Chapter Twenty-one:

Link sat up in bed. He could feel something was wrong deep down inside, Hyrule was in danger. Groggily Link stood up, his head spun and in the end he was back on the bed. A nurse came over to him and told him he shouldn't try and move, to keep his strength. Link politely refused her, grabbed his weapons, put on his tunic, and tried to make it to the door without falling over from nausea. A doctor caught him trying to leave and asked him where he thought he was going, Link replied:

"To save Hyrule."

The doctor thought he was delirious and told the nurse to get him back to bed. Link's head felt like there was a vice grip on it, but he had to leave and see what was happening outside.

A bright light flew into Zora's Domain; it was Navi. She headed straight toward Link and halted in front of his face.

"What's wrong?" He said in a concerning tone.

Navi gasped for air. "Link, outside…trouble…big, big trouble!"

"What are you talking about?" Link was having a hard time concentrating on what Navi was saying.

"Dragon…three heads…fire…Loraefin…" She continued in her broken speech. That was all Link needed to hear, he took off running (as best he could) with Navi following him closely.

When they reached Hyrule Field Link stopped in his tracks. Before him stood a gigantic beast, none like he had seen before. It was a three headed dragon like Navi had said, but Link had no idea it was this big! Each head looked more threatening than the last, their long necks arched and curled while each mouth spat a blazing fire. Its eyes shown through its dark skin like the moon in an empty sky and its phantom wings were flared menacingly. The dragon's three heads snarled and spit ash and flame as it made it's way toward Hyrule Castle.

"Navi where is Fin!?" Link said in alarm for she was no where to be seen.

"I…I don't know! She sent me to come and get you!"

They scanned quickly for her but she wasn't there. Pushing all of the nausea and pain down as far as he could, Link started to run toward the monster with his sword unsheathed. In the midst of his sprint though he tripped on something hidden in the grass, he bent over to pick it up. In his hand was a floral crown, crushed and broken to pieces. He thought nothing of it and dropped it back onto the ground and continued toward the advancing dragon. Navi spotted it and her heart sank; something had gone wrong.

One of the three heads spotted him; the great beast turns around to face this new challenger. With a mighty roar the dragon let out a wave of fire in Link's direction which he skillfully dodged. The monsters reared up and charged with all its might, spreading its wings out and right before reaching him took off into the air.

With a few great swoops of its wings the dragon had climbed up into the sky which put Link at the disadvantage. A fireball was then released. It hurtled down from the heavens and crashed against the ground with such a force that it knocked Link down.

"Where did it come from Navi?!" Link yelled looking for his fairy companion. Navi darted to Link from where the broken crown lie.

"It's from Death Mountain and…" She began to say.

Barreling forward the malevolent beast arched its back and started to plummet down to the earth.

"Link look out!" Navi shouted. Link ducked out of the way, but not before he slashed the underbelly of the beast on its assent back up into the atmosphere.

No roar, no nothing. The dragon was undamaged; the sword had cut through it as if it was…smoke.

"The whole thing is made up of smoke Navi!" Link called out. Navi flew to him again.

"That's what I was trying to tell you!" She said. "It came from the clouds over Death Mountain! It's completely made up of smog and ash!"

"Well then how do I destroy it?!" He yells back.

"I don't know!!"

The monster was preparing for a second assault. Each head opened their mouth wide and released three gigantic walls of flame! All around Link was fire; there was nowhere to run to! The fumes made his dizzy again and all of his old aches and pains seemed to resurface. Link fell to one knee and raised his arm to shield his face from the immense heat; there was no time for the Goron tunic, no time to do anything he thought. Was this going to be the end? Is this how he was to leave this world, to die in a sea of flames with no way out?

Coughing and choking Link stumbled to the ground, but as he fell onto his chest he felt something jam into his side…his ocarina. The smoke stung his eyes and nose and the heat was so unbearable he could hardly breath. With his last bit of strength he managed to place his lips on the mouth of the ocarina and play 'The Song of Storms' before he passed out from the heat and fumes.

A cold wind blew and from the darkened sky came a surge or rain that poured across the land of Hyrule. Thunder boomed and lightning crashed above the burning field as the rain extinguished the smoldering flames. The smoke dragon growled an unearthly siren and crashed down to the ground, stunned by the water. Within a few minutes[1] its body of ash and smoke had melted away into the dirt leaving nothing but a black puddle to remember it by.

