The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess Novelization

For several minutes Link followed the winding path through the woods, his anticipation building. When he finally emerged from the trees, his mouth hung open in awe. From the crest of a rolling hill, a vast plain stretched out before him. Wind swept across the grasslands below, sending waves through the tall grass. Scattered trees dotted the landscape, their branches claimed by Kargaroks whose cries echoed across the plains. To the north, a wooden bridge spanned a creek that split the field in two. Yet the beauty of Hyrule Field was marred by the clouds of Twilight that surrounded it on all sides. Beyond the shadowy shroud to the north, Hyrule Castle rose above the rolling hills, barely visible through the haze. Okay, I’m not a tourist. I need to figure out where I’m going. Link reached for his belt and pulled out his new map. Eldin Province – his destination – lay to the east, beyond the border of the Faron Woods. Fortunately, a road connected the two regions. It ran north across the creek before bending east. Link looked up and spotted the road winding through the plains. Rolling up the map, he tucked it away and started forward. Time to go. It did not take Link long to reach the creek. After crossing to the other side, he followed the road east for several hours before coming upon the ruins of a small farming hamlet. Only the stone foundations of the homes remained. Link searched the ruins but found little more than ash and charred wood. The sight was grim, but the absence of bodies gave him hope that the villagers had escaped. Even so, the destruction was a stark reminder of what he was up against. Not even the rural farmers had been spared from the Twilight’s might. There’s nothing I can do for these people. Link left the ruined hamlet behind and continued east for another two hours. Along the way he passed the remains of a military outpost and an orchard of wild apple trees. As he travelled, the sky slowly darkened, and the terrain grew rougher beneath his boots. By the time Link reached the Twilight barrier, the daylight had been completely devoured by shadow. In the darkness, he failed to notice Midna appear beside him. She drifted toward the barrier and pressed her tiny hand against its surface. Ripples spread across it like disturbed water. “Hey, it was much closer than I thought,” Midna remarked, turning to face Link. He swallowed, his stomach twisting uneasily. He could remember the Shadow Beast dragging him through the barrier the first time. That fear had never truly left. Midna floated closer, her breath warm against his cheek. Link instinctively turned away. “If you set foot in there, you might be a wolf for quite some time,” Midna said. “At least as long as it takes you to save Eldin from the Twilight, anyway.” Link glanced past Midna at the glowing glyphs that covered the barrier. As reluctant as he was to return to the Twilight, he knew he had no choice. The children were somewhere beyond that wall of darkness. He had to save them. It was the only way he could honour the promise he had made to Ilia. “Shall we proceed?” Midna asked. Link nodded resolutely and stepped toward the barrier. “Yeah. Let’s go.” Midna slipped through the wall, and the world suddenly fell silent. Knowing what was about to happen next, Link inhaled deeply and steeled himself for the struggle ahead. A moment later, a tendril of Midna’s orange hair burst from the barrier and yanked him back into the Twilight. Back into his living hell. * Link slowly regained consciousness, the rough dirt of the road pressed against his face. He pushed himself upright and rubbed the back of his aching neck. What happened? Midna must have knocked him out when she dragged him through the barrier. Link pushed himself up, but a burst of searing pain shattered his balance. His knees buckled, dropping him to all fours as his stomach knotted violently. With a sickening shift, his kneecaps snapped backward. The pain only worsened. Link screamed as his hands and feet stretched into paws. Dark fur rippled across his body while his face thrust outward into a canine muzzle, his skull grinding into its new form. The transformation ended, leaving Link collapsed on his side, whimpering weakly. He lifted his head and looked up at Midna, who stood nearby with her arms crossed uneasily. Watching the transformation had been easier the first time. Now that she knew Link, Midna felt an unexpected pang of sympathy. Why did she feel guilty about this? She had promised herself she would not grow attached. Getting close would only complicate everything. Midna pushed the thoughts aside and let out a slow breath. By the time she stepped toward Link, her