Here's another chapter for you all. This one is where the horror ramps up a bit more. Enjoy!
-Jooostan
A Terminian and the Twilight of Danger
Chapter 10: Dreams Are A Fickle Thing
Terror and chaos. That's all that swarmed the Gerudo's mind as she and her cohorts fled from Gerudo Valley. Entering Hyrule Field, she searched around frantically for the right direction. Where Castle Town might lie.
She spotted the drawbridge. The morning light beamed down onto the top of the gate, slowly making its way downward as the sun rose to greet the new day.
"This way!" She screamed to her two friends.
They quickly caught up with her and the three continued to run. The image of the open drawbridge grew closer and closer, but so did the large shadow that was chasing them. They didn't need to see that the shadow had no source to know what it was.
One of the shadow's limbs rose from the ground and appeared as a physical object. From the tip it fired a dark beam of energy at the trio it was pursuing. It struck the ground and set the grass ablaze. It fired again, getting closer to hitting its escapees. After a third time, the rightmost Gerudo had her leg pierced with what it fired.
"Kyojin!" The lead Gerudo heard the yelp of pain her friend made when she was struck.
"I-I'm fine, we need to go!" Kyojin replied, her voice uneasy.
"Ante! Help Kyojin!" The lead barked orders at her companion, and the two helped the third up by supporting her shoulders.
The group was significantly slower now, and the shadow grew ever closer to reaching them. What it'd do if it caught them was unknown, but none wanted to find out.
They were just a couple dozen meters from the drawbridge now. Almost to safety. The sound of warbled energy whizzed past the trio of Gerudo as they hastily ran. The shadow revealed more of itself, albeit lacking a true form. It only appeared as a large mass of darkness, features barely distinguishable. All one could really tell was that it was round. Not the best in terms of helping.
Ante's legs were starting to tire, but she kept on running.
"I don't think this is going to work!" Kyojin said with sorrow. She looked back at stared in horror as the amorphous blob of black suddenly grew an eye.
When the leftmost Gerudo looked at the mass in the eye, her face went pale. The others didn't know what was happening, but what she saw nearly petrified her.
"Almost there! Flavi! See if you can flag anyone down!" Ante pleaded.
Flavi was brought back to reality and looked at the entrance to Castle Town. There wasn't anyone awake, not even the guard who lowered the bridge just a few minutes before. Lousy stiff.
Suddenly, a distant figure came into view. Their green attire stood out from the beige and grey colors of everything else around them. Flavi hollered as loud as she could to get their attention.
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Link had just woken up. He wanted to get out of the house for some fresh air. First day back in Hyrule after his weekend in Termina. Yawning and stretching his arms upward, he moseyed around town before seeing something in the distance, just outside the gate.
All it looked like was some small dots. They grew larger and larger, and Link realized they were people. People running. Running away from something unknown, but they seemed to be in a panic.
Link started walking towards them. When a large, dark sphere entered his line of sight, he picked up his pace. Breaking out into a full-on sprint, he inwardly thanked himself deciding to put his gear on earlier in the morning. He met up with the group right in front of the Guard House.
"What is it, what's wrong?" Link asked, helping the Gerudo on the right keep her balance.
"That!" Kyojin screamed, pointing back at the being that was behind them.
Link was able to make out that whatever was chasing the three wasn't their friend.
"Go, go! Get to safety!" Link ordered, getting the trio away from danger and further into town. He unsheathed his sword and stood at the ready.
As the blob neared, he elected to just charge at it now. He didn't know what it was, or where it came from, but he had to distract it long enough for the others to get away and get some kind of backup.
Swinging his blade directly at the body of whatever he was fighting, Link was caught off guard when the Gilded Sword sailed straight through the mass of darkness and didn't have any kind of effect. Falling to the ground, the darkness stopped its pursuit of the Gerudo and turned towards Link. Luckily, Link didn't look at it in the eye. Backing away from the thing, he weighed his options.
At last, the lazy guard on the turret above woke up to all the commotion that was going on. He didn't have time to think, as when he saw the Defender of Faith on the ground, facing something unknown, he called for help.
Link got to his feet and reached for his bow. If Gomess taught him anything, a shadow didn't take too well to the power of light. He retrieved a light arrow and fired without delay.
The light plowed through the darkness and a loud screech was heard, coming from an unseen source. A piece of shadow broke off from the main mass and landed in the grass nearby. The being comprised of chaos retracted into the ground, reverting into its shadow form and fleeing.
