Fan Fiction Friday: The Dawn That Follows Twilight – Chapter 3

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Chapter Three

Journal Entry #54
Mid-Spring

I’m writing this entry… mostly on the off chance things don’t go well. My hand hasn’t really been clearing up. Here’s hoping once whatever these echo things are are gone, it begins to return to normal. Regardless, this journey has been… enlightening I suppose is the best way I can put it. As I am to understand it, these “echoes” as our good friend Skorn calls them are… remnants of a sort from the influence of an ancient tribe. A tribe also related to the strange twilight phenomenon that occurred. In short, events of the past repeat over again. The plague we’re experiencing is in itself a plague from long ago that affected this ancient tribe.

If Skorn is to be believed, the solution lies in merely repeating what was done to solve it in their own time. That being the cleansing of four pillars of power. Swamp. Mountain. Ocean. Canyon. While skeptical, I was surprised when Skorn led us to a giant stone tower lost in time in the depths of the Gerudo Desert: The “Canyon” they mentioned in their cryptic ramblings. With Ashei and Shad, we were able to overcome the tower and presumably “cleanse” it. Unfortunately, as soon as we vanquished the creature there, the entire tower disappeared with Skorn along with it.

Ashei, Shad, and I now travel to Snowpeak, the presumed “Mountain” in Skorn’s explanation. It is our hopes to continue with what we’ve started but… should we fail, I leave this journal in hopes of someone else finishing what we’ve begun. Seek out Swamp, Mountain, and Ocean and cleanse the temples that lie there. It seems to be only way we can hope for their to be peace again.

~ Auru

“It seems your hunch was right old codger. Not that I doubted it given my own experiences. Snowpeak is a place of power, known for claiming the lives of many a man with it’s harsh conditions,” Ashei calls out to Auru amidst the howling winter winds of Snowpeak.

“It’s one of a very rich history to boot. You see, it was actually in the 3rd Era of Daphnes, following the results of the Great Goron Migration that the mountain was renamed to Snowpeak from it’s original name of Snowhe-” Shad begins to chime in before Ashei waves a silencing arm towards him.

“History lesson later. Or never preferably. We have pillar of power to cleanse,” Ashei advises. Before them, a shadowy cave exists, cutting into the side of the mountain. Like the echoes faced already, it’s elements seem to fade in and out of existence, its very structure transient in nature.

“Certainly seems right. Be on your guard you two. We managed the tower, but there’s no telling if this cavern may be even more dangerous,” Auru advises, taking the first step with his infected hand and breaching the threshold of the cavern. Pushing through slight resistance, he fazes through into the ephemeral locale. Ashei and Shad look to one another as Auru fades away into the darkness. With a nod, the two step forward, following him.

Stepping into the cave, the three find themselves in an ornate looking entry chamber. Long curving rib-like icicles surround them on either side and a stone raised platform highlights the center of the room. On the platform is a series of ancient text and symbols, faded and curving along the platform’s heart-like shape. Shad eagerly stops to examine the text, rubbing his hands along the darkened impressions in the stone. “Another platform, just like in the tower! The text is… just as indecipherable as the last one, but I can tell it does say something different at least,” he remarks as a drip begins to echo through the chamber.

“So it just as useless, yea?” Ashei asks, her voice monotone, but clearly being snide.

“It… Yeah, basically useless unfortunately. But it’s really interesting still!” Shad defends himself.

“I’m not doubting that. We’re short for time though to indulge in our interests,” Ashei shakes her head as she approaches the doorway at the end of the room. A hole seems to exist in the wall, but a large block bearing similar iconography to the platform prevents passage through. Auru joins her there and nods to her. She nods back and the two begin to push with all their strength, slowly sliding the block forward and into a slot into the ground ahead of them, revealing a new room ahead. Shad gives a quick jog to catch up with them, entering into the new room with them. The room is much like a cavern, icicles forming all over the cavernous walls. Three doors line the other three walls of the room, decorated with ornate stained glass metal frames built into the rock of the mountain. The north-facing door seems to been encased in a large block of ice, preventing it’s use. Ashei scowls at the sight. “Why aren’t these places ever straight-forward?”

