I'm finally using Link as a main character! Finally! Lucky for my friend who likes Link, he just might make it out of this alive! ...Maybe! Dark Pit's a different matter...hehehe...Truthfully, I had already written the first death a while ago just because I wanted to. Who knew I'll eventually use it? XD I told a few of my friends that I would publish this soon (around Halloween) but I never got around to it! Really sorry, guys! Anyways, look on the bright side! I'm finally getting it up! And...I still have other chapters to go...oh goodie...
Anyways, a few things that you guys should know for the time being: Dark Pit takes on the name Nadir in this story. Nadir is pretty much a synonym of Pit, so that's why I chose it! XD And also, I like the way it sounds, and its meaning actually kinda fits Dark Pit. So yeah...F! Wii Fit Trainer is known as Willa here, R.O.B. would only be called Rob (not to be confused with Robin, who is M!Robin), and the red Villager has the name of Kay. We all good? Yeah? Hope you enjoy!
Chapter 1
Link yawned loudly, making sure to cover his mouth with one hand. He looked outside of the yellow cab that drove him to his destination. Lush green fields passed in a blur, too quickly for the young man to examine the wildflowers that waved in the wind. He was barely able to make out the tree that speckled a few chosen area before those whipped past as well. He leaned against the palm of his hand, his expression definitely telling the world of his boredom. The driver besides him ignored him as he kept his eyes on the road.
The freelance writer was even sure how long he had been sitting in this cab for. It must have been hours, but whenever he looked at his watch, it bitterly replied that only two minutes had passed since the last time Link looked at it. He dropped his hand on his leg again. Link started to wonder whether taking this offer was the best idea. His boss had told him about a little town in the middle of nowhere named Narrissan that had quite the rumors floating about. The majority of those rumors had no correlation with each other, so Link believed that people were just mistaken about that place. However, his boss had demanded that the journalist get out there and write him the winning headlights. As a result Link found himself sitting in a beat-down, taxi car with a freakishly-round man for a driver. Though he didn't want to go to the middle of nowhere for possibly the lamest story in his life, he needed the money.
Link didn't realize that he had fallen asleep until the car jerked to a stop. If it hadn't been for his seatbelt, the journalist would have face-planted the front window. The driver looked over at the startled man. "Narrissan," he simply said. Link gathered his wits about him and looked outside. He raised an eyebrow at the sign that shone "Welcome to Narrissan!" underneath a skeleton tree. The bright shine was an obvious contrast to the grim tree. Unclipping his seatbelt, Link opened the door and stood up, allowing his sore legs to stretch. He glanced around the normal-enough town. He was about to take a step forward when he felt something surprisingly strong grip his arm. Link looked towards the car in surprise to see the driver leaning all the way over to stop him. "Money."
The journalist felt a slight stab of guilt at his forgetfulness. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a few bills to hand to the driver. He was glad the man didn't rip his fingers off snatching away the cash. The driver opened up the trunk to let Link get his luggage while he counted his money. After ensuring the whole fee was paid, the driver gave Link a wide grin:
"Enjoy your stay, sir." The driver tipped his yellow hat and slammed the cab door shut. Link backed away from the smoke and dust as the man started up the car. Laughter that sounded like "Wa-ha-ha-ha!" echoed in the air as the car pulled away, kicking up the dust. Despite his cover, Link couldn't resist the urge to cough. He waved a hand in front of him to clear away the dust. He shook his head in wonderment before turning towards the town again. The people wandering around or running errands didn't pay much attention to their new visitor. A few children did, however, and pointed Link out to their parents or guardian. Said parents or guardian looked at the freelance writer before smiling and leading their kids away. Link returned the smiles to be polite. He then heaved one his bags over his shoulder while he gripped onto another one tightly.
Link moved through the streets. Though the town seemed large, there were only a few people walking about, and even fewer cars. The town seemed a little too quiet for his liking. The writer expected that in a place like this, sounds rivalling a small city would be bustling. However it was quite peaceful. Link checked his watch for the time. Seeing how it was only half-past noon, he decided to check into his motel before grabbing a bite to eat. He lunged his baggage over to the large, two-story building that seemed quaint enough. A small sign informed Link that the name was "Hadet's Villa". For some reason, the name on the sign struck Link as odd even though he had seen the name before. There was something about it that bothered him. Maybe it was the sign? Usually he would be able to figure these things out. However the ride may have tired him out more than he thought. The young man shrugged. Oh well. He'd probably figure it out some time soon. No need to rush.
