A Coming of Age
                                       by Joseph D. Olson

Greetings. I am Vesux. A wizard, and squire of Collon the mallifluent.
The story I am about to tell you reaches beyond any legend you've ever
heard. It surpasses the deeds of and Hylian hero. It even outweights the
Triforce's power. This is a story about realising one's inner self.

The story begins with myself, and my master, Collon walking through the
dangerous graveyard near the King's tomb in Hyrule. Collon was a powerful
man, and a Knight of the Crown. I, myself, studied under Gannondorf
Dragmire for some time, yet found evil to be too unfulfilling. Thieves have
no appeal to me. Thievary is simply an easy way out of life. Returning to
the point, after studying under Gannondorf, I learned many small forms of
magic. The "Life" spell, the "Jump" spell, the "Fairy" spell, many magics
that would probably never be of any real use, save for making my life a bit
easier.

Upon realising that evil simply was not my style, I told Gannondorf that I
was to leave him. He resented this. He needed an heir to his throne, and I
was the one he trusted most among his minions. He locked me in his dungeon,
and left me to die. When Link of Hyrule pieced together the Triforce of
Wisdom, and came to destroy Gannon at Death Mountain, he never found, and
freed me. Gannon's minions after his death, all vanished for a short while.
I know not where to. There was no need to further search Death Mountain,
due to the fact that everything was gone.

Collon on the other hand, still didn't trust Princess Zelda's orders, and
requested that he search Death Mountain anyway. In searching, he found me,
still locked up in a magic bubble created by Gannon. He slashed through the
bubble, and freed me. I have been his squire ever since.

Again, returning to the point, Collon and I were walking through the
graveyard on our way to the hidden town of Katsuto. He made remarks about
how much better the food tasted there than in our home town of Ruto. I did
all but ignore him for I had more pressing matters on my mind at the time.
My race, the Talorkin, must come of age after the first sixteen years of
their life. They are given great power. This was a myth, however, and I had
no idea exactly how or if I was to come of age. The great power which
people spoke of... what did it mean? Would I become omnipotent? Would I
simpy be physically stonger? What exactly would happen to me? How would I
make it happen?

My inquiries were subsided as Collon and I reached Katsuto. We were greeted
by the village Elder, and were given a great banquet in honor of our visit.
Katsuto doesn't get many visitors at all, let alone a Knight of the Crown,
and a wizard squire. The Elder told us of a great plague approaching the
village. He did not know what it meant, but in a dream, he saw apparitions
of men in black cloaks burning the forest Katsuto was hidden in. Collon was
quick to act. Squire! He beckoned me. Go to Hyrule castle, and summon as
many knights as you can without disrupting the flow of order from other
towns. I left without even thinking.

The distance between Katsuto, and Hyrule castle is great, indeed. It would
have taken me hours to reach it by foot, I decided instead, to use the
fairy spell. Upon flying I came upon another sprite. A real one. She lead
me to a small cave. I followed blindly, wondering exactly what was
happening. Only a select few have seen the fairies. The great Link most
definately has, on many occasions, but I... I must admit, I never saw one
before that moment. She flew through the cave, around stalactites, and
stalagmites. She landed, and began to glow. By then, my fairy spell had
worn off, and I had changed back into my normal self. She grew, to almost
double her normal size, then she doubled again, and doubled again. She was
the size of a normal woman. Her wings disappeared, and in their place came
beautiful white robes. She had reddish-blonde hair, and stood nearly six
feet tall, but not quite.

She spoke. "I am Jessica, your guide."

I pondered what she had said. Perhaps this was my Talorkin coming of age. I
introduced myself. "I... am Vesux. A Wizard, and Squire to Collon the
Mallifluous."

She replied. "I know who you are, Vesux. You have been chosen. I must
depart now, but let it be known, you are the one." She leaned in, and
kissed my cheek. She then changed back into a fairy, and flew off. I tried
to run after her, but she was too fast, and I was out of magic power.

I decided to continue my journey to Hyrule castle, and request the aid of
Princess Zelda's knights. No sooner had I left the cave than I began to
tingle. I felt very strange. I felt a pulling sensation. It was as if my
whole body was being thrown onto another plane of existance. I found myself
at Hyrule castle. Shocked, and amazed, I brushed the dust off of my
shoulders, and entered the castle, thinking about what a curious day it had
been.

Within minutes, I had summoned princess Zelda.

