Chapter Three: What the Forest Hides
The Unity War had been won, and afterwards the remainder of the Hylian nation thrived, working day in and day out to create a civilized town out of the dirt paths and partially cleared forests that the Mukri’ had lived in. The Hylians had come quite far too. They had built a sprawling castle of white stone in less than a year, clear water in the moat flowing from Lake Hylia and draining back to the same spot. Through this act the Hylian army also gained an alliance with the Zoran tribe, and the king of the Zoras and his people now watched over the Hylians through the waterways.
The tribe had had an alliance with the Gorons for many years now, thanks to a time long ago when Harkinarian was still in his youth. He had been wandering about the foot of Death Mountain and found Darunia, the leader of the Gorons, surrounded by Red Tektites. While the Goron was holding his own, several of the creatures were slowly sneaking past him and into his city, where the defenseless children were. Harkinarian, being the brave young fighter that he was, dispatched all of the Red Tektites edging toward the city single handedly. Because of this, Darunia and Harkinarian had become Sworn Brothers, the greatest of honors among the Gorons.
Harkinarian had also found a caretaker for her young baby Zelda, a mysterious woman who had been wandering the fields, killing Mukri’ and other tribesman for years, praying to unknown gods and goddesses and lighting fires of unnatural colors into the night sky. This woman was Impa, and when thanked for her deeds in clearing away the other tribes, she told them that civilized people held the future in their hands, and that she was one of the few left who believed such a thing, one of the Shadow Folk, the Sheikah, who studied the art of Black magic. She joined the Hylians gladly, and took with her a small group to the foot of Death Mountain, where a second civilization was established, the village of Kakariko. Although the exact reason is unknown, it is likely Impa chose this spot because of the Sheikah graveyard very near to it.
The Hylians had decided to crown Harkinarian their king, the first king of the united realm. He was young, but intelligent, and not rash in thoughts. He would consider every outcome of a possible action before taking it, and indeed it was part of this that led to the people’s great love for the Hylian. Meanwhile, Melaki had been named a general in the army for his deeds defending the back line in the Unity War, although hardly anyone even knew who he was.
The market and castle were beautiful, it was everything he and his wife had ever dreamed of, but he was now alone. He gained no respect with his new position, and felt it worth nothing. His pay was a little higher, and that was roughly the extent of special privileges he got. What did a Hylian like Melaki care for rupees? He didn’t. He wanted only his wife and son. That, and the lack of respect his soldiers gave him was all he ever thought about. He was a spectacular leader in battles, and even greater at one on one combat, but no one even seemed to notice. What was it about him that made him blend in so well with everyone else?
“They’re nobodies,” he said aloud. A few soldiers suddenly looked up at him. He looked around, snapped out of thought. He sat on a wooden stool at a table in the Hylian tavern. It was around eight at night, and every soldier came here at one point in the day.
“What do you mean?” a soldier asked, standing before him. Melaki looked up, and recognized the young man as Jonphor, a soldier who had cut the throat of the leader of the Mor’knok tribe. He was still a regular ranked soldier, and would probably remain so for the rest of his life, but still, people cheered and clapped when he entered a room, and he had no less than three nicknames for his deeds on the battlefield. Melaki gave the man a slightly annoyed look, then spoke.
“The….tribes that are still hiding, planning resistance movements. They’re nobodies, not worthy of mention. We will crush them,” Melaki lied. He was referring to every soldier aside from himself. They hadn’t done anything worthy of mention. Half of them hadn’t even lost anyone in the Unity War. Melaki, who had lost everything was scoffed at and joked about because of the malicious manner in which he had fought that night. According to the combat lessons they all had received from a young age, his battle tactics had been very un-soldier like. He cared not, however. They were the fools.
“You’re still hurting aren’t you?” Jonphor asked, examining Melaki’s expression.
“W-what?” Melaki asked, caught off guard.
“You didn’t even get a chance to see your baby boy before…well…you know the rest,” Jonphor said.
“Yes…but…it matters not,” Melaki said.
