Chapter Text
Donkey Kong was the Spirit Beast of nature and wilderness—meaning that he would be tied closely to natural, animalistic instinct. An ancestral concept passed down through generations of the Kong race.
But something was different about him. It was if... he was just a gorilla who talked.
According to the Heavenly Bureau, his status is "Unknown," but to the portion of the Spectrals who dabble in scientific research, whether through real life or Quests, found him to be a Spirit Beast.
Before his eyes, the most devilish creatures walked in a straight, organized formation. Durants. Large, ant-like creatures with a body of a shiny-gray steel. They contained large, sharp mandibles that looked like they could crunch their way through metal. Not too far off—considering they could cut through rock with ease. On their backs, they carried leaves that matched their size and length, heading towards what Donkey Kong could only assume to be their burrow.
As they passed by, he named them one by one.
“Hmm… Mikey… Spikey… Arnold…”
“WOULD YOU STOP YOUR BABBLING?!”
Uniconera’s words echoed throughout the forest, startling Donkey Kong and leaving him to stare in puzzlement. He could've sworn he felt the ground shake in the face of that shout. “Why so loud?”
There she was, significantly angry looking. “You’re one to talk!”
“I was just naming the Durants!”
“Well, do it somewhere else! People are training here!” She could feel the soul-energy within her going sporadically just from Donkey Kong’s annoyance. It wasn’t anything new, of course.
With shame, Donkey Kong gave one last good look at the Durants before walking away with a pout. I wasn’t even that loud, right?
Then, he heard something else.
A melody that placed the entire forest under a soothing spell—one of which no one wanted to get out of. To Donkey Kong, it was even beyond that. It was nature’s calling. This—he had heard many, many times. His soul lit on fire in its presence.
Well that’s even louder! The source was in his general direction, and in an instant, he had forgotten about the shame. Music spirits, coming in the form of musical notes with endless colors that floated calmly in the air, caught his gaze of amazement. Fully intrigued, he began to walk over towards the sound, and it didn’t take long for him to find the player.
With the pushing away of the bush, his eyes fell upon the Hylian boy playing his ocarina—sitting on a log the same size as the one Donkey Kong had left behind; a streak of sunlight beamed upon the boy, as if the heavens themselves admired him.
No. Nature itself…
Link.
The Tale of Spirits.
Again, he had entered another world. More than a void, as nature was all the more close, but in some sort of paradise with indescribable colors. It felt like forever since he had played a song outdoors.
Eventually, the melody came to an end—but it was obviously not forgotten. There, Donkey Kong stood directly in front of him, sitting on his behind as the music spirits diminished into purple sparkles.
Once his eyes landed on Donkey Kong, Link squinted. “Huh?”
He instantly recognized Donkey Kong as: Wait, he’s that gorilla who disappeared earlier. He doesn’t seem to be too bright.
“Where’d ya learn that?”
Link blinked confusingly. “When did you…”
“This is kinda my home.” Donkey Kong explained. “That tune you were playing really spoke to me.”
“Do you recognize it?”
“Not at all, but I feel some sort of connection.” Donkey Kong said. “Saw a bunch of spirits flying around, heard the song—you get the gist of it.” Huh. Never thought I’d be talking with the new guy. He seemed so… gloomy. “So, your name?”
“I thought you’d know by now.”
“I forget things easily involving humans.” Donkey Kong said, granting him an up-turned palm gesture. “Not really my nature and all.”
“I see.” Link let out an awkward chuckle, scratching the back of his head with closed eyes, unsure of what to say after stating his name—finding what to say. His eyes landed on Donkey Kong again. “I’m Link, Link Hyrulia.” Then, they fell upon his tie. “And you’re…. “D”, “K”?” He inferred, raising a brow as he sounded the letters.
“That’s me!” He raised his hand with a smile. “Stands for Donkey Kong, in case ya don’t know.”
“Right…”
He seems obnoxious. “Well, ‘Donkey Kong’, do you…” He stopped to think for a moment, ultimately coming to—”Like songs?”
“Well, duh!” Donkey Kong answered. “That’s kinda why I came here! Say, I was gonna ask if you could play that tune again? Got something for it!”
“Got something?” Link asked. What could he possibly mean? “What would that be?”
“Hard to explain, honestly!” His vague answer didn't help at all. “It's good, though, trust me! Go ahead—you'll be surprised.”
