LoZ: Bermuda Triangle ch. 15

There was a moment of confused silence as Cleo tried to take in what Ghirahim had just said. Did she hear right? "What are you talking about? What prophecy?!"

He laughed again. "Don't play clueless with me little girl. We both know why you're here... not that it will make the slightest difference. Foolish child, you should have stayed home and played with your toys and your video games like a good girl." Slowly, all the coolness he'd showed was vanishing. "But noooo, you have to be a nuisance and play hero and make me LOSE MY COMPOSURE!" Ghirahim lashed out, suddenly deranged, causing the kids to flinch. Then, just as suddenly, he calmed back down. The changes were disturbing. "But I'm perfectly able to forgive and forget... under one condition..." He held his hand out to the glaring Cleo. "Hand the boy's and your two circlets over to me and I will spare you a second time."

"This is all you're getting from me!" Cleo growled, giving him an extremely rude hand sign.

"Bold as brass as ever... Such a pity. Once more, I am left with no choice." Cleo pulled out her sword upon hearing this. Ghirahim wagged his finger at her. "T't't't't, now you're just being impudently reckless. I'm not going to fight you this time. No. I'll summon you a playmate instead. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to kick my legs up and be in my zen mode as I watch an exquisite, dramatic scene of you being mauled to death and then devoured as the icy dark water turns red. That will definitely brighten my day." Then he snapped his fingers and a dagger came out of nowhere. It flew not at Cleo or Tim, but the Timeshift Stone.

Everything changed instantly. The Titanic returned to it's wrecked state, the whole place filled with freezing water. Cleo turned around and saw Tim crumple, as a ragged skeleton, before he could shout in surprise. Cleo turned back toward Ghirahim only to see a splash of diamonds in his place. There was a loud bang as the whole ship lurched and fell over. She was sure something as big as the Titanic rammed into it. Then, a gigantic fish crashed it's way through the walls forcing her to retreat, it gobbled up Tim before she could do anything. It chased after her until they were out in the open where she was to face it head on.

Green-Eyed Colossus of the Deep: Leviathan

The sea beast was made of stone, covered with dark green grass-like fur and it's startling eyes glowed in the gloom. It lunged at Cleo again and she tried to hit it with her sword, but to no effect. She narrowly avoided being chomped on and, up close, saw something bright on its belly. She clawshot onto the side and clung onto its fur. She crawled her way across the body (she paused a few times when the creature tried to shake her off) until she reached the spot of light. It looked like a sigil, she stabbed it a few times until it disappeared. Leviathan was in terrible pain, but still didn't die. It managed to throw her off and unleashed a school of smaller fish after her. After she dealt with them, Cleo got back onto her target. She found the second sigil on its forehead and, trying not to lose her grip from all that bucking, plunged the sword repeatedly. Finally, it fell to the sea bed with a high-pitched cry and broke apart like ancient stone.

Cleo let herself float gently down among the rubble and looked around, her eyes laying upon a small skull. It was all that was left of Tim. She felt a pang of grief shoot through her, then it was gone when Tim appeared before her, almost startling her. Was she hallucinating? He gave no words, he just smiled and, with a blue glow, he summoned Nayru's Circlet and handed it to Cleo. She looked at Tim again in time to see him fade away into nothingness. A blue light surrounded her and lifted her up toward the surface.

Her head burst out of the water, breathing in fresh air. "Hey!" a voice called out. Cleo looked up and saw Kaepora flapping above her.

Cleo held the circlet up. "I got it, I got it!"

"That's good... I was beginning to worry for you. Akairo has been telling me what's been happening down there during your search... About that boy..."

"...Tim is alright. I know he is..." She thought about him again and about his twin... separated... like herself and her mother... because of Ghirahim... She will not stand for this. "Let's go Kaepora... we need to finish this." Kaepora nodded and lifted her out of the sea.

And as they head back to the Bermuda Triangle, Cleo pulled out the snowglobe and stared at it. Again, she thought she was hallucinating, she saw two tiny boys, completely identical, inside the globe, waving up at her and disappearing as they passed behind a miniature tree.

---

They traveled to Bermuda island, Puerto Rico, and came back to Miami to place the circlets on the goddess statues. After the last circlet, (Farore's Circlet) was returned to its appropriate place, the statue started glowing. Miles away the other two statues glowed in unison and then, in an alarming burst, three columns of light shot up into the sky and formed a wall. Within the triangle, glowing lines formed into a spell circle and activated without the need of an incantation. And when the largest, brightest, most astonishing portal opened in the center... it suddenly stopped... everything stopped... the lines, the walls of light, all gone.