“Perhaps because these were often places of use and purpose before they were dungeons?” Auru chuckles some as he pulls a small device from his bag. He pulls off the case on the device and reveals some manner of metallic mouse-like thing. “You may want to stand back for this,” he advises as he retreats back to the hallway between the two rooms. Shad and Ashei very quickly comply with his advice as Auru methodically turns a crank on the device. After a couple turns, something seems to click and the device begins to hiss. Auru places the thing on the ground and it zips out of his hand, bounding forward as it leaves a glowing red trail in it’s path. It heads straight for the giant block of ice and as it impacts against the boulder, it explodes, filling the cavern with smoke and shattered ice. Ashei and Shad brace their faces as little chunks of ice bound against their bodies. As the smoke clears, the door that had once been frozen solid is revealed as accessible.

“Any… particular reason you’ve settled on the path of most resistance Auru?” Shad asks, coughing some as he inhales some of the lingering smoke.

“A life lesson I learned once that if you’re running into enemies, chances are you’re going the right way,” he answers. He steps forward to the door, but is interrupted by a wolf howl behind him.

“Speaking of enemies,” Ashei comments, drawing as her blade as she faces the elongated white wolf creature that has appeared behind them.

---

As the three progress through the dungeon, they face a number of creatures within the snow-glazed cave, trekking through icy formations and up the long pillar center of the structure. With the aid of some mountain climbing gear and more of Auru’s explosives, the group manage to ascend to the top of the temple. As they pass through the massive ornate blue doors at the top, the three find themselves in a ring-shaped chamber chiseled out of igneous stone. They have little time to ponder the structure as immediately to their right lies a bizarre sight of a large mechanical goat with a human-like head encased in ice and stone. Shad immediately reels back from the beast, but Ashei and Auru quickly put together that the beast is trapped within it’s confines and unable to move.

“It’s not unlike the worms from the stone tower. I’d say this is likely the creature we need to cleanse from this place,” Auru surmises.

“I don’t imagine it will be any easier than vanquishing those either,” Ashei sighs.

“Only thing to do is try after all,” Auru nods, pulling out another of his mouse-like explosives. With a collective understanding, the three step back into the alcove of the door and let Auru loose the mouse towards the creature. It once again trails along and explodes on impact, shattering the ice around the large automaton. Freed of some of it’s faculties, the creature immediately begins to writhe in place, shattering its fetters and barreling forward through the chamber. It moves with a grating industrial sound to it, pistons and steam audibly intermingling in its joints as it moves and steel on stone echoing through the chamber. In mere seconds, the creature is gone into the darkness of the chamber and just as quickly as it leaves, in returns from the other side, circling the ring like a dog in a race. As it moves, bolts of electricity bound off it’s body, sparking anything near. As it passes the group once again, a bolt from its body zips to Ashei’s sword, electrocuting it and forcing her to drop it as she grips her wrist in pain.

“Son of a gods damned Bulblin,” she curses, struggling to keep her fingers from twitching wildly from the electricity.

“I don’t think there’s anything we can do as it keeps barreling forward like this!” Shad shouts, ducking as a stray stone goes flying just over his head.

“My thoughts exactly Shad!” Auru shouts back, pulling out a bomb from his pack and lighting it’s fuse. He seems to count something out in his head, his old wrinkly ears perked to the sound of the monster’s charging. With a calculated timing, he tosses the bomb into the path of the beast where it explodes mid-air and blows the steel plating off the creature’s joints, causing it to stumble forward and onto the ground. “Now Ashei!”

Ashei goes to pick up her sword, but quickly drops it once more, wincing in pain. “I can’t keep my hand still,” she explains, tightly gripping her wrist as she tries to get her hand under control. With as much strength as she can muster, she briefly manages to get hold of the sword and throws it at the beast, striking it in the hind. It growls from the pain, shaking itself off and tossing the sword to the ground and returning to its circular rotation. “Damn it all,” she curses once again. As the beast passes again, it stops before them and lets off a massive electrical charge before them, sparking anything metal with paralyzing power. The effect brings the armored Ashei to her knees, struggling to even stand up.