Link ran to the grass and searched around for a moment. There, he saw what he was looking for. A slice of darkness no bigger than a snowball. He took out a bottle and scooped it up, closing the lid and keeping it trapped. He turned his head back towards the source and watched as it faded from view. Link considered following it, but he heard the sound of armor rattling and footsteps approaching. He groaned.
Sheathing his sword, Link turned around and looked at the incoming squad of soldiers with a frown. The group stopped once they were just a few feet away from the hero.
"You're a little late," Link said, crossing his arms. He didn't give them any time to respond, and he started to walk back to town, pushing through them.
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"You have to believe us! That... thing is not natural! It doesn't belong..." Flavi pleaded to Zelda but couldn't finish her final sentence. The princess agreed to meet the trio of Gerudo after being told what happened, and from what it sounded like, they were desperate.
"I'm not saying I don't believe you, just we don't exactly know what this thing is." Zelda remained calm.
Link stood in the doorway to the King's chamber, musing about the mysterious little thing stuck in a bottle in the bottom of his bag. It reminded him of Black Boe he came across in the Woodfall temple, but it was a bit smaller and lacked any eyes. He didn't have a clue what to do with it. It didn't seem dangerous, at least not at the moment. He lost his train of thought when Zelda addressed him.
"Link!" Zelda repeated.
"Hm? Oh, yeah?" Link blinked once and stood straight.
"Could you escort Flavi back to town and see that her and her cohorts are taken care of?" Zelda looked at Link sternly. He nodded and turned to leave.
He was stopped by the princess.
"Link, I would also like to add..." Zelda began, standing up from her chair. She beckoned the boy to her and he did as he was instructed.
"Kneel, please." Zelda asked politely, not wanting to make her tone sound rude.
Link kneeled, and Zelda stepped down the small set of stairs and stood before the hero. The extended her arm and placed her hand on his shoulders one at a time.
"My father wanted to grant something to you. Full permission to the use of your sword. Our guards reported on how proficiently you handled the thing that was chasing those women." Once Zelda finished Link's 'promotion', she smiled.
Link only did the same and gave a nod of farewell before leaving with Flavi. As soon as the boy turned around, Zelda's smile went away. She hoped she could redeem herself for what she put him through before.
The entire walk back was silent, all except for the vague mutterings coming from Flavi. It was mostly incoherent, but it concerned Link. She seemed to have closed herself off and held her hands by her stomach, like she was too afraid to let her own arms relax.
When the pair got back, Link couldn't get his friends to let him think.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Navi asked again.
"Yes, Navi, I'm fine." Link assured her.
"You better not be lying to us!" Tatl said, arms crossed. The expression on her face told Link that she couldn't be more serious. Those two fairies seemed to be spending a lot more time together.
Every time Link wanted to reach into his bag and fish out the bottle, he was interrupted by another question from his friends. He knew they cared, but a part of him was eternally interested in what exactly the living shadow was.
"You want a snack, honey?" Anju asked from the kitchen. Link shook his head and slumped down on the couch. He didn't even notice Skull Kid taking a seat next to him.
"Everything okay?" Skull Kid said, almost in a whisper.
"Mhm. I'm just thinking." Link was staring off into space. It lasted a while.
"You know if there's anything you need to talk about, we're all here." Skull Kid said, putting his arm around Link's shoulder.
"I know."
For a while they sat there, thinking about separate things. Link's mind wandered to the Gerudo refugees.
"Come on, let's go see those three." Link stood up.
"Huh? Me?" Skull Kid looked around, unsure if his friend was referring to someone else.
"Of course, you. We barely get to do much together." Link smiled and held his hand out for the imp to take.
He reached out and took Link's hand, and they set off. When they got to the house in the back alley where the ladies were being taken care of, they waited patiently after knocking.
"Hello Link." The woman who answered the door looked a little familiar to Link. It was that lady who had lost her poor little dog, Richard, all those years ago.
"And... who is...?" She was taken aback slightly by Skull Kid for a second, but she regained composure and properly addressed them.
"I guess you're here to see how they're doing?"
"Yes ma'am." Link said, giving a small nod. Skull Kid followed his gesture.
The lady let the two in and they saw the Gerudo women. They all rested on whatever they could, their hearts still beating like mad. The teen looked over the three and saw that one of them was wounded.
"You mind I take a look at that?" Link asked.
Kyojin just nodded and extended her leg. Carefully taking it, Link reached into his bag and pulled out the Ocarina of Time. The woman stared with wonder as he adjusted his position and prepared to play something.
