InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Green-clothed Warrior ❯ Race In The Underground Crypt ( Chapter 5 )

The Green-cloathed Warrior

An InuYasha/Legend of Zelda Crossover Fanfiction

By: Patriot1776

Chapter Four: Race in the Underground Crypt

Shippo was trembling in fear as they approached the path that led up to Kakariko Village. They had been travelling for most of the day, and Death Mountain and its ominous ring of fire loomed overhead as they started up the path. When they entered the village, Link immediately saw that it was here most of the populace of Hyrule Castle Town Market had fled to when Ganondorf had took over. There was a lot more people in the village then there had been when he had visited as a child seven years ago.

"Link, are you sure it's safe to be here? That mountain is scaring me." Shippo said in a frightened voice, pointing up at Death Mountain, still visible above. He had started sticking close to InuYasha, holding on to his haori tightly.

"We have no choice. We can't leave here until I've gotten the item I need." he replied.

"I feel so sorry for these people, having to wake up everyday with that mountain's ominous looks." Kagome said.

"They've probably gotten used to it a little, but not much. Most of these people used to inhabit the town those ruins used to be, before Ganondorf took over and wrecked the place." Link then said. Link then started asking around the village about the latest gossip, while the others started to mill around. InuYasha knocked on the door to one of the houses and entered, and found some people cooking food and decided to stay there for a minute. In the corner, he saw a large, bearded man snoring loudly.

Kagome meanwhile, had started to look around for a fletching shop or something similar so she could buy herself some more arrows. After wandering around the village for a while, she found the Bazaar, or store. Inside was what she needed.

"How much for 30 arrows?" she asked.

"60 rupees." the manager replied, puzzled at seeing a girl with such strange clothes as Kagome's school uniform. `Oops, I forgot this was another dimension!' Kagome suddenly thought. Still she decided to give it a try, and got out some yen from her own time.

"How about this?" she asked, holding the paper money out to him. The manager's face then got red with anger.

"You have no rupees?! Then be out of here then! What you offer is worthless!" he said to her sternly. Kagome then gave up at that, then left to find Link. She found him talking to an old man and walked up to him.

"... his house stood where the well is." The old man was finishing.

"Thanks." Link said, then turning when he saw Kagome. "What is it?"

"May I borrow 60...er, what did the store manager call them?" she wondered.

"Rupees? You want to borrow 60 rupees? Sure. You don't even have to pay me back. What do you need it for?" Link replied.

"I want to buy some more arrows. They won't take my futuristic money." She then showed Link her yen. The familiar look of puzzlement she'd seen before returned to his face.

"How can pieces of paper have any value?" he asked. "Never mind, don't bother trying to explain it to me, I don't wanna know. Anyway, here." Link then pulled a wallet-sized pouch out of his pocket and opened it. He pulled out three red gems, and handed them to her.

"What are these?" she asked, looking at the gems.

"That's what we use as money in this land. They're called rupees. That should be enough to buy 30 arrows."

"Hmm." Kagome said as she went to buy her arrows. Sango, Shippo and Miroku had went into the same house as InuYasha had, and found him eating in there.

"You people have adapted well to these conditions you're having to live in." Sango commented as they sat down.

"We've had no choice but to. All we can do is wait and hope things turn for the better, and that Death Mountain doesn't suddenly decide to blow it's top." one plump woman said as she brought them some food. "I'm sure you are all tired from traveling here."

"Who's the bearded man who's snoring so loudly?" InuYasha asked in between bites of the steak he was eating.

"His name's Talon. He used to be in charge of Lon Lon Ranch, but his assistant threw him out. I don't see how he stays so carefree during these times." the woman replied.

"Well, whenever he wakes up, tell him he can go back to his ranch. That's where we've just been. We put that assistant of his in his place." Shippo then said casually. Moments later, the door opened, and Link and Kagome walked in. InuYasha raised an eyebrow at Link, who was carrying a strange, munchkin-sized chicken.

"What's with the tiny chicken?" InuYasha then asked.

"You're about to find out." Link replied, then walked over to Talon, still sleeping. When Link got close to him with the small chicken, the chicken crowed and woke Talon up! Talon sat up, shaking his head.

"What in tarnation? Can't a person get any shut-eye around here?" he then asked.

"Why sleep? I've got good news for you. You can go back to your ranch." Link told him.

