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Standing in an empty white that is his conscience, the man in white attire with red and blue spider-like markings in his face sat there patiently as he polished his green double helix sword.
He waits for the moment where he could be free from this prison. There is nothing left for him to do in here, he tried finding an exit throughout this white room, but there was nothing. No cracks on the wall that he could tear down further, no hidden switches to a secret entrance, not a single thing. It’s been quite a long time since he was trapped in this mask prison that he had forgotten his name, and parts of his past.
“How many years have passed since that day?” he wondered. When he first was trapped here, he was furious and went on a full rampage, he clashed his blade to the white wall, threw multiple projectiles, thrashing it multiple times and even tried head-butting it, but not a single hit made a mark.
One thing for sure is that, he failed his one and only purpose, he failed to protect his king and let his land into ruins and because of that, he couldn’t bear the guilt and tried to end himself in this forsaken mask prison.
However, when he tried, his blade won’t pierce a single inch to his stomach, nor does smashing his head through the white wall will blow his head to bits. Over time, his rage was tamed, but the weight of his shame remains unchanged.
He reminded himself of what was left to remember, that he was once a warrior, that is what he’s always been and that’s what he will always be. He tried recalling his youth, but nothing came into mind, it was as blank as the room he is waiting in.
He remembered that war entered his kingdom, most of the soldiers were slaughtered like insects and what was left were the women and those who couldn’t count past 10.
The king started looking for volunteers for experiments to turn any of the participants to be the most powerful, the most efficient and the most perceptive soldiers, eventually, they took interest in him and other volunteers like him, eager to serve their land and win the war, though unlike others, he survived these experiments.
Firstly, they removed his sense of taste after forcing him to endure all types of available poison to gain immunity.
In exchange, he could tell if it were poisoned.
Secondly, they forced him to endure all sorts of pain to the point where he barely feels it in order for him to keep going on even in critical condition.
Thirdly, they would order him to slay prisoners of war in a gladiator battle to teach him to numb his feelings towards enemies and not hesitate striking a blow to the head.
Lastly, they enhanced his eyes so that he could see even in the thickest fogs or see through any illusions.
One of the things that he couldn’t remember no matter how hard he tried was the process of getting his abilities, where his double helix sword was forged and regarded it as something not worth remembering.
Because of these enhancements, he defeated all the threats quickly and efficiently and his kingdom experienced the peace and prosperity they deserved. Sadly, the peace was short-lived as the neighboring kingdoms urged an ancient tribe to place a curse on anyone in his land. Anyone powerful, talented, beautiful or noteworthy to become empty masks as trophies, while the rest of the people, the limp, the poor, the blind, the ones who are considered ‘worthless’ were killed off immediately, in the end, he couldn’t even protect his own land.
He waited patiently before sensing that he wasn’t going to be alone any longer, he sensed that someone was holding his mask.
An image of a child appeared, he doesn’t seem to be from the land he served or part of the cursed tribe, but he was quite similar to him, not only in physical appearance, but also in his expression.
His pale blue eyes looked beyond exhausted and must have seen things a child shouldn’t have seen, his expression or lack thereof, told him that he had intentionally numbed himself emotionally to the point where he doesn’t feel anything to keep on going.
From his eyes, he could tell that this child probably has forgotten the joys of savoring a wonderful meal, the thrill of an adventure, or the happiness of companionship, not that the man in white would know how all of those felt like, he was simply reading him like a book.
Then before he knew it, the boy in green was thrown in a battle with another masked being.
The boy wore his mask, the pale man could feel his powers being borrowed from the boy and refused sharply. The boy immediately took off the mask as he felt as if being stung on his face, as if rejecting his presence.
The man wasn’t going to let his powers be misused.
The boy in green promptly ran towards the heart-shaped mask and began slashing without hesitation before opting to strike it from a distance with magic arrows after being whipped multiple times by those tentacles coming out of the mask.
As the boy fought the mask, the pale man was transferred into the boy’s mind. The interior of his mind was vastly different than the man in white’s, for starters, instead of an empty white room, it was inside of a large treehouse with spiraling staircase leading upstairs, there was a table in the middle of this treehouse with a picnic basket on top of it and a kettle, behind him a small bed that looked more like a bench with a red blanket neatly folded and to his right side, some bookcases and pictures of different children wearing green clothing and other strange creatures.
Then he heard a panic quiver below him, he looked down and saw that he wasn’t the only one there, there was a shivering Deku scrub, an unfazed Goron and a curious-looking Zora.
“M-Mr Fie-Fierce Deity, p-please don’t kill u-us” the deku scrub stuttered as he hid behind the Goron.