Without a word, Link played the Song of Healing. The magic activated, and images of comfort and healing surrounded the boy. Kyojin recoiled slightly when her wound started to seal up. As it finished, Link gently got up and let her rest again.
"Thanks..." she said. The teen just smiled and gave her some space.
"How long have they been like this?" Link whispered to the caretaker as he stood by her side again.
"Ever since they got here..."
Neither noticed how Skull Kid was gazing at the trio. The faces they wore, their eyes, everything was making the imp's inner gears turn in a way that filled him with dread.
"I know that look..." Skull Kid mumbled. Link and the lady turned their heads towards him.
"What do you mean?" Link asked.
"The one on the couch," Skull Kid pointed to Flavi. "Her mind is lost."
Link looked back to Flavi. Her face was pale, her hand was to her heart, and she stared at the ceiling with a cloudy glint in her eyes. She was almost completely different compared to how Link saw her just half an hour before. Now just wearing a look that conveyed that she didn't seem to be aware of her surroundings.
"When someone sees into the eye of something magical that they can't understand, they get lost in it. The same..." Skull Kid stopped, and he removed his mask. "...happened with me. When I first looked at Ma-"
Link knew what he was talking about. The imp wouldn't dare invoke the name of that mask. Not after all this time. Even if her soul had been cleansed, Skull Kid never wanted to say her name.
Then Skull Kid got lost for a moment. He thought about when he ambushed the poor salesman. Rummaging around in his belongings until he found that accursed item. How it hypnotized him and took control played in his head. He snapped out of it when Link came into his field of view.
"Hey..." Link said, his words soothing. "Don't worry about that."
"A-Alright..." Skull Kid mumbled.
"Well, be sure to tell us if anything comes up. I think we should leave them be for now." Link said. The pair left, and the woman continued to look after the Gerudo.
"So, what do you think?" Skull Kid asked during the walk back to the house.
"I'm not sure. I've only really felt 'lost' like how you said once before." Such a dirty lie. Link was felt that way many, many times. When he first faced Ganondorf on the bridge as a child, when he witnessed Majora come to life while in her lair, when Gomess reappeared, and more.
That kind of feeling was almost too familiar with the hero, but he forced himself to not think about it for most of the day. Even during dinner, he fought the urge to go up to his room and inspect the glass jar. Such an urge would only grow stronger as the day delved into the night.
Hours later, Link was still awake, sitting atop his bed. He held the bottle containing the orb of shadow in his lap. Not much activity now. He remembered it moved on occasion, but now it was almost lifeless.
Putting the glass onto the desk across from his bed, Link laid down on the mattress and slowly drifted off to sleep.
However, the moment he began to snore, the bottle on the desk shook. It did so once, then again, and again. The matter within pushed against the wall of the bottle, and it eventually teetered off the desk and fell to the floor with a clunk. It didn't crack, thankfully, but it slowly rolled over to the foot of Link's bed.
There, it got started. It wasn't as effective as it could be due to its size, but it could work with that it had.
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The first thing Link saw was himself. His sleeves. Black, with fine cuffs just where his hands were. He was wearing a modified tunic. Far more formal than what he was used to.
Walking into the Milk Bar, Link rubbed his chin, the stubble along the bottom making him feel a little self-conscious about his appearance. He wished he taken better time to shave like how Kafei taught him.
Descending down the steps, Link saw the Gerudo woman he was supposed to meet. Her dress was just lovely, but he took care in keeping his musings about her noble. The ring on his left hand reminded him of who he had the honor of being married to.
"Hello. You must be Riju, correct?" Link smiled as he sat down on the stool next to the woman. He extended his hand for her to shake, and she gladly did so. "My name is-"
"Link, Defender of Faith." Riju stated before Link could finish his sentence. Her ditzy, yet snarky smile rubbed Link the wrong way a bit, but his expression didn't waver.
"No need for introductions, Mr. Dotour. I'm already well familiar with you." Riju turned towards Mr. Barten and proved just how right she was.
"For the man, a glass of Chateau Romani, stirred lightly with ice."
Link took her knowledge of him as a challenge. There was a small impulsive sense he had to counter her, and it won out against his usual gentlemanly style.
"And for the lady, a Fairy Tonic, with a hint of Haste Elixir." Link smiled.
"Well done." Riju commented, waiting for their drinks.
Once the drinks arrived, Riju decided to take it one step further.
"Link Dotour. Adopted son of Anju and Kafei Dotour. True parents lost to time." Link flinched at the mention of his 'true parents'. How on earth did she know about that?