"What? How? I thought Ingo was-"

"Not anymore. I've put him in his place. I didn't kill him, just gave him a humiliating experience he won't soon forget." Link said, cutting him off.

"You save Malon too?" Talon then asked.

"Yes. In case you're wondering, I'm the green-clad forest boy that stopped by seven years ago. My name is Link."

"Link, I don't know how to thank you for this." Suddenly, his face lit up. "I know! You can marry Malon!" Talon then said. A look of shock came to Link's face at those words. Meanwhile, a huge grin had come to Miroku's. An angry look from Sango quickly drove it away though.

"Surely you don't mean now, do you?" Link then asked Talon, flabbergasted.

"Why not?" replied Talon.

"Look, I'd like to, but now is just not the time." Link pleaded. "The world is too dangerous, and I've got...things...to do." Miroku then decided to give Link a hand, and got up.

"He speaks the truth, he's too busy, and now is not the time for him to take a wife." Miroku then said to Talon. He then motioned for Link and the others to follow him outside. "Well Link, what have you found out? Have you any idea where that artifact is that you need?"

"I believe I'm going to have to head to the graveyard." he replied.

"The graveyard? Don't tell me you're going to have to dig up somebody to get that treasure you need." Sango then said with a serious look on her face.

"I might just might have to do that." Link then started for the village's graveyard after returning the tiny chicken to the lady who had loaned it to him. The others meanwhile went back into the house to finish their meal.

"He better not take long. I hate waiting." InuYasha said as he finished his steak.

"We can't just leave. He's the only one that can actually kill Ganondorf, and we've got to help him any way we can if we're ever going to get back to our own world." Kagome reminded him.

"Feh. We should've stayed away from that damn log in the first place." InuYasha said as he got up and went outside.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Link entered the graveyard, tense and ready for anything. He saw the same hut that the gravekeeper had used when he had visited seven years ago to enter the Royal Tomb. He went inside the hut, and found a diary lying on a table beside a bed. He walked up and read it. It read:

`Whoever reads this, please enter my grave. I will let you have my stretching, shrinking keepsake. I'm waiting for you. -Dampe'.'

`Just as I thought. I've got to enter the grave of the gravekeeper, Dampe', and see just what kind of treasure he has.' Link thought as he exited the hut and began to check around the graveyard, looking for the grave that he had to enter. The place looked virtually the same as it did seven years ago, except for one thing that caught Link's eye. He noticed a new gravestone in an out-of-the-way corner and examined it. On it were the words he had been looking for:

Here lies Dampe', former gravekeeper of Kakariko Village's Graveyard.

"Sorry old man, but this is what you wanted." Link said as he got behind the gravestone, grabbed hold of it, and began to pull it. He pulled it back a few feet, revealing an ominous looking hole. Clenching his teeth, he jumped into it. He fell about 10 feet before landing with a grunt, then looked around. He was in a dark chamber, a shaft of light shining in from the hole above. It took a few seconds for his eyes to adjust to the blackness, but when it did, he noticed a strange looking ghost floating in the chamber, in front of a large opening in a wall. The ghost looked like a ragged old man, and wore brown clothes. A white halo was hovering above its head. Link recognized the ghost as Dampe'.

"Hello young man! Are you fast on your feet?" the ghost asked.

"Yes. I believe I am, why?" Link replied.

"I'd like to challenge you to a race. Follow me if you dare!" With that, the ghost then began to float through the opening. Link began to run, accepting the ghost's challenge. The ghost proceeded to float through a myriad series of winding corridors, occasionally throwing a fireball at Link, trying to slow him down! Link easily dodged the fireballs, but was having to sprint constantly to keep up with the fleeting ghost.

`He sure knows his way around here.' Link thought as the ghost went through a doorway. As soon as it was through it, ticking noises began to emanate from the doorway. `Oh, great. Timed doors. Just what I need.' Link put on a burst of speed and was through the doorway seconds before it closed. The ghost continued to lead him through more corridors, up and down various stairwells and even over a few ledges, and through more timed doors. Link was panting heavily, the sweat rolling freely down his face. The ghost rounded a corner, and Link followed. As he rounded the same corner, a look of horror came to his face as he almost stepped into a chasm!