Navi called out to Link begging him to get up; there was no answer. The rain had started to subside and the wind had stopped to little more than a breeze. The battle seemed to be won, but the victor of the war was yet to be seen. Slowly the puddle of ash stirred itself; it rose from out of the mud and the ground began to steam. Navi didn't take notice of what was going on behind her as the creature came forward to finish the young hero…

Loraefin woke with a mouthful of dirt. She was wet, cold, and stiff as she lifted herself from the ground and shook her head.

"What happened? Dus…" She thought out loud.

Over the little crest of her hill Loraefin saw the disheveled body of Link lying on the ground. He didn't move, no sign that he was living, she feared the worst had happened. Loraefin also spotted the creature heading straight for him! She franticly looked around for her sword, which must have fallen out when the dragon sideswiped her. She found it a few feet away. Grabbing it and reaching for her shield Loraefin ran toward the monster as fast as she could.

The rain had caused the volcanic ash to solidify into a hard substance, so in this way the revitalizing rain that had saved them may have done just the opposite. Out of the giant mass of black and gray muck rose the three heads and shadowy wings of the former body. Each roared a menacing scream and flared wildly about with the certain taste of victory foaming at the mouth. Loraefin came rushing in between the monster and Link with sword ready.

"Loraefin!" Navi yelled with relief.

She turned halfway around and smiled a reassuring smile at Navi before she rushed at the Dragon. It saw her obvious and inexperienced advance and swatted her aside with one swipe of its thorny tail. The impact of the blow sent Loraefin hurling back knocking the wind out of her.

The fall had left her bruised and badly scratched on one side of her arm and face, but the worst was a shallow gash that ran up the side of her leg in which small trickles of blood flowed freely down. The blood surprised her as she gingerly ran her fingers through it, hands trembling. The tips of her fingers were wet with fresh red blood as she brought them up close to her eyes trying to see what she wanted to and not what was. The fall had shredded her pants and the torn pieces were now mingling with her deep, rich blood, soaking up and staining the fabric. Loraefin was stunned. This was her blood. The sight of it made her go weak and she leaned on her sword to support her. The young girl's eyes shot upward as she stared at the fearsome beast closing in on her. Her breath quickened, her heart raced, she had never felt this kind of fear grip her. She felt paralyzed as the dragon gazed upon her, it's dark and shimmering eyes gleaming from amidst the coarse look of its skin.

Link's voice spoke in her head, almost so quietly she couldn't hear it. Of course it was her imagination and not Link, but Loraefin seemed to realize what she had to do. She again stood up and rushed the beast, her leg no longer bothering her. This time one of the three heads opened its great mouth and sent a blaze of fire in front of Loraefin's path. She halted with the sudden heat being forced upon her, but due to the wet ground it quickly extinguished. The dragon now growled as it charged at the young girl who was looking around with a disoriented gaze on her face. Before she knew what hit her Loraefin felt herself being lifted from the ground. The beast had flung her into the air with one mighty scoop of its head and now the girl found herself falling back down to earth…right on top of the dragon's back!

Link heard screaming and woke up. It took a few seconds for his vision to get back into focus but he knew something was happening. When he could see clearly again Link saw the monstrous beast flying back up into the heavens…a little brown spot blended in with the blackness of its back.

Loraefin dug her sword into the dragon's now solid hind and held so tightly onto the handle that her knuckles were turning white; she was not going to let go. The black creature roared in agony and tried everything it could to dislodge the sharp object from its back. The roar was painful to the ears, but that wasn't the only problem the young girl faced. Loraefin shook all over from fright that she was going to fall and die, the mental pictures kept flashing in her mind. The dragon's speed began to increase and with it Loraefin's fear. It's mighty wings flapped on either side of her, climbing higher and higher into the air. Suddenly Loraefin felt the beast's weight shift, it had begun to barrel roll and flip upside down. Loraefin's sword slipped out from the ash flesh and with it she to began to fall.

Link saw her falling helplessly from the sky; she flew faster and faster to the ground, her voice muffled and lost under the dragon's clamorous thunder.

"Loraefin!" Link yelled.