“I think it could matter a lot. You aren’t happy, it’s easy to see Melaki. If you had just one chance to see your son, maybe things could be different. Pity,” Jonphor said quietly.
“Wait….maybe you’re right,” Melaki said, patting Jonphor on the shoulder and running quickly out of the tavern.
“Umm…you’re welcome?” Jonphor asked slowly, to himself.
Melaki ran as fast as he could. He had to take a back path as the drawbridge was closed and locked at night, but it wasn’t much of a hindrance. He ran along the dirt path that the Hylians had set, going in the direction of the elusive Kokiri Forest. He knew Link would be safe. He had to be. It was just a matter of finding the child. If he could simply hold his child once, then all would be okay. All of the torment, disrespect, all of it would be worth it. He would have a reason to live, to fight, once more.
After many minutes of vigorous running he at last reached the wooded cavern opening that led to the forest. For some reason he couldn’t place his finger on the area frightened him. He didn’t want to enter, despite all of the experiences he had already had. He feared what the forest hid. But after several moments he forced himself through the cavern entrance. If his son and wife had been here, then he too must go through.
The forest was blacker than pitch black. He could not see a thing in front of his face, but he did not let this deter him. He cautiously took a step forward. His foot caught air, and he fell somewhere around seven or eight feet to wet, damp ground. The wind was knocked out of him, as well as a fair amount of blood due to the position in which he fell, flat on his back. He thought about crying out for help, but ultimately decided against it. It was an abandoned forest, it wasn’t as if anyone would answer. He began to question how smart it was to take his child here. He began to feel the dark sinking feeling, and he feared above all else his child was dead. After about fifteen minutes of sitting in the darkness, with nothing keeping him company in the shadow aside from the sound of the animals high in the trees, he struggled to his feet. He limped around a bit for a few minutes, but eventually walked it out. Using his sense of direction, he headed west, hoping to find something with his hands. At length he ran into a solid rock wall. The initial impact was painful, but afterwards, he felt his way around, and was relieved to find a ladder. He took it up slowly, one rung at a time, not trusting anything completely in the ancient wood.
He at last made it up the ladder, after what seemed like an hour, and then he continued to feel his way around. To the west and east of him there were rock walls, but to the north, there was another cavern very similar to the one he had entered in the first place. He got onto his hands and knees and crawled slowly through the cavern, feeling the ground with his palms to make sure there were no drop offs. It was safe, and he slowly stood. He felt his way around each direction, and to his dismay, found that there was a cave in all four compass directions.
At length, after coming to no real logical decision, he headed east. He could tell the room he now stood in was large, much more expansive than the confined caverns he had been in earlier. It was the cool air that told him so. It was only the slightest bit brighter too. He looked upward, and could just barely see three or four stars sticking out through small openings in the tangled branches of the mighty trees. Melaki worked his way forward slowly, each step cautious, slow. Still it wasn’t enough to save him from tripping yet again, this time over a tree stump. He fell to the ground and let out a cry of pain, something he soon regretted.
Small pairs of yellow eyes opened up all around him, shifting their gaze to each other, and then back to him. It was the most frightening thing he had ever seen in his life. He was in complete darkness, not even knowing up from down at the moment, surrounded by nothing but glowing eyes. Whispers could then be heard, and although he could not make out the words, or if it was even of the language he understood, but he could tell they were not positive words. One pair of eyes grew large in the darkness, zeroing in on Melaki.
“I….see you…” a raspy, dark voice spoke.
“W-who are you?!” Melaki asked, terrified.
“We are the watchers….of the ancient wood….” The voice answered back.
“Ancient wood?” Melaki asked, sitting up slowly.
“Why…do you come here?” the voice whispered out.
“I’m looking for Kokiri Forest,” he answered. The eyes closed for several seconds, and at least twenty loud, high pitched laughs were heard, so loud that Melaki thought his ears may start bleeding.
“I fear you may have taken a wrong turn,” the voice laughed.
“Where am I?” Melaki asked.
“You are in the Lost Woods,”
“You are in the Lost Woods,”
“You are in the Lost Woods,” three voices sounded.
“H-how do I get out?” Melaki asked.