The breath of fresh AC hit Link the moment the double-doors slid open. He smiled appreciatively at the freezing air as he walked inside. A young man with wings glanced up from whatever he was looking at the sound of footsteps. He smiled in welcome at the newcomer.
"Hey, welcome to Hadet's Villa. How can I help you?"
Link gave a wave as he approached the desk. He stopped just at the edge. His sharp eyes caught sight of the young man's nametag, "Hi, Pit. I reserved a room here under the name of Link Scottsdale."
Pit turned to the side to ruffle through a book. He stopped on a certain page, finger trailing down to find Link's reservation. He tapped a certain spot in satisfaction. "Here you are! Let me just get the keys to your room for ya." The clerk rolled his chair away from the desk and towards the cabinet that held multiple keys for the many rooms. While Link waited for Pit to find his certain key, he heard a door opening. He turned around to see another young man identical to Pit walking into the room. He held a strange-looking staff over his shoulder as he walked up to the counter, ignoring the writer.
"Got it!" Pit whirled around before a surprised look crossed his face. "Pittoo! What are you-?"
Link had just enough time to wonder whether "Pittoo" really was Pit's twin's name when the darker of the two expertly hit his brother with his staff. A resounding crack echoed in the room, making Link wince. Pit cried out in pain as he leaned backwards to avoid any more blows, holding his head.
"Stop calling me that," "Pittoo" growled. "It's Nadir now."
Pit pouted, "But I liked Dark Pit more…"
Nadir only scoffed, "That's because it's just your name with 'Dark' in front of it. I honestly had no idea why Mom wanted to name me that."
"Because you looked eviler than me at birth!" Pit teased. He still laughed even as he ducked another blow. Despite Nadir's obvious wish to hit his brother, Link could see that the corners of his mouth were threatening to smile. The darker brother eventually gave up as he moved away to enter a room for some unknown purpose. Pit smiled, watching his younger brother leave before turning back to Link. His smile cleared with an anxious expression when he realized how patiently the writer was waiting. "Ah! Sorry about that! Hehehe," the clerk chuckled nervously as he stretched out his hand to give Link the key. "Here's your key. Your room's just down this hall, number 1274." Pit pointed to his left, his finger curved to indict the need to turn inward.
Link only smiled in forgiveness as he gladly took the key. Nodding his thanks, he picked up his luggage and walked in the direction to his room. He noted the pale walls that supported the building and the light, yellow carpet that covered the ground. As he walked down the hallway, he counted the numbered doors until he came upon his own. Using his key, Link opened the door to step inside.
The place was as nice as motel rooms could get. A clean bed sat in the middle of the room with a nightstand and a closet on either side. A TV faced the bed just in case the occupant wanted to relax with a few chosen shows. Two chair along with a small, round table were close to the lamp that would provide necessary light when dark and the window that displayed the lovely day outside. Leading to one side was the bathroom, which was clean enough to Link's standards. He took one step before his stomach reminded him of more important matters than unpacking. The writer tossed his baggage onto the bed. Unpacking on an empty stomach wasn't an action Link would want to do. He locked the door behind him and headed down the hall again. The motel was a lot quieter than he expected. Before he had come here, the journalist did note that this was the only motel. Perhaps it was because visitors rarely came by, only the occasional ragtag happened to stumble in. It made him wonder how the two brothers survived with so little income…
Pit looked up when he heard Link's footsteps. He raised an eyebrow in surprise, "Finished unpacking already?"
"It's hard to unpack on an empty stomach," Link responded. At the answer, Pit laughed.
"I know what you mean. It's hard to do anything on an empty stomach! Which reminds me…" the angel-like brunette reached downward to grab something from underneath his desk. After he found what he was looking for, he slammed it on the counter triumphantly. "Floor Ice Cream!" he cried cheerfully, digging in without a care in the world. The only suitable response Link could come up with was a puzzled smile. He waved goodbye to the clerk as he exited the motel. The warm air that blanketed the town greeted him.