unease had vanished behind a confident smirk. “That’s a good boy!” she said, forcing herself to see only the animal before her. “Now you need to listen to what I say from now on.” As the pain of the transformation faded, Link slowly rose to his feet. Midna hopped onto his back and patted his head as if he were her pet. The urge to snap at her hand was great, but he restrained himself. “How lovely! The clouds of Twilight are so fetching today.” Midna leaned back and spread her arms as though welcoming the dim sky. “I feel so much more at ease here… And you look so much better like this than in those dusty clothes.” Link paid her little mind. His gaze drifted instead to the land before him, where the road ran east through a narrow canyon beneath the shadow of a steep escarpment. Overhead, the Twilight clouds churned endlessly, smothering the land in unnatural darkness. Everything about the netherworld felt wrong. “Okay, let’s get going. That Light Spirit isn’t going to save itself,” Midna said. Link took a moment to reacquaint himself with walking on all fours before entering the canyon. He had not gone far when he spotted a stick lying in the middle of the road. Trotting over, he sniffed it carefully. The scent was familiar. It stirred a memory almost at once. It was one of Talo’s play swords. The children had passed through here, and the scent was still strong. Midna leaned forward with a sly smile. “You’ve picked up their scents. See? Isn’t being a wolf more convenient?” Ignoring her, Link lowered his nose to the ground and continued forward, his attention fixed entirely on Talo’s scent. He barely noticed when the canyon gave way to a wide, open field. Midna suddenly tugged on Link’s ear, snapping his focus. He looked up and jerked back in alarm. He stood at the very edge of a vast chasm. The gorge sliced across the plain from northwest to southeast, dividing the land in two. Far beyond the gap to the east, an iron gate barred the road as it led toward a towering mountain range. Link searched the cliff’s edge for a crossing. All that remained were the shattered ends of a wooden bridge that once stretched across the gorge. “Hmm, that’s strange. The bridge is gone. This is the Shadow Beasts’ doing, no doubt,” Midna muttered. “Let’s see if we can find another way across this gorge.” Link sniffed along the edge of the gorge but found no trace of the children’s scent. The trail ended there. They must have crossed before the bridge was removed. Frustration crept in. The gap was far too wide to jump, and there was no other way across. Moving quickly, Link headed for the hill that ran along the gorge. At the top of the slope, the fallen bridge lay beneath a lone pine tree, weathered but intact. A stroke of good luck. “This will do,” Midna said as she stroked her chin. “Let’s put it back where it belongs.” How are we supposed to lift it? They would need an entire town to move something so heavy. Midna noticed Link’s puzzled look and chuckled before drifting over to the fallen bridge. “I’ll take care of this.” Her expression hardened as she focused. A pulse of magic struck the bridge, and she lifted her arms skyward. The wooden structure trembled before slowly rising from the grass. Midna grunted as she held it suspended. Unbelievable, Link thought as he watched. Carefully guiding the bridge forward, she set it back onto the broken span. It settled neatly into place. With a satisfied grin, Midna floated back to her usual perch on Link’s back. “There, it’s as good as new.” Midna looked genuinely happy for the first time since Link had met her, and the sight unsettled him. He was far more familiar with her usual callous attitude. It was a strange feeling. Link crossed the bridge and followed the road toward the eastern mountains. The children’s scent grew stronger as he advanced. They were close. When they reached the metal gate at the far end of the field, Link saw it was sealed shut with a heavy padlock. Dried blood streaked the iron bars. His stomach tightened. Is that…? Link refused to entertain that thought. Midna shattered the padlock with her magic, and Link pushed the gate open with his snout. He stopped at once, his ears twitching as a new scent drifted toward him. It was putrid and foul, like the Shadow Insects. Looking up, Link spotted two shadowy creatures patrolling the road ahead. They resembled the green-skinned ogres that had attacked Ordon Spring, but their forms were far more grotesque. Dark skin covered in red markings stretched across their monstrous bodies. Stone masks hid their faces, leaving only their glowing yellow eyes exposed. Each carried a thick, bloodstained club. The shadow creatures noticed Link approaching and raised their weapons. Growling, Link