"How fare you, Squire?" she asked me.

"Oh, dearest of Princesses, the Town elder of New Katsuto has had visions
of men in black cloaks burning Kitsuto's forest. Sir Collon the Mallifluous
requests that we post some more of our knights at the perimiter."

"I agree," she replied, "but not too many. There have been skirmishes among
the borderlands. We may be going to war soon, and I have guards posted
around the border of Hyrule. Hopefully, I can keep the other towns at bay
while we discuss a peace treaty. You may take Sir Justin with you, he is a
formidable fighter with a long history of victories. You may also take with
you, Sir Glenn. He is a fast runner, and will make a good relay man. And,
if he feels that it is neccesary, you may take Link with you."

I was astonished. "Link?! The hero of hyrule, and I get to meet him!?" I
was so happy I could barely contain myself. "Um... I mean, that would be
okay, m'lady." I will fetch them myself. Thank you for your assistance,
your highness.

I departed to the Knight's barracks, and retrieved Sir Glenn, and Sir
Justin. They were glad to be able to see Katsuto. I instructed them to wait
at the castle's portcullis for me to retrieve link. They did so. I
contemplated what I was going to say to Link when I first met him. Should I
appear honored? Should I treat him as a friend? I had no idea. I arrived at
the door to his quarters, and knocked a few times.

He answered within moments. "Zelda...? Oh, it's you. Hello, Vesux. Why are
you here?"

I did not know what to say. I was honored that he even knew my name. "Sir
Collon the Mallifluous, Sir Glenn, Sir Justin, and I are all to protect the
town of Katsuto. The elder has seen visions of men in black cloaks burning
the surrounding forests. Princess Zelda has told me that if you see it fit,
you could help us as well."

He looked as if he gave the notion some serious thought. "Well, I do
suppose the people of Katsuto needing my help again is important, but I
don't want the Princess to be alone in trying to prevent war."

I was disappointed, but slightly relieved. "Well, Link, that's not a
problem, I suppose. You stay here. They probably need you more."

He appeared to be very resentful at my comment. "I never said no, Vesux. I
said I didn't want Zelda to be alone. I'll tell Impa to give Zelda some
extra attention. Let's go."

We met Sir Justin, and Sir Glenn at the portcullis, and departed for
Katsuto, this time, on horseback. We arrived there within ten minutes. Not
bad for such a long walk. I'm glad we had horses.

Upon arriving at Katsuto, Link, Justin, and Glenn dismounted, and entered
town. They, along with Sir Collon, sized up the situation. I did not know
what to do next. My experience with Jessica had left me very confused. Just
as my thoughts had wondered farther than the moon, a black expance opened
before me. A gateway. I looked through it, and saw nothing but a starry
black gateway. I stuck my hand inside, just to see what would happen. There
was a bright flash, accompanied by a high pitched blinking sound. I pulled
my hand back out, in shock. I decided that I shouldn't enter the gate, for
I did not know what lay on the other side. My thoughts were in vein,
however, as at that moment, I tripped over a rock, and fell in. It took me
to a strange dark place, with a stars flowing diagonally. I knew not what
to do to get home. Before I could worry any more, Jessica appeared before
me.

"Hello again," she said with a grin.

"Please don't run off this time, Jessica," I pleaded to her, "there's so
much I want to know."

She looked bewildered. "All in good time, Vesux. I have opened the gate,
and brought you here, to the astral plane to help you in starting your
coming of age. Strange things shall begin to happen to you soon, if they
have not happened already. You will soon begin to reach places you've only
dreamed of in the past. You may even alter time to see your ancestors.
Unfortunately, the Talorkin may only choose a few powers from this
proverbial 'list'."

I was both excited, and nervous. "When will I choose these powers? Who sent
you here?"

She grew to her large size again. "You shall know when the time has come to
choose. As for who sent me... nobody did. I am a sprite of Talorka. We are
basically Talorkin females. As you may have noticed, you are one of the
only three Talorkin left in Hyrule. Our race is classified by it's slightly
Hylian looking ears, and a crest on the left hand. This crest is nothing
like the crest of the hero of Hyrule. It is a red circle, with a smaller
circle within it, and a gold weave pattern around the two."

I looked at my left hand, knowing well that I would not find anything.
"But... I don't have the crest."

"You will, Vesux."

I had to try very hard to take all of this information in. My adopted
parents (I am an orphan) had told me that I was from Talorka, but did not
say how it was that they knew. Until then, I thought Talorka was not a real
place.