Whatever it was, Link could only assume it was something foolish, although he ultimately didn't mind. Like Sonic, Link was more fond of him. “Sure thing, but would you mind me playing another version? It isn’t too different from the original—more like a remix, per say.”
“Anything works for me from ya!”
Doing one last double take before fully closing his eyes, Link eventually placed the ocarina to his mouth again—
—and would begin playing the rendition.
Its beginning featured a soft, trembling whisper, as if the wind itself spoke stories through the instrument of clay. At its opening, it suddenly descended into a major breath into the major key, a cascade of tension shooting upwards. The notes shimmered, lingering one heartbeat than expected, like the echoes from the shrilling of wolves in the forest at night’s wake. The air around felt warmer—more soothing. If Link knew how to properly apply soul-energy through his body, the feeling would’ve been even more immense.
High pitched notes came in ever so suddenly as Link’s hands tensed, though the transition was flawless. They spiraled upward, like the distant hawks of spirits who had regrets building up with no release.
But what of Donkey Kong?
As Link became lost in the ethereal sea of music—withiout a pattern or warning—drums began to stir. Its sound resembled the slamming of hands onto a hard structure, hailing from a place not so distant—so primal in nature.
And Link opened his eyes to see an unexpected sight, still playing.
Donkey Kong had…
OBTAINED BONGOS IN FRONT OF HIM OUT OF NOWHERE?!
Their forms resemble that of a barrel. Donkey Kong slammed his hands down upon them in great rhythm, not even paying attention to Link.
He was baffled, trying to stay within that realm deep within the soul, for the song must go on. But too many questions were racing through his head. He expected something foolish, but not this foolish! This is who I’ll be hanging out with for the rest of my life?!
Unbelievable, and yet, as the song continued, the high pitch notes descended where the song had gone near the beginning—at the C scale, the rhythm of the drums acting as the bass that added depth to the background.
Wait a minute…
Perfect synchronization.
This is good…
As the sound of the bongos came crashing down, the notes flared up again at a higher, more rougher pitch. Link was pulled back into the ethereal sea, moving swiftly, not unborthered by the waves—but embracing them. A tremor of fast paced taps from the bongos emerged as the ocarina sped up. It was pure entropy, yet beautiful entropy. Some taps struck just as the notes faded, while the others claimed a dazzling ascent beneath the ocarina's Spectral like tones, either lifting them above the sea, or anchoring down to the water!
It was beyond a mere song—
—It was a conversation!
And the music spirits insisted upon hearing it all the way through, flying high into the air.
The ocarina went a pitch below, the tempo slowing down just as the taps.
And then, the song finished with a defining breath of the ocarina, and a defining slam of both hands onto the bongos. Link opened his eyes again, breathing heavily with excitement and tiredness.
Donkey Kong seemed pleased. “Toldja I got something!”
Link chuckled. “You sure did, huh?” he said, lowering his ocarina. “Never seen those instruments before.”
“Bongos?” Donkey Kong eyed him, “Man, man! You're missing out! These things—” he tapped them in a short rhythm, their sound lower, able to coil small music spirits unseen by Link. “—are the coolest!”
“I can see why, perhaps.” Link nodded, “Though I do consider myself more of a soft instrument player.”
“From the way you were playing those notes I'd never think you were ‘soft.’” Donkey Kong chuckled, “You seemed like a guitar guy the way you were moving.”
“Moving?”
“Yeah! They way you were moving!” Donkey Said confirmed, “Lemme guess, you do it without knowing too?”
“I guess so.” Link rubbed the back of his head with an embarrassed smile.
“Seems like we aren't too much alike then.” All of a sudden, Donkey Kong's tone suddenly… dropped… “But friend, I do have one question for you…”
“And what's that?” Link asked, uneasy by the sudden drop in tone. Donkey Kong would then lean forward, looking considerably more serious.
“What is nature to you?”
An important question, yet easy to answer. Link put the ocarina back into his tunic, leaning forward with a fist to his chin. “The world as we know it—and that alone is what many people take for granted. Nature should be cherished at all costs, because through all of the “bad,” without the Pokémon who aid the world, as well as the spirits who define it—it would all feel empty.”
Then, a memory appeared within Donkey Kong’s mind as his gaze turned to the sky.
I walked with you across the fields as we stole Bananas from that crocodile together happily.
You were there when my bongos broke and you helped fixed them…
You were the one who aided me when I got rejected…
What fell from Donkey Kong’s eyes were… tears?
“Ahh… So you are my long lost brother!”
“??????????”
What.
What in the world did he mean?
Chapter End