Cleo just stood there, staring out on the empty horizon, totally dumfounded. "That's it?! Is that all there is!? One fricken huge portal only open for three seconds!"

"You are being hasty!" Kaepora scolded. "We weren't going into the portal. The tool we seek has been summoned to us somewhere in the very center. You just can't see it yet."

"Please tell me I'm not going down in the ocean again! I'm still not fully dry yet!"

"It's not at the bottom, it's on land, a chunk of Hylian soil has been brought over to your world. That is where it lies, waiting."

"I don't see any land there... but I guess I will soon. I'm ready, take me to it."

As they soared over the ocean, sure enough, Cleo could see an island that she knew wasn't suppose to be there. It was entirely covered in thick deep woods surrounded by rocky canyon walls. They landed on a cliff that had a cave entrance, Cleo stood before the cave and had a sudden case of deja vu and when she went through into the forest, she was sure she had been here before. She heard a faint shuffle and thought she saw movement. She called out to whoever might be here but there was no answer, she had a feeling that someone was watching her though.

Then she reached some ruins, ruins Cleo now recognized. "I know this place... I've been here before!" She ran down a path she now remembered and found her way into the very heart of the place, into the demolished chamber of the Temple of Time.

Cleo stopped dead when she noticed that someone was there already, someone kneeling before something with her back to her, quietly singing... "...and before you a path shall open, and a heavenly song you shall hear..."

"...Zelda?"

The woman stopped singing, got up and turned around to see who had spoken. Indeed, it was Princess Zelda. "Who--?..." She stared at Cleo for a moment. "Oh! Cleo, it's you!... I almost didn't recognize you in that outfit. For a moment, I thought you were Link."

"What are you doing here?"

"Well... I was praying. You see, I had a dream recently... that you were in danger and facing it without fear... In your hand, you were holding a familiar weapon. So I came here to the Temple of Time. I was hoping to find answers here and... help you."

Guilt walloped Cleo in the stomach. "Uh... listen Zel..." she tried to say, uncomfortably. "About last time--"

Kaepora flew in. "I'd hate to interrupt this discussion, but don't you have a sword to wield?"

Cleo looked up. "What sword?"

"Oh for the goddesses' sake! What have you been gathering circlets for?"

Of course, Cleo had momentarily forgotten about why she was here. She now took notice of what Zelda had been kneeling before: The Master Sword. Without questioning this, she stepped forward, knowing somehow it would all come to this. Slowly reaching out to the hilt, Cleo's heart hammered in anticipation, her hands placed. Suddenly, a warm feeling washed over her, she wasn't sure why, but the moment she touched it... she felt at home. Cleo tugged, and the blade slid loose. She pulled it all the way out of the pedestal and held it up in the air, catching the sun's rays, reflected brilliantly.

"The Master Sword has accepted you!" Zelda said ecstatically. Cleo stared at her new weapon in wonder before sheathing it. "Listen Cleo, there's something you may need to know. I know you wish to seek out Ghirahim for what he's done. But as I tried to find out more about him here in this temple, I discovered something crucial, something that may be connected to your past. It involved a prophecy."

Cleo whipped around at her. "Where did you learn that?"

"Well... the Master Sword spoke to me."

"Really? How does...!!" Cleo abruptly stopped when she noticed someone behind Zelda who wasn't there a second ago. She quickly withdrew the sword in fury. "YOU AGAIN?!" Startled, both Zelda and Kaepora turn quickly to see at whom she was shouting.

"Honestly, are you going to blow your top like a champagne cork every time I make an appearance?" Ghirahim was sitting on a wall, his legs crossed and his head resting on his hand.

"You know, for once I'm glad you're here! Now that I have the Master Sword, I'm going to finish you once and for all!!"

But Ghirahim just made a cruel laugh. Not the kind of response Cleo expected. "Possessing the weapon is not the same as possessing the skill. You're still insignificant compared to me!"

"I've learned, I've gotten stronger since we last fought! I'm ready for you this time!"

Ghirahim was examining his fingernails, hardly paying attention. "Well, as much as I would love to torment you once more, I've got more important matters to attend to." He hopped off the wall and teleported before landing on the ground. Cleo quickly looked around, trying to find him, and heard a terrified yelp. She turned to Zelda who was now being held by the demon lord.