"I'm sure you're wondering more about me." It was an understatement. I
really was wondering an awful lot about her. "The Sprites of Talorka must
choose a male Talorkin to assist in reaching the coming of age. I have
chosen you. You possess strengths that normal men would dream of having
even now, before your coming of age. I shall bid thee farewell, Vesux.
Worry not. I shall return."

She kissed me, and pointed to a gap in the stars. I walked toward it. When
I turned around to ask her when she would return, she was gone. As I
opproached the gap in the stars, another black gate opened. I assumed it
would take me back to Katsuto. It did.

I arrived only seconds after I had left. Appearently, time has no meaning
on the Astral plane. I hurried to catch up with Link, and the other
knights. I was anxious to assist in defending Katsuto. I did like the town.
Sir Glenn stood, listening to a peddler play the ocarina, and another
played the lute. He looked nearly mesmorised. Link called forth his Fairy
of protection, Neeves. She had no new information reguarding the men in
black cloaks, and he soon sent her away. Sir Justin stood, jousting with
the local strongmen. Few of them were able to best him in speed, and none
were able to best him in combat. I, on the other hand, wished to be alone.
I sought out the local sorceress, and she helped me to regain my magic
power. I used the jump spell to gain access to the rooftops.

I sat. I did not draw, or write. I simply sat. With my hand to my chin, I
pondered this wonderous turn of events. I was also, indeed, inchanted by
Jessica. She was beautiful, she was obviously vastly intelligent, and she
knew more about me than I ever could.

My thoughts were interupted. A black sphere appeared on the main road of
the town. It grew tenfold to its original size. A woman in a black cloak
appeared. The sphere vanished.

"Guard thy town well," she hissed. "Soon, my bretheren, the Society of
Mandarins shall attack."

Another black orb appeared. She vanished in its midst. I stood, awestruck.
It was at that moment I deducted that the Society of Mandarins were the men
in black cloaks the prophets spoke of. Why would this woman give us fair
warning to their attack? Why would they even attack Katsuto? It was a
practically useless town, save for it's location in the forest.

There was much I needed to know at this point, however I had no relyable
source to get it. Jessica had yet to show up again, and I was uncertain as
to where she actually resided. Nobody in Hyrule could even consider telling
me where Talorka was, or if it even existed. Well, I knew then that it did,
yet something told me that there was much I still did not know about it. I
grew angry. Something inside me told me to cause pain. In a fit of anger, I
crushed a peddler's cart. I grew with a strange red aura. I raised my arms
to the sky. Flashes of light flew from my fingers to the air. I was
invincible. Nothing could stop me from destroying the Society of Mandarins!
But just then, I realised what I had done. I looked to my side. Seeing the
peddler's cart I had crushed, the pomigranites he was selling were spilled
all over the street. I was still glowing. Everybody was staring at me. I
looked at the pomigranites. They began to levitate. I looked to the cart.
It was immediately repaired. The pomigranites positioned themselves back in
the cart. The entire town stood, awestruck. I stared at my hands in
amazement.

Link opproached me. "How did you do that?"

Collon followed, bragging to his newly found friends that I was his squire.
Sir Justin, and Sir Glenn soon arrived as well, interrogating me as to how
I was able to pull off such mystical feats. I did not know. Just then, I
looked down at my hand, and saw the crest of which Jessica had spoken.

A few hours later, after the excitement had ended, I was alone in a stable.
Pondering this wonderous newfound power. It seemed nothing could harm me
when I was in that state. I was powerful. It did not feel like magic in the
slightest. Magic is draining, and cumbersome. This was energising, and
exciting. It was as if the red light surrounding me was giving me energy,
and when I shot flashes into the air, I was gaining even more.

