Fyras14: Yo, guys! ANother chapter up! Phew...this one took a while, especially since this whole chapter is actually two. Last time I wrote this story, I had divided this part in two...I decided to put them together due to the fact that what was this chapter divided by two on their own were too short...and it also saved me time.

However, you will only see this kind of chapters once in a while.(SPOILERS COMING UP FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN"T PLAYED TWILIGHT PRINCESS)

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Anyway, apart from this chpater getting a few changes, it explains a bit about the desert and the people in it. I;m working on another theory here, however, I also want to make a 'Ganon's in the story OMG' moment in the story. In my story, only a few people or spirits know about Ganondorf, and those who do however, assume that their is no way for him to come back. The "God" that Zant talks about could be anyone, however, and that's the reason that no one relates him to Ganon...yet...might not have pulled it off well, though, but oh well...hope you enjoy!

Summary: After the attack on her castle, Zelda manages to escape, half dead. Found by Link in the wild, she is taken care of, but when fate plays its harsh hand once more, the princess must do everything in her power to aid the hero, recover her kingdom, and maybe fall in love. AU Twilight Princess.

Please read or review, or criticize, whichever comes first. Flames are not accepted, frowned upon, and possibly deleted.

Also remember, that this story is not a walkthrough, and that Zelda and its characters do not belong to me.

When we are afraid we ought not to occupy ourselves with endeavoring to prove that there is no danger, but in strengthening ourselves to go on in spite of the danger.

-Mark Rutherford

-Chapter 17-

-Desert Oasis-

Midna couldn't help but smile from within Link's shadow as that knight, Shiro, told him about some old geezer that was looking for a mirror in the desert. Just their luck! Now, the only needed to head straight towards that desert and be done with it, hoping to not run into any trouble at all. Yeah…because we are so good at avoiding it…the imp thought.

"Auru believes that what had happened in the castle and the many things that are happening in the desert are related," Shiro said, looking at Link as the hero sat next to him.

"…Things? What sorts of things?"

"Well, you do know about Gerudo Desert, right?" Link shook his head.

"Not really, although I have heard of a desert, but not by name…"

"Well, that just might be it! This desert, the Gerudo, used to belong to a tribe made out of women, from what the tales say,"

"Women?"

"Yeah, unfortunately, the Gerudo were known as a band of thieves who stole from the travelers foolish enough to travel in the desert…a couple of hundred years ago something known as the Great War engulfed Hyrule after the leader of the Gerudos tried to take over the land of Hyrule…in order to ensure the survival of the tribe, the Gerudo agreed to a treaty that made them part of Hyrule but also forced them out of their home, the desert."

"They were kicked out?" Link asked, stunned. The knight shook his head as he took a sip from his drink.

"No…by the time of the Great War, the Gerudo's home had been destroyed thanks to their leader's actions; the King of Hyrule had offered them a peaceful solution. They became part of Hyrule. Some moved deeper into the desert, others just became part of Hyrule. And, the desert, in a way, was abandoned…and as the years passed, getting there was impossible." Shiro stopped, deep in thought. "Just before that barrier appeared in the castle, a group of knights that were scouting an area close to the desert reported to Auru that a strange black light had…sprouted from the desert and touched the sky…"

"…Really?"

"Can't say for sure…I didn't see anything odd two days ago, though…and I was on guard duty…" Link exchanged glances with his shadow, as Zelda, sat on the Master Sword's hilt.

"You know anything about all this, princess?" Midna asked, watching as Link ended the conversation, explaining to Shiro that he was going to investigate the desert.

"What Shiro speaks is the truth…years ago, war raged in our land of Hyrule. It all began with greed and ended in death," the hawk princess explained, as the hero heard Shiro telling him that his horse was in a nearby stable as the knight had brought him with him just in case he spotted Link on the way. "The Gerudo, before the war, had already divided…it was this splitting in their ranks that forced their leader's hand…he fell in battle..."

"Wait, 'he' fell?" Midna interrupted, Link was already outside, quickly finding Epona on a nearby stable. "I thought that Shiro guy had said that those Gerudo thieves were female…"

"Not their leader…every hundred years, as per Gerudo tradition, a male is born," the hawk princess watched silently as Link paid the young boy in the stable and received Epona in return, who greeted Zelda; she returned the greeting. "This male is destined to lead them…but…their leader at the time of the Great War…hmm…the records spoke very little of him…they did not elaborate…only that they talked of a great hero that came to aid the people and imprisoned the evil man…"

"Ah…I see…"

Zelda nodded, and then, looked at the distance, as if in thought.

