9…whoa, me brain must be on something if I thought up of this chapter so quickly…some asked for more description so let's hope this is alright.
Disclaimer- If only…
A/N: First part is a bit trippy….almost a side mission thing, but it's to link into the story soon enough.
Harbinger of Peace
Outside the Twilight Palace walls, whoever wasn't a member or dweller of the grand building was oblivious the idea of any invasion or trouble. Ever since Zant was defeated and Midna once again returned to her rightful throne, recovery was immediately called for, to both the kingdom and the people who were cursed. Though it was an arduous and time stealing series of events, there was no denying it was worth it.
The Twili go on about their normal ways of living once more as they can step out without absolute fear of the usurper's return, as they were reassured by the ruler herself he wasn't to return. Among the smaller villages was a small pub to which travelers far and near would be able to have a drink or two at good prices and flexible in accepting different currencies should they be present.
Sitting right outside there was sometimes a cloaked man who remained sitting on bench, head to toe in the black garment and the only think truly standing out from such was a mask upon his face; a simple grey mask with two slits for eyes that could not be seen, no expression to be made out. To the Twili around and the bar behind him, he was merely known as the Greeting Man, as greeting others and welcoming travelers in is what he did best. He would even occasionally take a trip to the bar itself to have a round, though even his face supposedly was not known by those of the pub. He doesn't stay long however, eventually making his way out and disappearing like a phantom would.
Deciding to go back into the bar, the Greeting Man had his usual drink, though it was never anything with alcohol if he could keep his senses up. He was quick to notice a newcomer sit not too far from him, the tapping of a walking staff echoing hollow footsteps until they ceased with him. A hooded man whose face could not be seen, possibly a thin one at that as his cloak billowed and wavered as if someone barely fit into it; he held a long obsidian staff with a bone-white snake wrapped about it, its thick triangle head reared up and curved downwards, glowering gold eyes seeming and watchful.
"What can I get you there?" The bartender came over; a hefty looking fellow with a apron like garb over him as most other bartenders would, cleaning a tall mug at the moment.
"…"
"Quiet fellow aren't you?" The Greeting Man couldn't help but add, lightly moving his glass at its edge as it stirred.
"…strongest drink you've got. Tallest glass it can be in." A rasping voice escaped the stranger, barely heard by those around.
"Huh…tough guy aren't ya?" The bartender went to the back as the echo of chinking glasses tapping against each other could be heard. The Greeting Man merely continued stirring at his glass, unseen eyes looking to the table in front of him.
"What brings you here stranger?"
"…to what do I owe explanation to if a stranger is also asking me as well?"
"Curiosity. Funny thing it is."
"Hmph." With a bony hand that seemed to barely stay together with pale skin the strange drummed the table in rhythmical time; "Heard such a thing kills."
"And it satisfies."
"Rarely. All depends on the person. On their values, their morals, and lives to meet their needs of satisfaction."
"Hm, you have a point…" The Masked Man nodded. "So what kind of man are you if you entered here with a certain curiosity?"
"Not curiosity. A purpose…" His drink slid down the long table into his hand, taking no pause as he vociferously chugged down the drink, such sounded like the driest pipe with acid trickling and evaporating at its walls, the glass empty of any drop. With nothing left to say, the foreigner stood up with his staff and left as mysteriously as he came in, hood still up.
"Hm…strange fellow." The Greeting Man commented a bit, the bar tender in front of him, just noticing the place was now empty except for himself and the customer before him. "So what rumors are about this time?"
"The visitor that came here to speak with the Princess is supposedly planning invasion. Last seen entering the palace and not coming out as of late."
"Hm…and the Princess herself?"
"Is there really a need to ask that?"
The Greeting Man gave a small laugh, his drink now empty. "I suppose not…I suppose it is getting late now. Best I take my leave."
"Have a safe trip sir."
Night fell upon Hyrule of the Light Realm, the sky littered with sparse clouds that would occasionally trespass on the waning moon's visage and the stars that tried to shine through. Moonlight shone upon the magnificent town and its castle, but sadly the splendor was dampened by the invisible tension.
Guards about the outside of the gates remained in line, and not just your ordinary guards that patrolled about above the castle walls. Heavily armored beings at the gates bore the emblem of the Triforce on their chest plates and held giant halberds and blades, their faces completely obscured by a thick helmet to which even the light of their eyes –should they have any- could not pierce as they held grand halberd or blade in hand.
Within the walls the townspeople gossiped and whispered about, whichever were left wandering the night, word of the attack already having met their ears.
"Did you hear of the Princess?"
"Is she alright?"
"I heard that Hero in green came here."
"But what happened? Was he killed?"
"Kidnapped!"
