Written in Blood

XXVI . A haunted wasteland

I don't know what I expected would change about this place. It's a desolate and devoid of life as I remember. Of course, there's the gang of bombchus that run free on the path up to the canyon.

The fences are also still there, but both of us manage to get over them. It was impossible when I was younger, only doable with Epona, but that's not the case anymore. Now that I think about it, the fact that Epona made it in and then out of Termina is a feat within itself.

The night's just beginning, and the sky continues to darken as we head up the dusty path through the mountains in the lower part of the canyon. I can already see the bubbles, winged skeletal heads with a blue glow around them, appear along the trail. They're nuisances, plain and simple. Their "curse" just prevents the use of a weapon. It's pathetic.

We're almost to the fork in the road when one of the brainless skulls finally decides to come after us. There's a cackling noise coming from it as it rushes on it's small, keese-like wings at us. I've got enough time to pull my shield out, which the bubble proceeds to crash into, falling to the ground.

While I pull out my sword to finish it, it hops around helplessly on the ground, completely and utterly vulnerable. It's almost sad how a bunch of pushovers these guys are. Even more so than stalfos.

It gets over to the wall, and I use the opportunity to corner it against the sheer rock walls, slashing straight down on top of its head before it can regain its wings and power. The sword gets through the ancient bone, and the bubble stops moving. The rest of the bone just lies there, already somewhat deteriorated.

I get my weapons back on my back and nod over to the princess as we continue on.

There's one more hurdle that we get up over and then we're in a wider space than the rest of the narrow road to Ikana. The opening on the left will lead to the graveyard, which I have no doubt is infested with stalchildren at this hour. Even though they are long dead, they still think they're soldiers, guarding the graves, unable to move on to death. In a way, it's almost a morbid and pathetic analogy to me. I've already gone to this land, Termina, and yet I'm unable to move on from those ghosts of the past. I am just as disillusioned and lost as the roaming spirits of Ikana Canyon.

We're going forward though, deeper into the land of the dead. I just hope the Gerudo weren't following us.

The ledge to continue onward looms high above my head, and I can see the Poe Collector once again sitting on the edge, waving his staff (stick?) around beside him.

His glowing red dot of an eye pierced through the darkness under his purple hood and he's still in his tattered white robe. Pale and almost skeletal legs dangle off the edge.

"What are you doing here? Ones of such life have no place in the land of the dead. Ikana hill is place where lost spirits wander and regrets linger, they look for one who could save their sou-"

"- Yeah, yeah, cut the spiel buddy. I've heard your story before, can you let us up?"

It's red eye glowers down at me, angry that I cut off his little speech.

"Only one with the mask containing wandering spirits can enter Ikana." Geez... his voice is all snarky now.

Of course I know what he's talking about, the Garo's mask. I remember having to trek all the way back to Milk Road and race Ingo's twin, in looks and personality. There's a trio Ingos in Termina, which is three too many in my opinion. The mask has the same two bleak dots for eyes, in a sea of blackness and the brown hood. But I gave all my masks to the lunar children in the moon. There's no way I can pop back in and ask to borrow it for a quick sec.