The ground was getting closer and closer and impending death breathed down Loraefin's neck. She screamed one last scream before she came crashing down into Zora's River. The spray created by the fall flew twenty feet from the bank, soaking anything within reach. Link ran over to where she had landed expecting anyone would have been killed by such a fall. Choking and flailing Loraefin floundered in the water.

Loraefin was in a state of shock. She could feel her heart pounding in her head, a throbbing pain that got stronger and more excruciating with every beat. The cold water hit like a slap in the face. When she had struck down her whole body felt like it had been driven through with millions of sharp needles; the pain and the cold caused her body to become numb. Loraefin couldn't breath, couldn't think, the only thing she could do was let her instincts take over. She tried to swim, but couldn't see where to swim. Flailing in all directions, disoriented, confused, and drowning, she started to sink below the water. Her legs stopped working, her arms were to tired to move anymore, and the cold had set in. She had survived the fall to drown in the river. Link dove in and tried to grab hold of her. He grasped a limp arm and brought Loraefin's body to the surface. Link dragged the body ashore; she wasn't breathing, her lips were turning blue, and her face was flushed. Her wet hair was strewn across her face; Link pushed it back, opened her mouth, and attempted to bring her back to life. With each breath he put into her Link would pound on her chest to restart her heart, each time he was more certain that she was not going to wake.

"Come on…Come on!" He yelled pounding at her chest. "Breath damn it! Breath!"

Loraefin jerked forward with a gasp and clutched at her heart, which was now beating. She panted for breath and attempted to regain her senses.

"Are you all right?!" Link demanded. Loraefin stared at him from beneath her mass of wet hair. She tried to talk, but nothing came out, she only gasped some more and leaned on Link coughing.

"Stay here," Link ordered extricating Loraefin from himself and ran back to the battle.

Loraefin tried to stand up, but her legs were still too weak to hold her. Shaking she fell back down to the ground and watched Link run out of sight.

The beast of ash had landed on Hyrule Field…It was waiting for Link. It stood it's ground about one hundred feet away from the young hero, arching its back preparing for a fight to the death. Link was also preparing, he had to be fast and think on his feet; this enemy was not going to be so easy to bring down. They stood facing one another; both knowing that only one would come out alive.

The beast made the first move, shooting one of it's three heads out as if a battering ram and then whipped it's thorny tail around in a attempt to knock Link down. Link dodged both attempts and, with his window of opportunity, ran in and started to strike furiously at the monster. The beast growled, enraged at being struck at, and released spouts of flame from its nostrils in anger. One of the massive necks bent down and sent Link tumbling backward head over feet. It hissed and took up a defensive stance, pacing and pawing the ground, it waited for the Hero of Time to once again stand and face it.

Link regrouped and studied his opponent. "A dragon made of ash and smoke caused by the black spell that Ganondorf left in the crater…" He thought. The fire-breathing monster reared up and charged Link, snarling wildly as it did so. With a strong flap of it's wings the dragon sent an enormous gust of wind over the field as it charged again. On this offensive Link met the beast halfway and, dodging his flame, struck it head on. Link retreated back and left the huge winged lizard to figure out what had just happened before he came into strike again. The dragon shook all three of its heads and roared savagely. As Link was coming in to strike again the beast spun around and smashed Link with its tail.

Link clutched his arm, which was now bleeding, but not badly. The hard ash had scraped his face and legs so they were now bruised and red. The blow made Link's head spin with dizziness and had knocked the wind out of his lungs. He looked up and saw the glow that was forming in the dragon's nostrils; it was preparing to fire. Quickly Link took out his bow and, armed with ice arrows, shot at the middle head, as it was about to send a wave of destruction upon Link.

The ice arrow met the flame halfway and froze it dead in its tracks. The baneful creature actually appeared surprised, but it quickly regrouped and one of the other heads spouted fire. Link rolled out of the way and shot another ice arrow, but this time with not as much accuracy for it lodged itself in the left flank of the beast, freezing the ash solid. The Dragon floundered where he stood and he beat his mighty wings against the ground for balance. It fired at Link and made another attempt to squish him with it's tail. The monster hammered its massive black wings into the ground and roared so ferociously that Link's heart skipped a beat.

From her spot next to Zora's River, Loraefin could hear the battle but could not see it. Her leg had stopped bleeding, but her head throbbed terribly. Feebly she rose, dragging her gear behind her.

