speaking. “…The Kokiri Forest.” Dampe furrowed his brow. “That can’t be right. The forest folk are always—” Link put his hand up as if he couldn’t take Dampe’s words anymore. “I know. I was…raised there. For ten years.” Dampe inhaled and made a noise as if everything made more sense than ever before. “You know,” said the deceased gravekeeper. “It’s difficult to find out the truth. No one ever wants to be subjected to it. Not if it’s something they don’t want to hear.” Link didn’t speak at all. He couldn’t bring himself to. He couldn’t bring himself to speak to Navi, nor think about how his choices led to his being here right now. Along with the choices of others. “Well young man,” said Dampe. “You’re going to have a hard time getting out of here. It’s foolish to come into a grave in Kakariko. I’ve come to find that out myself. Legend has it this underground is another realm. The gateway between the world of light…and whatever exists down below.” Chills coursed through Link’s body as Dampe’s words sank in. He might be trapped here. He even sensed Navi shifting, flinching maybe, at the words. Dampe’s face showed no sign of jest. The spirit had a weary expression on his face with his sagged eyes and stoic demeanor. It was a long way back up—there may not have been a long way up anymore for Link. “Someone told us there was a treasure hidden down here,” Link said. “This was the grave I was told it rested in.” Dampe paused. His drift seemed to halt. The spirit slowly floated towards Link. Link expected his senses to change; he waited for a strange smell, or a wind of breath from the fallen gravekeeper. Instead, Dampe came within an inch of touching Link and simply looked him in the eye as if to examine him some more. “A treasure you say?” Dampe asked. “Who told you of this?” “A Sheikah.” “A Sheikah…? Who? Was it Impa? It’s pleasant to know she’s still alive. I heard rumors, but I didn’t know if she made it out of her ordeal. People wonder about the King, the Princess, all of the folks tied to the royal family. A Sheikah…how interesting.” Dampe scoffed and seemed to be in deep thought about what he just heard. He turned around and looked back at the spot where he hovered. Link looked past Dampe and saw an opening. It was shaped like a doorframe. Link wondered if a door had once been fastened to the gap in the stone wall. Regardless, what Link was looking at was no doubt an entryway to somewhere. “The treasure is at the end of these catacombs,” Dampe revealed. “I do wish you didn’t mention the treasure; you’re putting yourself somewhat at risk even more trying to get it. But, you’re already trapped. Fortunately—or unfortunately—this pathway is theonly way out of these halls.” “How do you know about the treasure?” Navi asked. “I found it when I was still alive.” Dampe looked over his shoulder. “You’re speaking with its last owner. T’was mine before death caught me. I had it buried with me. Then, my tomb turned into this; a maze where I could bury and conceal my possessions within the depths. What a problem, what a problem, what a problem…” Dampe shook his head. Link looked on the spirit with great sympathy. He wondered if Dampe was too caught up in his greed to truly feel at peace. This was why the grave was the way it turned out to be. Because the man had issues. “Do you need this for some reason?” Dampe asked Link. “Curious that a Sheikah told you about my treasure. Your words reek of truth. I’d know since I was often a liar. Being a ghost gives you new sight as well.” “I need to save Hyrule,” Link said. “Starting with the Kokiri Forest. I need to save my home and rid the land of the evil surrounding it.” Dampe closed his eyes and nodded. “Ah…yes, that would make sense. I see the blade holstered to your back. You’re one of the fabled ones we kept on hearing about as lads and lasses. Good for you…perhaps fate shall favor you, then. Aye, come now, you may have it.” Dampe turned back to the opening in the wall. “Since you seem noble enough and have good reasons to be here—forest folk have pure hearts and that’s who you are despite the contrary—I’ll make a wager. Race me through the catacombs, fabled hero. Run through all the secrets in the dark and I’ll even help you get out of here alive beyond the catacombs. With my wondrous prize. Are we agreed?” Link nodded. “We are.” “Swell. Come next to me, come now.” Link stepped forward with little hesitation. He had no choice. Where else was he to go? Link lined himself up with Dampe’s spirit and the two of them stared into the opening’s deep darkness. “Let’s get through these decrepit spaces,” said Dampe. “Best of luck to you. Don’t get trapped, I’d hate to have you lost before your destiny’s fulfilled. Not that I’m too worried….you’re just going to have to want this more than I. Ready…and…GO!” Link dashed towards the opening. The moment was both quick and slow. Quick in the fact that Link swiftly pushed his feet against the ground and sped ahead at a rate he didn’t think possible. Slow in the fact that he could hear every word going through his head. Quick in the fact that he forgot everything about the world around him. Slow in the fact that reality crept in, trying to warn him off from what seemed to be a foolhardy endeavor. Then the darkness enveloped him and it was too late to turn back. He had to survive…or be lost forever. Dampe’s spectral glow caused Link’s skin to crawl. He’d appear out of nowhere during the race. His shape would hovered before Link’s eyes before fading instantly. Seconds later, he’d be further down the next darkened corridor, the next narrow space