"By whom?"
"A giant?"
"A Goron?"
"Maybe it's one of those strange beings that came before."
"Aren't they supposed to be gone?"
Questions and vague answers continuously scattered through the winds of the night but in lesser time did they die out as they all went into the safely of their own homes. However, one of the more lively places at the moment was the little out-of-the-way hangout of Telma's Bar, owned by the big-hearted and brave Telma who right now was in on the conference of The Group at the moment, made up of the wise Auru, knowledgeable Shad, and feisty Ashei. Rusl was not present at the moment however, but they continue on anyways.
"Feels like it's going to rain soon." Shad mumbled a bit.
"Well we didn't really come together again to talk about the weather. Something's up again in Hyrule and I'm not liking it." Ashei retorted impatiently.
"None of are honey, so calm down." Telma said as she cleaned off the remaining glasses that were abandoned by the men who fell into a stupor of sleep.
"Telma is right." Auru supported, taking a deep breath to keep his anxiety down. "Right now we're not sure what's happened. What we have heard from the guards that remained here is that Princess Zelda was attacked, and we have not heard from her since. Whichever guards were inside would have witnessed the attack, but they may or may not be alive to tell the tale."
"And that's assuming who we're up against may be someone or something pretty strong?" Ashei added.
"Right. However, we have no idea what it is we're up against."
Shad cleared his throat a bit to intrude into the conversation. "Could it have anything to do with what happened some time ago that we faced before?"
"I'm not quite sure. Though should there be anything involved with such matters, it's most likely that Link may have an idea of what we're up against."
"Speaking of that guy, is he still back in the village?" Ashei pondered out loud.
"He should be. Unless something happened to him too."
Auru looked skeptical. "If that was certain, Rusl would've told us as soon as he could wouldn't he?"
Speak of the goddesses, for as soon as Auru was done with his statement the door opened to the said parent that was coming over, helping over a cloaked figure that barely held on to Rusl's shoulders for support.
"Well you couldn't have come any better a time Rusl." Telma said, coming over and helping him out with the newcomer, who sounded like he ran ten miles around the town being chased by Bulbins on Bulbos. "Who do we have here?"
"Someone who may just be able to help us." Rusl said as they helped the person over to a seat, Telma having a glass of milk at the ready should he be thirsty.
Ashei was quick to ask another question. "Did Link come with you?"
"…No. He was sent here to deliver a package but has not returned." Ashei exasperatedly gave a groan.
"Then it seems our fears have come to light. No news of either Her Majesty or the boy, and we have no idea what's going on around here."
"Wait, Princess Zelda? What has become of her?"
"That's what we're trying to find out, and currently we have no leads."
While the group contemplated in silence, such was broken by the sound of chugging and the swishing of milk in a glass, all eyes turning to the cloaked figure that lifted his head up, his hood falling back. A tired yet determined looking façade of a young man with slightly long, pointed ears, he had a messy head of short brown hair and green eyes that reflected off the light of the lamps of the tavern before they looked to the group.
"…you're the Resistance of Hyrule right?" He started off, holding back a groan of fatigue.
"What's it to you?" Ashei responded with her sharp tongue, but her glare was challenged by the newcomer.
"He stumbled injured into the village and asked if Link was there. He says he's a warrior who may know what's going on and our possible enemy, coming to warn and aid him." Rusl explained.
"Well, join the club and get in line, because you better start talking kid."
"The name's Gavin, not kid." He responded with and edge, no doubt holding back his impatience in his fatigue; "And second, I'm not up for your pleasantries right now. If both bearers of the Triforce are missing, then we should've already done something to take action."
"What do you mean?" Auru asked.
"I was injured in a fight with one of the people involved in something that may be trying to obtain the three pieces Triforce."
"And how are we supposed to believe you? Let alone believe you aren't one of the enemy?"
Gaven gave a smug grin. "Well, looks like you're pretty good when it comes to not trusting. You're going to need that trait…but if I were the enemy, I would've already had you all killed the moment I came here."
Ashei immediately though the worst, taking out her blade and pressing blade lightly against Gaven's neck.
"Give me one reason why we should trust you." Gaven looked like he was resisting a laugh before responding.
"…are you really sure you want to kill off a descendant of the Hero of Time?"
Link began to feel his adrenaline of adventure runs through his veins once again and pushing out the cold feeling of the terrain around him, his senses once again alert and drinking in every detail that surrounded him and at the same time swallowed him within the darkness that was new yet familiar to him.