“Relax kid, I doubt he could kill us here, I mean, we’re dead already!” The Zora chuckled before adding “But man, do you really have to do that? The kid is struggling out there” as he watched the kid in green who was beaten up and bruised reached the second boss phase of the heart-shaped mask.
The man in white approached the timid deku scrub and kneeled down to his level “What did you called me?” As he inquired him, he instinctively glared at the deku scrub, giving him shiver in his spine.
“Fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-AAAA!” he stuttered as he shrunk behind the Goron.
The man in white raised an eyebrow, “Do not worry about him, he is not used to see other people here” The Goron replied as he pat the scrub’s back before adding, “The heart shaped mask called you ‘The Fierce Deity, we assumed that is your designation”
“What an odd name” Fierce Deity thought to himself, he wasn’t as ferocious as he used to be and surely that name wouldn’t fit him any longer but he definitely is not a god, perhaps that was the name that got stuck to him in war tales.
Since he wasn’t that much creative with names to call himself and wouldn’t want the others to not be able to refer to him, he agreed to take it as his own, “I see, in that case, I shall take it.”
The Zora approached him and lent his hand, “Welcome to the mask club big guy, the name’s Mikau.” He chuckled before introducing the others, “the big tough Goron over there would be Darmani and the shy lil’ guy would be Deku Scrub”.
Fierce Deity raised an eyebrow, what was he supposed to do with the Zora’s arm?
He promptly ignored Mikau, his attention is shifted towards the scrub whilst ignoring the warm greetings from the Zora.
“Do you not have a name?” he asked the Deku Scrub who doesn’t seem to be getting used to his presence any time soon.
“A-actually I do have one, but they kept mispronouncing it that I gave up.” The deku scrub added “I’m fine being called Deku scrub though, it’s not like there are any other deku scrubs around here.”
“Forgive me little one, but it’s quite difficult for me pronounce it after the first twelve syllables”, Darmani apologized.
“Well, I’m surprised you could even remember the first five syllables, my brain exploded after hearing a name that long!” Mikau pouted.
”As if you had one in the first place” the little scrub muttered
”I heard that you little runt!” Mikau raised his fist in protest
Out of curiosity, Fierce Deity asked the rest of the masks as he watched the battle “Who is this child? Why do all of us reside in the same mind as he does?”
The Deku Scrub gathered enough courage, picked up a book from the shelf titled ‘Adventures in Hyrule’ and placed it on the table, scooting the picnic basket over to make some space.
“This is a long story, but this may answer your questions, place your hand on the cover.” He told him
Fierce Deity did exactly as he’s been told, Then he started seeing the boy’s memories in a flash,
where he grew up,
the friendships he has,
every challenge he faces,
his sorrows,
his longing for his beloved friend who left suddenly,
Fierce felt something strange inside of him.
He widened his eyes in shock, what is this familiar sensation?
Was it sadness?
Pity?
Worry?
Or perhaps…
..Sympathy?
“The young warrior saved his land Hyrule and yet nobody was there to tell the tale of his adventures, his only friend who had experienced the thing he went through, suddenly missing. That’s what lead him to stumble upon this kingdom in the first place, he solved the land’s problem while he could’ve left us after regaining his Ocarina and horse, healed all of our sorrows, make all of us happy, and yet there is nothing we can do to help him heal his. “the Goron added
“We let the poor kid clean up the fatal mistakes we made, and do our job for us” Mikau paused before continuing, “and for that, we are forever grateful to him by lending our abilities in our mask forms.”
“it’s the least we could do” the Deku Scrub continued.
Fierce contemplated, he had failed because he wasn’t strong enough, was he going to let this child fail for not lending his strength?
He decided “Link, I will lend you my power, make sure you won’t make the same mistake as I did.” He smiled slightly.
Link, who is now more bloodied than ever, out of magic and arrows, felt a strange warm glow within his pocket, he pulled out The Fierce Deity mask.
It was as if it is begging to be worn, generating a warm tingly feeling between his fingers, whereas earlier, just by holding it stings the palm of his hand like those jelly creatures in Jabu-jabu’s belly, Link hesitated before wearing it immediately.
His puny body was transformed instantly into a tall pale man towering his goron form, his weariness is now replaced with a ecstatic sensation. He drew his double helix blade, and struck Majora repeatedly without a beat.
The masks gasped in awe, “Man! Your power is really something else!” Mikau exclaimed before they realized that the fight was finally over
Mikau jumped excitedly as his watched the final fight through Link’s vision. “The kid finally beat that heart container reject to a pulp!”
The masks cheered triumphantly watched the aftermath unfolded through Link’s eyes, Majora screamed in agony as Link struck the final blow to its head between its glowing unblinking yellow eyes before slicing it in half, the moon was shattered into pieces and all of Termina was saved.
“Well done child” Fierce Deity smiled as Link slowly lose his consciousness.