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It took them most of the day, but they had finally arrived at the Great Bridge of Hylia. However, before Epona could even cross it, the hero stopped her, and looked around.

"What is it?" asked the imp hidden in his shadow.

"How did we get down the last time?"

"Well, seeing as we were about to be burned alive that time, we didn't exactly have much of a choice on that matter…we jumped, remember?"

"…and we got back up here…using that cannon…right?" Zelda looked back at the hero in confusion, wondering where he was getting at. Everyone was silent, until Midna spoke,

"…go dive, doggy."

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Zelda flew above Link's wet form, as she tried hard not to laugh in mid-air. The Twili imp was sharing a bit of the princess's humor, saying that Link would have looked much more charming if he had actually bothered to do an artistic dive. Link whispered back, his face red with anger, saying why she didn't try it herself. Midna would respond saying that she already had, she didn't need second tries. The hawk princess had to fly above the hero, as he was moving too much around, stomping the ground in fury, making it almost impossible for Zelda to make her nest on top of the hilt of the sword.

It took a while for him to finally calm down, and look back at Zelda, their eyes meeting. Damn those blue eyes! "Hey, Shannon…can you do me a favor? Can you take a look around the place and see if you can spot an old man around here?" The hawk princess nodded, and quickly left her spot on the hilt.

She flew all over the lake, finally spotting a man in a nearby tower. The hawk princess couldn't really make him out well, since he wore a hood over his head, but she easily deduced that this person was Auru. After all, what other random person could be looking out into the southeast region of her land, a largely unexplored desert area, with a telescope of all things? The hawk princess quickly returned to Link, and guided him towards the tower.

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Link finally reached the end of the ladder, wondering if the hooded man had heard him. He only hoped that he was Auru, he didn't want to go looking for an old man all around the lake, especially with the Zoras looking at him…all because of Midna. The hero only took one step towards the man, before the latter broke the silence. "I thought it was about time for you to arrive…" he told him, making Link stop in his tracks. Shannon shifted uncomfortably in the hilt of the Master Sword, as if nervous. The man turned around, putting his telescope down, but not taking his hood off. "Master Link, is it?" Link looked back at the hooded man, and nodded. The hooded man nodded back, and then, removed his hood revealing gray hair and a gentle face. "My name is Auru. Telma has talked much about you, Master Link…I have heard of all of your deeds from her." Link scratched the back of his head, nervously.

"Well…I…I…" Auru chuckled a bit, before he glanced behind him.

"So…have you come to investigate the desert as well, young man? The Gerudo Desert…" Auru said, turning to face Link. "once the home of ancient thieves, who soon disappeared from this land…as their home became the resting place of a great prison built to hold the worst criminals that this land has ever known…it is said," the older man stared at Link right in the eyes, as if trying to find something amusing in them. "…that criminals who were sentenced to death were sent directly to the underworld by a cursed mirror…deep in the prison…now, that prison is condemned surrounded by the red sands that were the death of many….even the road to the desert is impassible…"

"Impassible?" Link asked. Now…how the heck am I going to get into the desert!

"And…that is why I am investigating this place…" Auru went on, glancing at the distance, before looking back at Link. "And what about you, Master Link? Are you planning to venture into the desert to confirm my suspicions?"

"Well…I was planning to, but…you just said that the road there is not passable…" The hero sounded a bit disappointed as he said that. Auru only chuckled.

"The road to the desert may be impenetrable, but that doesn't mean you cannot get there…"

"Huh?"

"Perhaps I can help you, Master Link." Auru pointed towards the lake below them. "You see Lake Hylia below us? A man named Fyer runs an amusement ride of sorts here." At the mention of that man's name, Link's face turned into a small frown, but it quickly was placed by a calm look. "Give him this." From a small leather bag attached to his back, Auru produced a small piece of paper which he gave to Link. The hero took the paper, and looked back at Auru, confused.

"And this?"

"Your ticket to the desert…give that to Fyer, he shall not refuse the request, and then, let him take care of it…all should go well…" Link made a face.

"I doubt it…"

Link made a face as the short man with the appearance of a clown, Fyer, smiled up at him. Shannon stood still upon the hilt of the Master Sword, wondering who the clown before them was, and confused why the hero had a strange, and a rather annoyed expression on his face when he saw the clown. "Well, well…if it isn't the luck fella! How do you do?" Link only gave Fyer a nod. "Okay, eh? Well, how was your last trip? You land on the rocks?"

"No…" Now Shannon simply looked confused, as Link's look became even more annoyed, and his shadow shivered below him. "Actually, I came here…to get a ride…"

"Another one, huh?"