From what he has explored so far, there really were few windows, and from the few that were visible were too far up for him to see; just one of those disadvantages to being a wolf. Link continued thinking through and taking into account every hall and cell he passed, occasionally unable to avoid facing a guard in combat. When they fell to their sudden deaths, as curious as Link was to know what was under their large cloaks, his nose seemed to hold him back, as after they died they immediately began to smell like a sewer filled to the brim with corpses that were lying out under the sun for days on end. The best they could provide keys to the cells of the hallway they patrolled, and with his new ally's help were able to receive two more complete collections of bone white limbs and horned skulls (and sometimes and unfortunate cellmate to deal with, but usually was of no trouble). It was also convenient that in the rest of the hall of cells Jackal's remaining bones were also found, resulting in the tall skeletal warrior he was.
"Two down, two to go!" Jackal was glad to announce. His allies no doubt had similar puppet-like armored structures, but the skulls would define who was who.
The first skull found went by the name of Guzik, a heavy thick looking skull with a wide jaw that bore sharper looking teeth than those he saw before. His markings were a dark teal tone that more often resembled those of vector arrows about bent horns, bearing a beard of a sort that lined its jaw.
The second a sterner, almost furious looking fellow introduced as Antony, grey markings carved like designs of a helmet into his own cranium and had straight black tresses that fell from the occipital and temporal area down to where the shoulders started. A more defined skull and jaw, his eyes blazed a vengeful glow from what Link could sense.
"Can you not find our leaders Jackal?" Antony asked in a strict quiet tone as they all stood at the end of the hall, Link realizing just how tall they were without him being killed, and that's saying something considering he's in wolf form.
"There weren't any sign of em. At least not on the floors we checked."
'Leaders?'
"Yeah, pooch, we've got two mo' of us that were locked up, but they might not be 'ere. They're some o' the finest of our kind, so maybe they're elsewhere locked up." Guzik's deep voice resounded against the walls, but there was lesser to worry of with no guards and few prisoners that still could not escape their cages.
Link turned his head all of a sudden to the farthest hall, able to make out shadows lit by the torches at the end.
"By the Goddesses, not more of those." Jackal moaned, his bones rattling as he looked about. "We need to get out of 'ere first."
"Nowhere to go but up!" Guzik added, immediately leading the way as Link and the others followed.
'Hey, where exactly are we anyways?' Link panted as they continued going up the spiral stairs, walls looking worn out by erosion yet emanating a strange power that seemed to be pulsing in knowing the presence of those who have escaped.
"You mean other than the obvious prison?" Jackal gave a laugh, though suddenly lifted Link up in one claw. "'ere, let's cut ya some slack so we can get faster up Link."
"This prison is in the outskirts of the Twilight Realm to which only true exiles are banished." Antony explained, Link giving a confused whine.
'Outskirts of the Twilight Realm? So are we in the Twilight Realm or not?'
"This is a secluded part of the Twilight Realm, known to be a prison to the one who rules over it."
'And who rules over it then? Because if the same one who got me here in this form is still in the Light Realm...'
Link's thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of strange shrieks and growls that resounded up ahead, not even given a moment to think of what came up as a giant gargantuan came at their way, and a much powerful looking one at that. A bovine figure with a thick set of armored arms –not just a pair, but two, one thicker than the other- and the thicker arms were carrying a giant set of heavy, bloodstained halberds that looked like they could cleave a being in two, if not crush their bones. There seemed to be three heads as they were all in differing helmets, even an armored tail that seemed to move as if it had a mind of its own.
"…well, any other bright ideas?" Guzik asked as he was hearing the other guards come from behind, knowing they were trapped.
Jackal gave a pondering moment before looking to the wall right of them, a small window barely visible above as Link could feel his bony grip tighten a little around him. "Just this one!"
Without any warning, the skeletal breakout expert suddenly rammed into the wall near, Link feeling a blast that made every nerve, muscle and bone suddenly tense up from the feel of a barrier that was shattered, almost immediately remembering the memory of feeling Midna break the barrier around Hyrule Castle so clearly it seemed as if it happened yesterday. However, the thought did not last long as Jackal broke not only a barrier, but the 3 ft thick wall as well, meeting the with sight below of a black abyss. No possible way of telling how high up their were, and no telling what was below, as all Link could do was give a long howl as they began a hard and fast descent, the sound of the other escapers' bones whistling and rattling down the whole way through.
The fight continued on between Midna and Fella as chunks of stone infused with Twilight were being thrown back and forth, between the princess' magic and Fella's strange snake like vines that resembled a game of dead man's volley. Hand to hand combat seemed out of reach for both of them as they constantly kept gaining distance from each other, explosions of the Twilight Princess's power resounding in the room. Fella's stilettos kept hitting at the ground with an erratic song that went with her strange yet graceful dance of battle, Midna's bare feet making not a sound as she went smoothly about the deadly waltz as the magic made the air feel as if it were on fire.