“Stay there Ashei, I can take this,” Auru advises as he ignites another bomb. Likewise, he times it right and tosses it into the path of the monster, damaging its legs. Auru quickly runs forward, grabbing the discarded sword to strike at the beast, but as a last ditch effort of survival, the monster kicks out its rear leg, striking Auru in the chest and sending him flying backwards. The sword once again falls to the ground and the beast begins to try to get back on its feet. Shad looks on as both his companions lie paralyzed and their chance at victory slipping away, and he swallows his fear. With a needlessly loud yell, he drops his books and runs forward, grabbing Ashei’s sword from off the ground and swings it into the neck of the creature as it is distracted getting itself up. The blade finds its way through the armor plating and slices through to the meat below, unleashing a torrent of violet blood and fluids. In a panic, the creature tries to bolt forward on it’s injured legs only to trip once more and ram its head into the cavern wall, loosing the rocks above and sending a rainfall of boulders onto itself.

As more boulders continue to fall, Shad quickly runs to Auru and drags him into the safety of the doorway. The ceiling loses its integrity before long and the whole ceiling begins to collapse. As it does, Shad wraps its arms around the barely conscious Auru and Ashei eases herself toward them, fighting the sensations in her muscles. Dust fills the cavern as the rocks fall and everything goes dark.

It seems like an eternity before the dust clears. As the three slowly open their eyes and look up, they find themselves not surrounded by falling boulders, but the slow quiet snowfall of Snowpeak. Looking about, they see that they are right back at where they’d entered the cave originally. The cave is however gone and only a mountain wall remains.

“We… We did it! We cleansed the place of power,” Shad cheers, hugging Ashei and Auru. Ashei lets out just the faintest bit of a smile as he celebrates.

“I had very little doubt we wouldn’t,” Ashei answers, opening and closing her fist as she regains control of her nerves.

“Sure wish I didn’t have to remember my stable days as part of it though,” Auru coughs out, holding his very bruised chest.

“Ah right, you’re terribly injured Auru! We need to get to Zora’s Domain and seek help,” Shad jumps into motion, quickly heading down the mountainside.

---

Within a couple hours, they descend the mountain and return to Zora’s Domain at it’s base. As they arrive, they are surprised to find what seems to be a celebration in progress. Atop a giant turtle sit the crown prince of the Zora Ralis and a young girl from Kakariko covered in cuts and soaked to the brim. In time, the three discover the two uncovered another of the places of power and vanquished the creature inside its confines. After some surmising, the group realize it to be the ‘Ocean’ that Skorn had mentioned.

“… Leaving only the Swamp then,” Ashei concludes as the five adventurers sit around a fire on the banks of Zora’s Domain.

“Seems we may be needing to get ahold of Rusl after all,” Shad notes. “I can’t think of anywhere more likely for a swamp of power to exist than in the Faron province,”

“Seems our journey is close to its end,” Auru nods.

“Perhaps… Or perhaps this is just the beginning of something even more,” Ralis suggests with a hint of worry.

“I hope it isn’t over that quickly, I was just getting started,” Luda sighs.

“Only time will tell it seems,” Auru concludes as the wolfs howl to signal the twilight falling.

Emily Curtis is a Senior Editor for Zelda Dungeon. With a fondness of dark storylines and games with heavy narrative elements, she is often attracted to the more grim entries of the Legend of Zelda series, such as Twilight Princess and Majora’s Mask. This story marks her first attempt at writing fan fiction for the Zelda series, though she is plenty experienced with the world of writing fiction, having composed numerous award-winning short stories and fan content for the Persona and Danganronpa series of video games. If you enjoy bizarre rambling and weird games, you can watch her stream on Twitch as her alter ego Bianca Duba.