"Yes…but, here, take this first." From his small pocket hidden somewhere in his green tunic, the hero took out the small note that Auru had given him earlier. Fyer looked at the note confused, before he took it. A few seconds later, Fyer began to murmur to himself.

"Hrrm…from old Auru, huh…says here that I should give you one of the secret options not available to the public…the oasis flight…" Fyer deposited the letter in his own pocket, before he grinned up to Link. "You sure got luck, fella! This one is all paid for you can go in and I'll let ya fly!" The clown looked up at Shannon, who eyed him curiously with her blue eyes. "The little birdy is going too, fella?" Link shook off of his annoyed look, and looked at Shannon, worry in his face.

"…well, she is coming…" He gestured at Shannon to come to his hand, which she did, confused. Link then covered most of her body with his two hands, causing the hawk to squeak in surprise. "Trust…me…you will be begging before we even get there…" Link whispered to her, causing a look of confusion to emanate from the hawk, which was quickly replaced by a hint of horror.

"So, you wanna go, fella?" Link nodded, as he watched the door to the suppose cannon open. Fyer gave him a grateful nod, and watched the hero and hawk enter the cannon. "All right then…but remember, next time, you gotta pay!" Link gave him a look that said, 'Whoever said I want to come back again?' before the door closed. Fyer went back to his machine, and began to turn the gadget. "One for oasis…FIRE IN THE HOLE!" Soon after those words left his mouth, a loud explosion was heard, followed by a group of screams.

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Link quickly got up from the desert sands, as Shannon flapped her wings to relieve herself from some of the sand that had managed to make its way to her feathers. The hero grumbled under his breath as he dusted himself wondering why he had to get somewhere the hard way. Somehow, he felt that this wouldn't be the last time he would use Fyer's services…and that's the part he hated. "Well…there weren't any rocks this time around…" Midna murmured from her place in Link's shadow, causing Link to nod his head asShannon took her place on top of the Master Sword's hilt, shaking some sand out of herself. Link was about to take a step towards the sands of the Gerudo, when somebody stopped him. A small hand. Turning his head around, he looked back at Midna, who had a rather shy look on her face.

"Midna?" he asked her, wondering what was wrong to make her so shy all of the sudden. "Is something the matter?" The hawk, too, appeared worried about the Twili imp's rather strange behavior.

"I wanted to tell you something…before we go deeper into the desert…something that is very important…" Link and Shannon exchanged glances, and nodded, understanding. "Do you remember what the spirits said about the Fused Shadows? What do you think happened to the magic wielders who tried to rule the Sacred Realm?" Link was confused at first, as he began to dig through his memory…something about the evil magic, the Fused Shadow, evil interlopers…aha!

"…you know what happened to them?" Midna lowered her head in shame, as if the history of those evil ones greatly affected her.

"They were banished. They were chased across the sacred lands of Hyrule and driven into another realm by the goddesses…it was another world entirely…the antithesis of Hyrule, you could say…where the sun shines bright." Midna sighed deeply, before she went on. "Its denizens became shadows that could not mingle with the light. Eventually this new world was called the Twilight Realm, and from it, none could return to the world of light…they were forever doomed to live in the twilight, flitting in the half-light of dusk, mere shadows of Hyrule…this…this is the history of the Twili as it has been passed down from our ancestors…so," she faced Link and Shannon, as if trying to find some sort of obliviousness, which she found none. "Do you understand what I am?" Link gave a faint nod, as if the information he had just heard ashamed the Twili imp before him. "…I'm a descendant of the tribe that was banished to the Twilight Realm…" she told them, turning her back on them. "It was a peaceful place…until Zant took control of the Twilight Realm and transformed all of the Twili into shadow beasts…it's all clear to me now that he somehow gained great evil power previously unknown to our tribe…in any case," she faced Link and Shannon again, her uncovered eye not meeting theirs. "I was sent from there, and could no longer get into the Twilight Realm without…his power…" Midna hissed the last part, before she went on. "…but there's another tale told by my people. Though the goddesses forbade us to return to the world of light, they left one link between the light and the darkness."

"A link? You mean…" the hero trailed of, and glanced back at Midna, who nodded in response.

"Yes…the Mirror of Twilight. This great mirror was passed to the protectors of Hyrule, for them to protect the link between our worlds…it's also our only path to the Twilight Realm…and we must get there!" Link gave her a smile and a nod.