"Granted permission to the sword by both the King of Hyrule and the Mayor of Clock Town. Has used this privilege on many occasions." Riju was starting to push it. She took another swing of her tonic but still continued.
"At times a little careless. Seems to have grown slightly reckless when it comes to certain assignments."
Link grew more and more frustrated at the condescending tone of this woman's voice. Her comments on his cavalier attitude towards life were starting to peeve him, alongside the statements about his history that she should have no knowledge of.
"Many, many companions, but only really interacts with a certain group of people. Friend killed by-" Now this woman had taken it a little too far. Link's eyes lowered, and he turned to face her.
"Alright, you've made your point." Link interrupted in an authoritative tone, looking her dead in the eyes.
The foreign look of hate in Link's eyes startled Riju. The usual snarky smirk on her face vanished, and she adjusted her posture to become more serious. She didn't expect to even get a reaction from the man across from her, let alone seemingly getting on his nerves. Not knowing what to say, she formed a slight stutter.
"Y-You're sensitive, Link..."
"About a certain number of things, yes," said Link, putting the glass in his hand down. "And I'd prefer if they'd stay private."
Link stood up and straightened his tunic. He didn't give Riju any time to react to his statement as he prepared to leave. Before he left, he wore a strained smile and leaned a little closer to her.
"You don't mind the bill, do you?"
Link left the bar, not looking back. His faux smile disappeared as soon as he knew he was out of her line of sight, replaced by a tired scowl. He looked at the clock on the wall and narrowed down just how much time he wasted talking to that woman.
"Bitch..." he mumbled under his breath. Then everything became hazy.
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Link awoke with a start. He looked around. He was right back in bed.
That dream was... different.
Link inspected himself. Plain white shirt, gear in the corner, still in his bedroom. Dawn was just starting to flood the room. This time he had the window closed so he wouldn't get blinded. Hopping out of bed, he didn't notice the bottle that lay under the frame.
For a while Link sat alone, thinking. That dream was far too real. The drink was just how he preferred Chateau Romani. The tunic was one he recognized. The name 'Riju' felt oddly familiar. What shook him the most is what the woman in his dream seemed to be aware of something that he wasn't. At least not at the present. A chill crept down his spine and he shuddered.
The first few hours of the day were troubling. Link's thoughts were swarmed with the details of his dream. While he was washing up in the bathroom, he thought he could see his reflection looking at him. Each time he gave the mirror attention, it was perfectly normal.
He couldn't get rid of the feeling that eyes were preying upon him. Some memories of the Garo came back.
"Romani." Link asked his girlfriend, who was sitting on a stool by the top window, looking out onto the town.
"Do you ever feel like you're being watched?"
Romani was puzzled. "No, why, Grasshopper?"
"N-Nothing, just I feel like... something's not right." Link's words were quiet, and he kept fiddling with his belt.
After getting only a shrug from Romani, Link went back to his room. The glass bottle was back on the desk. Taking a seat, he stared at the jar for a bit. It just sat normally, the strange blob inside twitching at times. The way it seemed to be aware of itself and its surroundings mystified Link, as when he reached out to tap the glass, it retreated.
Then it lurched. It snapped forward like a viper going after prey. Making the bottle shake, Link backed away, eyes wide. He stared it down for a moment. It only acted once, but the boy waited to see if it would do anything else. It lasted a while until he decided to put it in his item bag and leave the house, bag in hand.
Back at the house where the Gerudo were staying, Link tried to talk to Flavi.
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"Could you say that again?" Link asked for the third time. The poor woman was still speaking in mumbles. Her eyes were still glassy and seemed trained on something that wasn't there.
"L-Link, we appreciate the concern, but me and Kyojin have been trying to get through to her for hours. I'm not sure what else can be done." Ante stood next to the teen in green.
Putting his hand to his chin, Link thought about if there was really anything he could do. The only idea he had was the item in his bag. Reaching into the sack, he pulled out the jar containing the bizarre bug.
The moment Flavi saw the bottle, her eyes narrowed, and she started to panic.
"Get that away!" Flavi screamed, leaping from the chair she sat in and ducking behind it.
Kyojin and the woman taking care of the three stood up and shared the same expression Link and Ante did. Pure, unfiltered confusion. It was only a bottle, right?
"F-Flavi?" Kyojin stuttered, not recognizing the look on her friends' face.
"That. That's the thing I warned the princess about!" Flavi barked, bearing her teeth and acting almost feral.