that Link had to squeeze himself through. Link resolved to catch up to Dampe quickly. He often did at the very last second, but then the late gravedigger would do his trick—appear, fade, reappear. There were even times when Dampe would shoot out flames that Link had to dodge. His heart leapt at the sight of such an action. He’d hear Navi shouting for him to dodge it and Link would do so. Link told himself it was out of practicality and nothing more. Otherwise, he barely paid Navi any mind. The race felt as if it went on forever. Link didn’t know if it would ever end. He grew used to Dampe’s pattern and didn’t even think his way through the race. His running, which wore him down, became an automatic function. His lungs expanded and shriveled. Link felt his brow grow damp and the corridors’ darkness barely became easier to see. His breath became shallow. Link eventually found himself in a wide chamber. The path curved and ran along a wall. In the middle of the chamber was a deep hole. Like the entry to the grave itself, the chasm looked bottomless. Link didn’t want to entertain the idea of what was going on there. He looked for Dampe, wondering where the fallen gravedigger had gone now. He found Dampe at the top of the path. The spirit hovered and stared down at Link. His form seemed to wait for the hero, quiet and resolute in just staying there this time around. “You’re very close,” said Dampe. “Don’t give up now, fabled one. All of Hyrule needs you. I believed in everything a little too late in life…but you’re definitely the one of legend. Do you know what kind of spirit rests in you?” Link didn’t answer Dampe’s question. He quickly ran to the top of the curved path, refusing to let the incline deter him. When Link made it to the top, he exploded through the last doorway he needed to enter. The doorway’s slab slammed down with a resounding echo. Link tumbled to the ground. He took deep breaths. His chest rose and fell as he gathered himself. It seemed as if his ordeal was finally done…or maybe he was trapped. Dampe reappeared once more. He looked down at Link with his drooping eyes. The ghost seemed to smile at Link. He was missing teeth—something that couldn’t be fixed, even in the afterlife. Dampe’s halo glowed brighter above his bald head. “Young hero,” said Dampe. “I do believe you earned my favor. And that of the gods, I’m sure. The treasure—and the way out—are both in this room. Sit up, sit up…” Link did as Dampe suggested. He pushed himself off the ground and saw a wooden chest in the middle of the room. It was elevated on a platform with steps leading up to it. Link walked towards the chest and undid the latch. Inside, he found an item with a handle, a wide base, and a pointed arrow head attached at the top. “This is called the Hookshot,” Dampe said. “Its head shoots out and can stick to anything it strikes so long as its wood or one of these special latches that appear every so often in the land. It’s been used before, I can tell, far before me. And hopefully long after. I’m actually glad it found a home…strange how it moved around in these catacombs despite my demise…but the gods of whatever lies below have spoken. They’ve chosen you to assume the role. You must now take it on.” Link looked down at the hookshot. “Thank you,” Link said. “I really appreciate this. You’ve really helped me with…” When Link looked up, Dampe was gone. He still needed to know how to get out of the grave, but it didn’t take long for him to find it. An interesting sight greeted Link beyond the platform. He noticed the familiar emblem of the Door of Time. When Link approached it, he took out the Ocarina of Time. Its smooth, blue texture felt good to the touch. Whoever made the instrument crafted it perfectly. When Link played the Song of Time, its notes came out perfectly. The blue blockade went away and Link silently stared at the way out. Navi floated by Link’s side once again. The two still couldn’t speak with each other. Link didn’t want to look at his fairy. He didn’t even know if she was really his fairy anymore. “Link,” Navi said. “You haven’t spoken to me. You’re not talking to me. Please do. Just one time. Please…” “You knew.” Link looked at Navi with tears in his eyes. “You’re a fairy. They know everything about the Kokiri, and know every single one of them by name. You would’ve seen my birth out of the life flowers. You would have seen the Deku Tree giving his blessing to me as I came into the world. You’dknowthat. It makes sense now…” Navi backed away from Link. Her eyes widened and anguish filled her face. “Link,” she said. “I—you can’t just—” “You would know all of that!” Link’s voice carried. He pointed a finger at Navi and his tears fell down his face. “I needed a fairy from the first day! And you waited until now, until it was too late to save Hyrule from its fate to tell me the truth about who I am! Why?!” Navi looked away from Link. She didn’t have words. She didn’t answer. “This is too much,” Navi said. “You’re right. It is.” Link turned his back to Navi. “Don’t talk to me. Just…don’t talk to me now.” Link sulked away from his guardian. Navi’s tears fell freely and she wept quietly, unable to reconcile with the pain and hurt she caused Link. Though she followed him out into the world above, there was clearly a tension between them—a silence that neither of them would ever be able to break, and that was the saddest part of all in the midst of this. The journey would continue. It just wouldn’t be the same between the boy and his fairy. There was a rift between them. The rift wasn’t ending anytime soon for them.