"Come on, then…"

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Walking through the desert had sure been harder than walking on the bottom of the sea, but Link had naturally gotten used to it. Of course, the desert itself wasn't as safe as it made itself look, as some strange snake like monsters found it their job to cause trouble for Link as he made his way deeper into the desert. Using the clawshot he had gotten earlier on his journey with one hand and sword in the other, Link had taken care of the strange snakes quite easily, with a little help from Shannon, who was able to dig her talons in some of the snakes and throw them towards Link, who would easily take care of them.

It was hallway through the mesa that they finally saw it. A huge marbled rock, or something of that sort. Shannon was flying around the rock, as if finding it interesting. Inspecting it from here and there. Link and Midna, who had gotten out of his shadow to look at the portal a few feet above them. "Hmm…" she murmured looking at the portal. "Those guys got something out here…"

"You mean, like that?" the hero asked her, pointing at the huge rock, as Shannon flew around it.

"Yep…something like…" Midna suddenly trailed off, catching Link's attention.

"Something wrong?"

"Doesn't that piece of stone look familiar?"

"Huh?" Link moved his eyes away from the Twili imp towards the huge stone; Shannon was standing in front of it, looking back at Link as if telling him something. Link went closer towards the rock, trying his best to not fall deeper into the sand that made up its resting place. Once he got closer, he began to examine it, after a few seconds or so, he yelped in surprise. "This…this…looks exactly like…the bridge of Eldin!"

"Yeah, it does look familiar…" Midna floated closer towards the piece of rock, that was in reality a piece of the Eldin Bridge. "So, this is where those guys tossed it to, huh?" she looked back at Link, as Shannon was already settling on top of the hilt of his sword. "Should we put it back, or do you want to leave it for another day?"

"Put it back. We might need to cross that bridge later on." Midna nodded, as she prepared to transport the piece of the bridge. Link moved away from the rock, and watched as Midna, using that strange hand of hers made of hair, forced the piece up in the air, towards the portal. As if her hand was lifting a heavy weight, it raised itself up, with some difficulty, before the piece of the Eldin bridge went up. It broke into a million black particles before it went straight towards the portal, disappearing from their sight.

"There we go!" Midna cried, grinning. She quickly disappeared into Link's shadow, as the hero moved towards the red sands of the desert, noticing in the distance a structure that seemed far away.

That must be it…then…he thought, as he ran towards them.

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Link had almost missed being hit by an arrow by a few inches, taking out his bow as quickly as he could, he pointed the arrow at the approaching Bulblins on top of their boars, all wielding bows and arrows each. Shannon quickly took to the skies, taking care of the other Bulblins, who were on the distance, aiming their arrows at Link, who evaded them with ease.

Taking out an arrow, Link let it fly towards one of the incoming Bulblins, who let go of his own arrow that missed Link, as he fell to the ground. The Bulblin's boar was left in a state of confusion by the sudden attack, and rammed against the other boar, who in turn shook his rider off of his back. Taking this chance, Link took out his sword and quickly took care of the rider, who only groaned in pain and collapsed. Shannon soon returned, nodding her head at Link as she landed nearby. Looking back in the distance, Link could see the many barricades that the Bulblins had put up, blocking his path. Now, how in the world do I get past that…As if to answer his question, one of the boars walked past him, ignoring him as it contemplated its surroundings. "I hope you're not thinking what I think you are thinking…" Midna said from the hero's shadow, pointing a finger at the large boar.

"Unless you have a suggestion…"

"Use bombs."

"Too hard…what's to say more of those guys aren't waiting by the barricade?" he pointed a finger towards the barricade that covered the entrance to the structure, that by closer inspection, led to some sort of small valley of rocks that hid more sand in their wake. The hero, not expecting an answer, jumped on top of the boar. The animal, not expecting this movement, let out a loud screech, before it made a mad dash towards the barricade, as Link held on tightly by its hair. Up the air, a worried Shannon followed, and she seemed to wince as the two, animal and man, crashed against the wooden barricade, which sent splinters and pieces of wood everywhere.

The two were hallway through the small valley of rocks, when suddenly a Bulblin appeared out of nowhere, and was prepared to kill Link with an arrow. Before Shannon could react, however, Link let go of the boar, and watched as the boar trampled the monster under its feet before it ran off, deeper into the red sands of the Gerudo Desert. Preparing for the worst, Link got out his sword and shield, while Shannon stayed in the air, and as quickly as they could ran(or flew, in Shannon's case) away from the tower of rocks, only to run into another dilemma. Another Bulblin camp, and this time, with many Bulblins guarding the entrance to the place they needed to go. The prison, where the Mirror of Twilight lay.

Link groaned, realizing that this will really hurt, Master Sword or not.