He gasped as he pulled to a stop, just inches from the edge and struggled to keep from falling in. After he steadied himself, he looked and saw a curved ramp leading up to another timed doorway, the ghost just starting to enter it. Link then gritted his teeth, drawing up every last bit of speed he still had in him, and took off as fast as he could up the ramp, the ticking having started from the doorway. As he neared it, the ticking quickened. `Oh no, am I not going to make it? Don't think thoughts like that!! YOU CAN DO IT!!!' Link's mind raced. He put on another bust of speed and dove through the doorway screaming, just as it was starting to close! He landed hard on the floor on the other side, and groaned. Getting up, he shook his head to clear the cobwebs and scanned around. The ghost was now floating above a large treasure chest.

"Well done, young man! I was expecting you would be able to pass my challenge. Come and open the chest. My treasure is inside." the ghost said. Link then walked up and opened the chest. He raised an eyebrow when he saw what was inside. He lifted out a strange looking, spring-loaded device with two handles on one end, and what looked like an arrowhead on the other.

"What is this thing?" he asked the ghost.

"It's called the Hookshot. It's a spring-loaded chain with a grapple on the end of the chain. You aim it at any surface the head can dig into, pull on that handle there, and the head launches out at whatever you were aiming at. If it digs in, it will then proceed to pull you toward whatever it dug into, or vice versa. It can also be used as a weapon." The ghost then pointed out the parts of it to him.

"OK then. Now how do I get out of here?" Link then asked.

"Through that doorway." the ghost pointed, then continued. "Feel free to return here anytime if you wish to race me again. I'll give you something else that'll be helpful." The ghost then faded out of existence, and Link then started making his way out of the ghost's crypt-maze.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

InuYasha was sitting on top of the house, gazing up at Death Mountain. It was dusk. `I've got the feeling we're going up there before this is over.' he thought, and shook his head in disgust. `Great. If that thing decides to erupt while we're climbing it, us and this whole damn village will be history, and there'd be nothing we could do about it.' His ears then pricked up as he heard the sound of a door open and close to his right. He turned and looked, and was surprised to see Link emerge from the village's windmill. `What the hell? How'd he get there? I thought he went to the graveyard.' He then saw Link look up and begin walking toward the building he was sitting on the roof of.

"Well, what are you doing?" Link asked up at him.

"Are we going to have to go up that mountain at some point?" InuYasha then asked, pointing.

"We will eventually. That is not how Death Mountain is supposed to look. But we're not going to scale it now. Come on down. I've got what we came here for."

InuYasha jumped down onto the ground and followed him inside. The others looked up at their entrance.

"You're back! Well, did you get it?" Kagome asked.

"It's about time too. Now just what is this thing that we had to come all the way here for?" InuYasha asked impatiently.

"This." Link said, getting out his new Hookshot. Everybody looked puzzled.

"What is that contraption?" Kagome asked.

"It's a spring-loaded grappling hook. You aim, shoot, and it pulls you toward whatever you aimed at. It won't work on hard surfaces though. Here I'll demonstrate." Link explained. He then pointed the Hookshot at a wooden beam in the ceiling, and fired it. The head of it flew up and dug into the beam, and Link was then pulled up off the floor toward the ceiling as the chain reeled itself in. When it finished reeling in, the head released itself from the beam and Link fell back to the floor. He used his legs to cushion the impact, and got back up. InuYasha and the others were amazed.

"Wow! Can I try it, please, please, please?" Shippo then begged.

"I'm afraid you lack the strength to work it. Sorry." Link replied with an empathetic look. Shippo then crossed his arms, looking dejected.

"That's pretty neat, though I don't need anything like that. I can just jump up to high places." InuYasha then said.

"Is something blocking the way into the Temple? Is that why you need it?" Sango then asked.

"I guess so, otherwise I probably would not have had to get it. We start for Kokiri Forest, and the Lost Woods in the morning." Link then said.

"Kokiri Forest is where we wound up when we were first drawn into this world." Miroku stated.

"You've already been there? Tell me about how it was." Link then said, intrigued.

"The place was crawling with monsters, we had to fight our way out of it." Sango said.

"What? How bad?"

"Not too bad. Sango and I were able to slaughter them pretty easily. They were more of a nuisance than anything else." InuYasha then said.

"That's a relief. Anyway, we start out tomorrow morning." Link then said. They then settled down for the night in the village.