"Why don't you just quit already?" Midna yelled as she took the largest chunks of stone and surrounded her opponent in attempts to crush her with not only stone but the very power of her past rulers. Her confidence soared as she unleashed a cage of magic around her opponent, sending the stone at her with no mercy, leaving a chaotic blast in her wake to which Midna didn't even blink as to see her opponent being turned to anything less than ash or dust.
As the smoke cleared, Midna approached the scene, still having a cautious hand up to set a spell as all is not guaranteed. All that could be seen in sight was the mistress's tattered and charred cloak, no body to accompany it.
"Hm, if I didn't know any better, I'd say I just won."
"Would you now?"
Midna held her breath in surprise as she heard the voice of her opponent, turning around to find her swing right into her without any warning, stilettos digging into her mid-section and the force of the blow knocking the wind right out of her, sending the princess smashing into the wall and leaving more debris in her wake.
A warm trickle flowing down the side of her head as white spots blinded her vision, Midna could barely comprehend her still intact opponent having rammed into her…no, strike that. That her opponent was still intact and moving from her attack. Underneath the cloak it was a wonder how the mistress could fight. Her clothing beneath her cloak mainly consisted of what seemed to be black leather that was held by her shoulders and collar, her back exposed with not a mark in sight. Accessories of battle included a set of obsidian arm braces and wrist covers that bore small ivy green spikes that resembled the tips of the vines, her matching stilettos connecting to shin high scarlet bootlegs that weren't seen before,
"I'd say you need to get your eyes checked Your Highness, because I'm still here." Fella stated, swinging back a bit as she was holding onto vines that were connected to the ceiling -no doubt somehow set there possibly before the attack- before she propelled herself back rammed into the princess again and keeping her from falling forward to even catch her breath before finally letting go of the vines and kicking Midna further in before flipping back. Quick to come again and hold the princess by her throat, she summoned her vines from her brace holding Midna up an arm's and a foot's length away.
"You know, I thought the Princess of the Twilight Realm would have much more potential than this. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were an imposter."
Fella received no answer for moments until she heard chuckle, a grin forming on Midna's face.
"You know, I really didn't think I was going to waste so much time on someone like you. Let alone so much effort. A pat on the back for you for lasting so long against me while I wasn't taking this fight seriously." Midna grabbed at the vines with a free hand, immediately setting them to ashes as Fella suddenly felt a burning sensation from her hand, quickly flipping backwards in caution as she suddenly sensed a burst of power come from Midna, who peeled herself from the hole made in the wall; not just peeled, floated out of it, the power surging through becoming a more noticeable fiery aura around her. "Now you have the honor of being obliterated to smithereens for real!"
Fella had to hold her arms up as a bust of power radiated from the Twilight Princess, barely making out two forms of stone relics that circled her, a golden and ebony ephemeral spear in her right hand, and in a moment suddenly inches away from her.
In a blinding blast of Twilight particles and golden light Midna finally settled to the ground, holding at her wound a bit as she did best to stand tall, looking to the result of her attack. The mistress in green was impaled into the wall, slumped over motionless and arms limping hanging aside.
"There…" Midna huffed, looking around and to the ceiling of any signs of her opponent having any tricks; "That has to be it."
Ready to call her guards in, a small sound suddenly had her in a stance again, though she already felt used up from her last attack, as using the Fused Shadows incompletely had a strange fatiguing side effect on her body. Midna she looked up and down, left and right to the ruined walls, until finally hearing the sounds become louder and louder, where she believed she eliminated her opponent the first time.
The stone beneath shook and scuttled down as the supposedly defeated and impaled figure was, giving an exasperated sigh as she sat up.
"Man, am I glad I decided to put something up like that" –she thumbed toward her look-alike- "to do the rest cuz that look liked it hurt."
'No way…' Midna couldn't believe it. Even with the power of the Fused Shadow, something had passed her thinking process or line of sight. Fella gave a strange bubbly giggle as she finally pushed the rest of the stone out of the way, the look-alike suddenly reverting into blackened vines and ashes as the spear faded away along with it.
"Alright alright, I know what you're thinking," Fella casually started dusting off her skirt as she remained without a cloak; "1, how did I survive? 2, do I really have to keep fighting? And 3, why won't I just die?"
A pause.
"Let me respond that in order. 1, that's not important right now. 2, No we don't. I'd rather call it a draw, which leads us to number 3; I can't allow myself to die right now, because I have a mission. A mission in which I need your help in Twilight Princess Midna."
The throne room couldn't have sounded anymore silent after that.
Cliffies everywhere! Please leave a nice review and have a nice day!