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Once inside the Bulblin camp, the hero was attacked without end. Bulblins came from here and there, wanting to crush Link's skull with their clubs and swords(that by some miracle, few knew how to use). While Shannon took care of the foes up in the watch towers, Link went one to twenty on the ground.

Slashing and cutting, dodging and blocking, the hero was able to trick the group of Bulblins as they went to attack him, hitting a few of their own in the process. But no matter how many Link took out, more seem to take their place soon after, but that didn't deter the hero in the slightest as he continued his assault on the evil monsters, being careful to not be touched by their weapons. Minutes turned to hours, and light turned to darkness upon the camp, and the hero wondered how in the world he and Shannon could fight for so long. Soon, the Bublins, realizing that they were losing, quickly left the scene, not wanting to face death at the hands of the hero.

Seeing as they were heading deeper into the camp, both man and hawk followed after them, until they went past a gate, that soon closed when Link had ran past it. "…this is not a good sign…" the hero murmured, as he looked around the new darkness that engulfed him. He was inside some sort of chamber, where everything was a bit dark, even Shannon, he noticed, had trouble locating where she was. Link was about to call her to his side when he suddenly noticed something odd. A boar, looking stupidly at another gate, almost the same design as the one that had closed on him previously. The hero walked cautiously towards the boar, sparing glances around him to see if there was another Bulblin that wanted his 'autograph'. When he saw none, he dropped his shield and sword a little, and walked out towards the—

"LOOK OUT!" Link froze at the sound of that voice.

"LINK! Look out!" Midna cried from his shadow, snapping the hero off of his trance. Link only looked at the fallen boar, before he himself was hit straight in the stomach, throwing him to the ground, where the hero was soon losing consciousness.

"LINK!" came that voice again, waking Link up just in time for him to roll away from the axe that wanted to cut him in two. Looking towards his enemy, the hero gave an inaudible gasp. It was that Bulblin again, the leader of the gang of Bulblins. He was the one that had kidnapped Colin and blocked his way towards Kakariko when he was helping Ralis. But, how?

"You have to be kidding me!" Midna cried from his shadow, as the hero evaded another axe attack from the Bulblin leader. "How many times do we have to take care of this guy for him to leave us alone!" Link couldn't help but agree with her, as he dodged another axe attack. He noticed that Shannon was preparing to attack the monster, but she was stopped by Link's command.

"DON'T!" He ordered her, as he sent a straight blow towards the Bulbin leader's stomach. The Bulblin lost his footing, but quickly recovered, as he sent another axe blow towards Link, who managed to deflected with his shield. Catching the Bulblin by surprise, the hero was able to give him a set of good slashes from his sword, before he tackled him with the Hylian Shield. At least, now that Link thought about it, paying two hundred rupees for this shield hadn't been a total waste after all.

Not waiting for the Bulblin leader to swing his axe again, Link tackled the leader once more with his shield, before he sent a deadly blow towards his chest and arm. Twirling around, the hero hit the beast once more as he lay distracted. Letting out a cry, the Bulblin leader, dazed and in pain because of the many cuts on his body, fell to the ground, the axe discarded next to his body. Link calmly waited, and watched in amazement as the Bulblin leader stood up once more. The hero prepared himself for a second fight, only to watch in numb shock as the Bulblin leader only growled back at him, before he quickly left the room. Once he disappeared from the room, that's when trouble started once more. "Oh great! Just what we needed!" Midna cried from her place in Link's shadow.

The hero looked around frantically for a way out, finally spotting the boar, that had been thrown to the ground was standing up, and sniffing around, stupidly as always. The hero quickly put his sword and shield away, and took a chance. Link jumped on top of the boar, with Shannon on top of Link, her claws attached to his green tunic. Both held on tightly, one unto Link's clothes, while the other to the boar's hairs, as the boar let out a roar and tackled the gate before them, and then the other barricades that stood in the way. Link glanced behind him, avoiding a few splinters that came to his face. The fire consumed the small camp behind them, but Link couldn't let out a sigh of relief as the boar shook him off of its back. The hero landed face first towards the sand, Shannon flying above him.

Shaking the sand out of his head and body, the hero quickly got up. "…that was close…" he heard Midna mutter from his shadow. Spitting some sand out of his mouth, Link nodded.

"You're telling me…" Link told her, as he looked back at the giant building before them. The prison that Auru spoke of. It appeared like some sort of temple, with many columns surrounding it, a small stairway leading to the entrance, while a large symbol of the triforce lay buried not too far away from them.

"We are close now, Link…" Midna whispered.

"Yeah…" the hero told her, as he and Shannon made their way towards the temple; hoping that the inside was better than the outside.