“He who enters….and gets lost….shall become a Stalfos….everyone….Stalfos,”
“Everyone….Stalfos,” the voices chattered.
“Shut up! Shut the fuck up!” Melaki yelled, his voice echoing loudly.
“You wish to wake the spirits then? If not I suggest you stifle yourself, foolish man,” the voice said.
“I just want to know how to get out of here,” Melaki said calmly.
“You can’t….you’re lost,” the voice said, louder, with more rasp in the tone.
“So help me find my way!” Melaki yelled.
“We help the children of the forest, of which you are not!” the voice yelled.
“Lead me out!” Melaki yelled.
“We do not like adults!” the voice yelled, and with that the yes disappeared. Suddenly the yellow glow appeared right in front of Melaki’s face, and he could now see who it was the spoke. A creature who hunched with glowing yellow eyes and a bony face was before him, a small beak about his face. He wore green gloves, and tattered fabric, along with a straw hat. It opened its mouth wide, and put a blow gun to it. quickly, Melaki unsheathed his blade and stabbed the creature, and it loud out a terrible cry of agony, and wood dust spurted from the wound along with green blood. It backed away, and Melaki took this chance to stand. He ran as fast as his legs would carry him through the darkness. He tripped over nearly everything, even his own foot, but he cared not, he had to escape.
“The Skullkids will not let you out! You are lost! You are Stalfos!” the voices yelled in unison. Melaki continued to run and run, past caverns and through caverns, around trees and over holes (which he of course tripped over). When at last the terrible sounds disappeared, and all traces of the Skullkids were gone, he began to slow his pace, and naturally, tripped over a root, spiraling into the ground, his face splashing into ice cold water, a very welcome surprise, although Melaki didn’t trust a thing in the evil woods.
He cupped the liquid in his hands, drinking until he felt nourished enough to once again journey through the wood, and then he sat and thought. What were the chances his baby boy had made it alive through any of this? Why did he tell his wife to take the child to the woods?
“Why did I decide to do this?” he asked aloud, his own voice scaring him.
“Nothing is without reason,” another voice answered. Melaki nearly jumped out of his skin. He unsheathed his blade and stood, looking around. He saw a slimy looking shape in the water he had just drank from, and spoke slowly.
“Who or what are you?”
“I am Bruto, and I am a Zora. And you are Melaki Avencrow,” the Zora answered.
“Do you know your way around here?” Melaki asked, relieved.
“I know a very little bit, but it’s probably more than you know, so I’m willing to share my knowledge,” Bruto answered.
“And that knowledge is?” Melaki asked.
“First to be careful…there’s another Hylian body here-,” Bruto began.
“Take me to it,” Melaki said, a lump in his throat. His son was killed. He just knew it.
“Are you sure?” Bruto asked.
“…yes,” Melaki answered.
“Fine, but no point going in full darkness,” Bruto said, searching around for a tree. He quickly broke off a branch, and skillfully made a fire, lighting the stick. It was in reality a small amount of light, but Melaki felt as if the Zora held the Sun in his hand at this moment.
“This way,” Bruto said. Melaki followed quickly behind him. They went through several more caverns, and at length they reached an open room, and Melaki fell to his knees sobbing the instant he saw what was before him. He just barely recognized his wife, naked and bloody, tied between two trees by rope around the arms and legs. Her body was being devoured by Wolfos, and already half of her face had been eaten away, her rotting brain slowly oozing through her eye socket, which was covered in blood. The smell of death hung strong, blood and pieces of meat and organs littering the ground below her body, the Wolfos lapping up her blood and biting chunks from her body, the less fortunate ones, eating the slop she had dropped onto the ground.
“Did you know her?” Bruto asked, not looking at the body.
“…she was my wife,” Melaki answered, unable to take his eyes of the morbid body.
“Oh my Goddesses…I’m so sorry,” Bruto said slowly.