Another black gate opened before me. I knew Jessica was calling me again. I
entered it. I arrived, just as expected, at the same platform on the Astral
plane I had visited before. Problem was, Jessica was not there. I didn't
exactly know what to do. The gate had opened, and I simply assumed I was
supposed to enter it. Only nothing was here. I walked to the other side of
the platform, and looked over the edge. The scrolling starfield was
intruiging. I thought to myself, just how much I would like those stars to
stop moving, so I could get a better look at them. They slowed, and then
stopped. I shook my head in misbelief. Unknowingly, I was in control of
this so-called Astral plane. I ran back to where the gate had left me.
Another did not open. It was then that I realised I was stuck. No matter
how I looked at it, I was stuck here until Jessica would come to call me
again. My fear got the worst of me. I envisioned hands grabbing me from
below. And, due to the fact that I controlled this particular portion of
the Astral plane, they bagan to. I kicked them away at first, but it became
increasingly difficult. One tripped me. I fell off of the platform. I
screamed as I fell closer, and closer to my death. I knew damn well that
there was no bottom to the accursed Astral plane, yet the sensation of
falling was very frigtening. A gate opened nearly a quarter of a mile below
me. I aimed my body to it. It felt like flying. I fell through the gate
expecting to see the warm, welcoming visions of New Katsuto. I did not. I
arrived at a purple mountain. The sky was a reddish color, and I, myself,
looked a bit bigger. A ball of light appeared on the horizon. It grew
closer, and closer by the second. It appeared before me. With a flash, it
changed to a fairy. That fairy grew double in size again, and again. It was
Jessica!

"How is it that you have come here?" she asked me. "I have not opened any
gates in your dimension, and there are no other Talorkins in Hyrule. No
gates should be opened in your dimension!"

I looked at her, puzzled as she did the same to me. "Dimension? What do you
mean?"

She sighed before responding. "There are many more than two dimensions,
Vesux. The Light and Dark Worlds were the first, and only worlds
discovered. The Astral plane is a sort of connecting point between all
dimensions. You must be increasing in power very rapidly if you were able
to open a gate yourself."

She noticed me looking around in confusion. "Well, Vesux, it seems you have
found Talorka. Civilisation is approximately six hundred billion miles to
the north."

"What?" I asked her. "How were you able to get here so fast?"

She looked almost annoyed, yet very sensuous. "Talorkins, and Sprites of
Talorka, such as myself, have a certain means of transportation. She glew,
and shrank. Her body became a small glowing ball again. She floated near my
ear, then to my eye, then down to my feet. She became her normal self
again. "You see? We can move at speeds much greater than any animal, and
are more intelligent than any Hyrulian. We are nearly omnipotent... were...
nearly... omnipotent."

"Why are we not now?" I asked.

"Talorka is dying. We have watched over Hyrule for centuries. We witnessed
the Imprisoning War, the many, many generations of different men named
Link, and different Princesses named Zelda. You were brought to Hyrule at a
very young age, my love."

She called me her love. My heart raced...

"Your parents were among many that died in a war which we choose to call
the War of Greed. The Talorkin sprites wished not to assist in the coming
of age. This angered the Talorkin males. Then a war broke out between the
males, and the females; the sprites. This war still goes on as we speak.
Talorka needs two saviors. Two committed Talorkins to set an example for
the rest. I sought out the only Talorkin who was not perverted by greed,
and envy."

I knew immediately what she was getting at. "Me?" I asked her. Her only
reply was a nod.

Jessica and I speant hours together. She taught me how to control my
powers. To construct, as well as destruct. To kill, as well as to birth. I
was truely a Talorkin. Hours later, I opened a gate to Katsuto, and bid
Jessica farewell. My coming of age was complete. I returned to Katsuto to
face my destiny... to destroy the Society of Mandarins. This was the last
test before I could face the War of Greed. Many Talorkin instincts came to
me. Memories of ancestors. My parents...

I banished my thoughts of Talorka. The thoughts of its beauty, and
Jessica's. I decided instead, to consentrate on being loyal to Collon for
the time being. I entered the makeshift officer's barracks. Sir Glenn, and
Sir Justin practiced their swordsmanship. Link was staring deeply into
nothingness while Neeves, his fairy, tried again, and again to get his
attention. Collon, on the other hand, was being productive. He formulated
battle strategies. Pondered every possible situation the Society of
Mandarins could throw at us. And every way he looked at it, we would lose.

"Vesux. We can't win. Katsuto will be taken. All of Hyrule is nearly at war
with the Borderlands. Even Catalina, Link's home country bears us a threat.
Something is amiss. What has Hyrule done to anger so many people? They
continue to yell ubsurd thing like 'Give him to us!', and 'We know you have
him!' Who could they be talking about?"

They knew. They knew about me. They know about Talorkins. Why do they know,
and not Hyrule? I decided not to dwell on these events. I picked up a large
rock from the dirt covered innards of our barracks. I looked to Collon.

"We will succeed."

I promptly crushed the rock in my hand, and threw the pieces behind me.

     To be continued...