"This?" Link gazed at the bottle.
"Yes!"
Suddenly, the bottle shook violently. The creature went wild, slamming itself onto the walls of the glass. The vibration made Link's hand slip, and he nearly dropped the jar onto the floor. Keep a firm grip on the item, Link looked back at the fearful Gerudo. Her eyes conveyed something he was familiar with.
"What's making you afraid of this?" Link asked.
"I-It's what it showed me..." Flavi said, averting her eyes.
"What did it show you?"
"See for yourself..." Flavi's voice became deep for a second. She shakily pointed to the shadow contained within the jar.
Staring into the bottle, Link didn't know what to expect. The shaking stopped and the darkness sat still.
Then, it grew an eye.
Its entire body morphed from a pitch black to a golden-yellow. Something had changed, and deep within the temple where the source of the matter was being held, it changed too. The darkness creeping along its body was shed and blasted away by its captors, ready to be replaced by a fresh wave of magic in due time.
Meanwhile, for the little piece of mysterious matter that was separated from the rest, it became independent. Its sclera was still dark, but the iris and pupil became a hideous yellow. Fangs surrounded the eyeball, appearing almost like a toothy maw. Small, thin appendages sprouted from its back, and it seemed to be the spitting image of what it came from.
Once its transformation was complete, a shrill ringing emanated from the bottle and Link's ears felt like they were being assaulted. He slammed his eyes shut and reeled back in pain. The thing was sending him a message, something from the depths of the hive its mind occupied.
Everyone else covered their ears except for Flavi. The noise didn't even seem to affect her. Link's eyes rolled to the back of his head and his jaw began to hang open. His grip on the bottle loosened and it shattered on the floor. As soon as the thing was free, it zipped across the room and crashed through the small window and out of town.
Link was still left paralyzed for a second before his eyes returned to normal and his legs gave out.
Flavi came to her senses and helped Link up. He was left panting, somehow out of breath. The others removed their hands from their heads once they realized the sound was over at last.
"Wh-What on earth happened?!" Kyojin bellowed.
"It- sh-showed me..." Link told, unsure how to explain it.
"I saw... its memories." Link said between breaths. His combed his fingers through his hair to get them out of his face, the sweat making it stick. "I saw what it was planning to do."
"It's not the only one."
Ante, Kyojin, and the caretaker drew a little closer to Link, somewhat curious on what exactly happened. Flavi didn't need the explanation. She knew what the boy saw.
"It's entire species..." Link's heart was still beating wildly. The image of hundreds of dark specs flying around in a space in vibrant color and sound was burned into his mind. "...they're like locusts."
"A plague. They invade worlds, going from place to place, consuming happiness and light and then moving on." His face was as pale as Flavi's was.
Link knew why she was nearly comatose now. When he, a person with terrible knowledge of things far bigger than him, had trouble comprehending what he saw, he couldn't imagine how it made her feel. It struck fear into his soul.
"But this one... this one was taken. Someone... brought it here." Link muttered; his words were noticeably quieter than the ones before. "Even it doesn't want to be here."
Link's thoughts went straight to the Thunderbird. The look of confusion it wore, the bead he detached from its neck, its sudden passiveness. Zelda told him that it was identified as a jewel infused with a special kind of magic.
Link finally realized the bottle was no longer in his hands. He looked down and saw the shards of glass scattered along the floor. His eyes went straight for any exits. The broken window was all he needed to see to start running.
Bursting through the door, Link bolted as fast as he could to the drawbridge. No sign of his little friend. Squinting his eyes, he scanned all the scenery. When Kyojin, Flavi, and Ante caught up with him, he was still looking for the creature.
"It's gone." Link felt defeated.
"Well, now what?" Ante asked.
She didn't receive any response. The hero just lowered his head and started to think. The pictures he saw in his head were front and center, revolving around his train of thought endlessly. The dream he had and how it was likely concocted by the thing in the bottle shook him to his core.
"I don't know," Link finally said, turning back to head into town. "But we may need to prepare for something big. I have a feeling it's coming back. Bigger, this time."
Link went back into town, and the three Gerudo were left alone. After a while, they each grew the silent resolve to try their best to help the Defender of Faith. Both for the good of their own people and the people of Hyrule. Whatever it was they were facing, it didn't just pose a threat to only the Gerudo.
All that night, Link didn't get an ounce of sleep. He stood guard out by the gate, gear strapped to him. Even as the fellow atop the turret snored, he was awake. How long he would need to stay awake, he didn't know.