let instinct take over. He pounced on the nearest one and sank his teeth deep into its flesh. Black blood oozed out, its bitter taste making him gag. Before he could finish the creature off, the other smashed him in the side with its bludgeon. Link yelped and stumbled back but quickly turned to face the charging ogre. At the last possible moment, he sprang to the right and kicked it to the ground with his hind legs. It tried to roll over. Link was faster. Pinning it down with his front paws, he clamped his jaws around its throat and wrenched his head to the side. A sickening crack echoed off the surrounding mountains. Link stepped back from the ogre’s corpse and turned to its comrade. It was still alive, but barely. The creature clutched its chest weakly, wheezing as blood pooled beneath it. Link thought about ending its suffering, yet he found himself frozen in place, watching. The ogre’s head fell back, and it drew its final breath. “You’re getting good at this,” Midna said casually. Tearing his gaze away from the carnage, Link shivered. He was becoming disturbingly efficient at killing, and that realization frightened him. He had never wanted to take a life. Rusl had always said that life was sacred. Yet here he was, killing without hesitation. They were monsters, yes, but did that make it right? Pushing the question from his mind, Link focused on the children’s scent and continued on. The narrow, winding mountain road led him and Midna through towering red rock formations for several minutes before opening into a large clearing within the cliffs. Before Link and Midna could even look around, two masked Shadow Beasts ambushed them. One tackled Link and slammed him to the ground, throwing Midna from his back. Its long claws ripped into Link’s left side, and he yelped in pain. Midna sprang up to help him, but the other Shadow Beast cut her off. Link managed to kick the Shadow Beast off him, staggering as fiery pain flared through his left side. The monster lunged again, but he slipped out of reach of its talons. The effort nearly made him black out. Midna glanced toward him just as the other Shadow Beast charged. Her hair twisted into a massive hammer, and she slammed it into the creature’s head. The impact cracked its stone faceplate as it reeled backward. Midna rushed to Link’s rescue, hurling an orb of dark magic at the Shadow Beast. It squealed as every muscle in its body seized. While it was helpless, Midna gripped it with her telekinesis and clenched her fist. The creature crumpled into a mangled heap. She flung the corpse into the remaining Shadow Beast. Link seized the opportunity. Using the last of his strength, he tore open the creature’s throat. It thrashed like a fish out of water before finally succumbing to blood loss. “Ugh, what a pain,” Midna muttered. Link collapsed beside her. She tried to hide her concern as she reached toward his wound, but he growled at her ferally. She pulled her hand back at once. Instinct took over. Link began licking the gash on his side. The taste of blood was revolting, but he did not stop. It slowed the bleeding, though the pain still throbbed intensely. Midna watched with a raised brow. “Maybe you’re getting a little too good at this.” Her remark snapped Link out of his trance, and he stopped licking the wound. What am I doing? Heat rose in his face as disgust washed over him. He had completely lost control of himself. Was he losing himself to his lupine instincts? Link rose shakily to his feet and grimaced as pain shot through his body. He limped in a slow circle, testing his mobility. Each step was excruciating, but he forced himself to push through it. He could still move. That was good enough. He signalled to Midna that he was ready, and she climbed onto his back. “Young hero…who transforms into a blue-eyed beast…in the realm of shadows… Come to me.” The strained voice made Link straighten. Turning to his right, he saw a shallow spring nestled within a large alcove at the southern end of the clearing. The weakened essence of the Light Spirit floated listlessly above the water. It looks even worse than Faron, Link thought grimly as he hobbled toward the spring. “I am Eldin,” the Light Spirit said weakly. “Hero chosen by the goddesses…look for the light…that was stolen by the insects of shadow.” Eldin’s Vessel of Light appeared within its fading essence. It slowly descended into Midna’s waiting hands, and she held it close to her chest. It was identical to the vessel Faron had given them in the woods. “In this realm…the insects of shadow cannot be seen with the naked eye. Finding them…will not be easy.” As Link turned to leave, Eldin managed one final warning. “Be careful…young one. The darkness now hunts you…”