Link shoved his hands into his pockets and strolled down the streets. Though he was hungry, he wanted to take his time and examine the town. It seemed simple enough, like all the other towns he'd been to. There was a schoolhouse, a supermarket, miscellaneous stores, a town park, restaurants, town hall, library, normal buildings that made a town a town. Link lingered a bit at the hardware store, just for the heck of it. The fox-like person inside noticed him and waved a greeting. The writer waved back before moving on. He past many restaurants, some looking too fancy for his taste and others just things he didn't want at the moment.
He finally decided on a burger joint. The pink-haired chef seemed quite happy to serve his customer a large double-double. Though mouth-watering smell of the burger tickled his nose, Link forced himself to wait until he was seated before digging in. Even though he was occupied with his food, the journalist still kept an open eye to observe the town. The streets got a bit more crowded as the school bell rang for the end of learning. The chatter of children echoed in the air, scattering birds to add their own cries to the sudden break of silence. Link watched some teens saunter by to get a bite of their own hamburgers while a few kids raced to the park to see who the rotten egg was. It seemed that the school bell also gave the cue for the adults to be a bit livelier. They streamed from their homes and stores, calling greetings to each other or negotiating prices. There was a slight commotion where a woman argued that the price of a certain jewelry was too high, etc. etc., but the problem was quickly resolved and the town returned to its loud peace.
All in all, this town wasn't anything special, as far as Link could see. Nothing that would make a worthwhile article.
He quickly finished off his burger, mentally noting to himself never to eat another double-double, a note that he ruefully knew was going to be ignored. After cleaning up and returning to the motel, Link saw that Pit wasn't at the reception desk. In fact, nobody was manning the front. It struck Link as a bit unprofessional, but considering a normal town like this, the motel business must be quite slow. He was about to return to his room when the outbreak of laughter caught his ears. The journalist turned towards the door where Nadir had originally entered. It seemed that the fun was happening in there.
The natural curiosity that drove him onto the journalist road and into trouble when he was younger sparked in Link. He crept towards the door and peeked inside, opening it slightly. The first thing he noticed was a large crowd of people circled around a table. He recognized Pit and Nadir on the far end of the table. The group stopped laughing to look towards the creaking door. A bright grin crossed Pit's face as he stood up to gesture Link towards them.
"Hey, Link! Want to play with us?" Pit held up a pair of die. The journalist opened the door, revealing himself to the others.
"Shouldn't you be minding the front desk?" Link asked, a smile playing on his lips as he walked over to the small group. The winged clerk had some interesting-looking friends, but Link wasn't one to judge. Pit waved a casual hand.
"It's all right. You were the only person I was expecting today. Besides," he pointed to a strange light in the corner of the room, drawing Link's attention to the curious little thing. "If somebody comes in, then that would flash and notify me. And it's my break time."
"Since you're here, you might as well join. If you don't, Pit would be begging and whining until you do," a beefy guy Link's age warned with a chuckle. He held out a hand, "I'm Ike by the way."
Link took the hand, noting the firm grip, "My name's Link." Ike nodded to himself, storing away that name. He then began to point at each person in turn:
"You've already met Pit and Nadir. That's Lucina, Sheik, Kay, Rob, and Willa."
Link nodded a greeting to all of them. Lucina, Sheik, Rob, and Willa all returned him a smile. The short boy, Kay, however, was a bit more focused on the game piece in front of him. He looked up for a brief moment to nod before going back to whatever he was doing.
"Did you just come into town?" Sheik asked, red eyes staring. Since their voice muffled by their scarf, Link wasn't sure whether Sheik identified as male or female. He didn't want to offend them so he didn't make any assumptions. He nodded an answer.
"Where are you from?" Willa asked, leaning in to show her interest. Link was about to answer the fit-looking woman when Pit interrupted them by slamming his hands on the game board. The small group jumped in surprise at the sudden violence. After recovering his wits, Nadir whacked the back of his brother's head to show his thoughts about Pit's careless action. The clerk rubbed his head to ease the pain, shooting his twin a look before turning his attention back to more important matters.