“Ahhhh!!!!!! You filthy disgusting animals!!!!” Melaki screamed, unsheathing his blade and running at the pack of Wolfos devouring her wife’s corpse. There were six of them, each strong and obviously well fed as of late, their eyes glowing green, and their claws sharp. Melaki cut the throat of one, blood splattering to the grass, the wolf howling in pain, falling to the ground and bursting into green flame. Another Wolfos pounced at Melaki, who blocked with his Hylian shield, slashing the Wolfos in the paw. It yelped in pain, slashing at Melaki’s leg. Blood ran from the wound and the Hylian fell to his knees, stabbing the beast in the heart. It exploded into fire on his blade, and he slowly stood again.
Two of the Wolfos suddenly punched upon him, biting into his arms and holding him steady on the ground as a third Wolfos approached him, drooling. It stepped onto his chest, sniffing his body. What looked like a grin crossed its face, and it reared its head back, just in time to get pierced in the neck by one of Bruto’s fins. It backed away into a stone wall, whimpering and bursting into flame. Bruto kicked one of the Wolfos biting Melaki’s arm in the face and it turned to face the Zora. Melaki stuck his shield’s pointed end into the others back, then bashed it in the face, and it burst into flame. He then stabbed the Wolfos that was after Bruto in the crown of the head, and it too fell to the ground, combusting.
All that remained now was the pack leader, a scar running across its face, fierce red eyes. Melaki cracked his neck, sword at the ready. The Wolfos ran at him, and the Hylian stepped to the side. The Wolfos spun around quickly and bore it’s teeth, determined to get another meal. It pounced at Melaki, biting into his shoulder tightly. Blood spilled from the wound and Melaki clenched his teeth in pain, punching the Wolfos repeatedly in the head with his armored gauntlet. Suddenly he remembered what had won him numerous battle in the past, and he felt around the ground for the perfect sized stone. By and by he found one, and bashed the Wolfos hard in the face, leaving a bleeding wound on its face. It angrily tore out a chunk of flesh from Melaki’s shoulder and backed away several feet. It would not be satisfied until it had the entire body to itself. The same went for Melaki.
The Hylian stood and jumped to the side just as the Wolfos pounced once more. This time however, he did not wait for the Wolfos to attack again, but instead he slashed the creature’s back paw, and it fell over, angered. Melaki was on the ground next to the Wolfos however before it even had a chance to react, and he angrily raised his blade into the cool night air with both hands, bringing it down into the Wolfos’ side. Blood spurted onto the Hylian’s face and he smiled as the Wolfos cried out in pain. He brought the blade up again, and smashed it into the creature’s flesh again. It cried out once more, this time weaker. Melaki lifted the blade again, and brought it down again, and this time the Wolfos’ voice was down to a weak whimper. Bruto had had enough.
“Melaki, stop, it’s just a foolish animal. It won’t bother you anymore,” Bruto said.
“I know it won’t. Not after I’m finished anyway,” Melaki said angrily. Bruto ran forward, grabbing both of Melaki’s arms to prevent him from attacking the Wolfos again. Angrily he spun around to face Bruto.
“Come, don’t hurt the animal,” Bruto said.
“Don’t hurt it?! It didn’t show mercy to my dying wife did it?! who are you to tell me what to do! You are nobody!!!” Melaki yelled, stabbing the Zora in the heart. Bruto let out a gasp and a wide eyed look of surprise entered his expression, then he fell to the ground dead, blue blood staining Melaki’s blade. A look of shock entered Melaki’s face for a moment, then he angrily fell to his knees, bringing the blade down upon the Wolfos one last time, cutting it completely in half. The two parts burst into green flame at the same moment, and Melaki sighed.
At length he stood, cutting the bonds of his devoured wife and examining the trees she had been tied to. They were to his luck, dead, and he pushed them over, claiming Bruto’s Deku stick and lighting them ablaze. When at last the fire rose into the sky, he took the body of the Zora, and the body of his wife, and threw them into the flames, and there he sat, until nothing remained of the corpses but black ashes. He slowly stood, and headed in a random direction; he no longer cared where. He knew some cave had to lead to Kokiri Forest. He had to find his son. Sheathing his sword and placing his shield back around his back, he picked up a lit Deku stick and headed in the direction of another cavern, never once looking back.