Once again Link fired, but his time the beast dodged the arrow and it sailed past it. The dragon, despite it's frozen hind, was not giving up without a fight. Link briefly looked over in the direction off Hyrule Market and saw a swarm of people gathered on the bridge, watching his plight from afar. Navi ducked around Link's blond head shouting encouraging remarks.

"Come on Link you can do it!" She yelled above the din.

At this moment Loraefin came over the crest of the hill. She fumbled with the hilt of her sword, still shaking from fright. The dragon separated her and Link and Link could not see where she stood behind the brute's gigantic wing. Loraefin rushed forward and brought her sword down violently on the dragon's tail, cutting it in half. At this the beast writhed in agony and one of its three heads arched around to see what had caused it such great pain. It turned and flared out one of its wings at the girl and then started to charge her. Link couldn't see what had distracted the beast, but he was thankful for whatever it was. One of the giant thorns on the lizard's back moved with the motion of the body and Link caught a quick glimpse of the diversion.

The monster came rushing forward, letting out its terrible piercing scream that made Loraefin shudder even more. She felt so weak, she didn't know what she was thinking when she struck the beast's tail, she was no match for him! And now the creature was upon her and there was no route to escape to. She met its eyes and they seemed to go right through her with its icy glare; she froze.

"Loraefin, get out of the way!" Link yelled, trying to get over to help her, but to no avail. The dragon blocked him and one of its three heads made sure he didn't pass. He had to get that monster away from her somehow! Link took out another ice arrow and aimed it at the dragon's right flank and fired. This made the beast return his attention to Link. It turned around and charged so quickly that Link was unprepared for it. The center head rammed into him, knocking the sword from his grasp. Now he was in trouble.

Loraefin's senses returned to her after a few moments and she immediately saw the peril that Link was facing. She saw his sword a few yards away from him and he knocked to the ground.

"Oh no," she said to herself and felt her heart jump to her throat. Navi darted about Link's body, yelling at him to get up. The dragon came in slowly, sure that he was victorious. Link moaned and tried to raise himself, but he felt to weak. He rolled over onto his back and was met by the horrible image of his death drawing near. His pulse quickened and his breath grew sharp as the beast raised its mammoth claws above him to finish the young hero off. Link knew there was no time to get out of the way and as he saw the great palm of the dragon rushing down upon him he held his breath, unable to see his sword anywhere. Loraefin rushed in, wielding Link's heavy sword as best as her hands could grip it, and shoved the blade up through the creature's black, crude fleshy palm. The beast roared in agony as Loraefin stood defensively over Link, who had now opened his eyes.

"Loraefin?" Link exclaimed.

The great black dragon stripped of its tail and with two frozen patches on its backside, screamed and roared again with its newly damaged hand. Link took the cumbersome sword from Loraefin and delivered the final blows, striking and severing each head from its body. The dragon flared its wings and flailed out in all directions, but it was of no use. Defeated finally, it sank into the ground, mingling with the mud and singed blades of grass.

"Whew," Link said to himself as he watched the dragon disappear into the mud. He looked over too Loraefin, who appeared exhausted but happy, and smiled. "I thought you said you couldn't kill things," he said. Loraefin looks back at him but doesn't smile at this remark, but instead gives him an upset glance when she realized what she had done. The ground hissed and steamed where the great dragon had fallen. The grass was scorched and in some places no longer existent, even a nearby tree had the leaves completely burned away from its branches. The Hero of Time walks over to the battered girl and places a hand on her shoulder.

"Are you OK?" He asks. She turns to him and nods.

"Yeah, I'll be fine," she replies.

"That was a pretty crazy stunt you pulled," Link added sternly, "what were you thinking?"

Loraefin first smiles to herself and then at him and says, "rou caneth vu hero tes sethun." And with a bigger grin, "you can't be a hero if you're perfectly sane."

They stared at each other for a moment, and then at the pile of ash in front of them with a sigh with relief. Another enemy, another victory Link thought. The sky began to clear and blue could once again be seen.

AN: Well that's the end of 'part one'. I wrote this a LONG time ago and as a reread it, I found the story line okay, but very, very typical. Oh well, what are you going to do? ( Had to introduce the characters somehow, right? The stories will get better as they go along (or at least I think they do *grins sheepishly*) so no flames please! I hope Loraefin isn't Mary-sueish or anything, I tried! Really! And see, I told you, no romance.





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