"Enough talk, guys! We have to start a new game!" he gestured to the game board with its raised mountains and blue rivers to depict a wilderness setting. Link looked at it with interest, studying the fine details that the company put in to make this game a success. Pit smiled at the writer, "Grab a seat, Link. Join us."
"But if he joins us, then we're going to have to start a new game," Kay complained, looking up from his game piece again. "I don't know about you guys, but I'm not willing to let go of my three castles."
Pit looked at the shorter boy, "But Kay! Let Link play too! He just got here and we should make him feel a bit more welcome!"
"I do want to finish this game though…" Sheik muttered, staring at the board intently. "I had a great strategy to burn Lucina's fortress to the ground."
"You know that I would never let that happen, Sheik," the bluenette countered as her eyes scanned her area and Sheik's, comparing their strengths and weaknesses. Pit shot all his friends a sorrowful look. He opened his mouth to protest further when Link waved a hand in refusal.
"It's all right, Pit. I should be unpacking my things now." The journalist turned to move away. However, something gripped his elbow tightly, stopping him from leaving the room. Link looked over his shoulder to see red orbs staring intently back at him. Nadir jerked a thumb at the game board.
"I gotta go do something. Mind taking my spot for now?" he asked. Link blinked in surprise. He certainly wasn't expecting this. From the moment Link walked into the room, the darker twin had barely reacted to his presence. He had just been staring at the board so raptly that the journalist had to wonder whether the game truly fixated Nadir's attention or whether he just chose not to acknowledge Link. He was originally leaning towards the latter as the answer considering how Nadir also ignored his presence when he first came into the motel lobby. His unexpected action certainly lightened Link's opinion about him a bit. Just a bit.
Link wanted to refuse Nadir's request. However he quickly saw the underlying purpose of Nadir's statement. This way, Link could join in the game without them having to restart. Of course, that would mean that Nadir was out of the game, and Pit didn't want to have that.
"Can't you do that later, Pittoo? We're going to start a new game!"
"It's Nadir, and you might as well continue," Nadir growled. "Link would play for me, right?" Those judging, red eyes flickered back to the motel guest. Link hesitated in his answer. Then he shrugged. Since he was here, he might as well join in. Who knows? He might be able to pump them for some interesting information about their town. Finally making his decision, Link nodded in reply.
"Sure. I'll take your spot for the time being."
Nadir smirked, "Thought so. I'll see you guys later." He started towards the door.
"Come back soon, Pittoo!"
"It's Nadir!"
"Whatever, Dark Pit," Pit snickered. Nadir looked over at Link and rolled his eyes, earning a sympathetic look from him. The twin then walked around the table to exit the room. Ike waved for Link to take Nadir's spot on the table. Sheik quickly explained the rules of the game, and Link listened intently as to not miss on anything important and perhaps lead Nadir's forces to victory. That proved to be easier said than done. He lost more than half his troops early in the game, so much so that the other players actually switched their attention to their friends so that Link could rebuild to encourage him not to give up. Afterwards Link began to get the hang of the game and strategies. Eventually the others had to turn their swords on him once again to stop his spreading empire from reaching their fortresses. Laughter seemed to erupt constantly, especially when there was the drama of having your base invaded or your army attacked. Link never thought that he would have so much fun playing this board game with his newfound friends. Time passed quickly for all of them. The light streaming through the windows turned to a golden orange to signal that the sun was getting ready to set.
"What's taking Nadir so long?" Rob finally asked. He swiveled his head to look pointedly towards the door, as if expecting that the twin would magically appear just because speak of the devil. When said person didn't, Rob turned his glasses on his friends, hinting something.
"I'll go take a look," Pit reassured, standing up from his chair. The whole room was silent as they watched their friend exit the room. Once the door closed behind, the group bombarded Link with a couple of questions. Kind of ironic when Link had planned to be the one asking the questions. He had only managed to answer two or three questions from Sheik and Willa when Pit suddenly came back. Everybody looked the question that was on all of their minds. Pit shrugged in answer, "Pittoo's fine. I just met-."
"Fuck it, Pit! It's Nadir!" they heard the familiar, snarky voice call. He sounded quite close, but Link surmised that he was far from their room when he considered how long the first twin was gone for. Pit grinned.
"I just met him in the hall. He still needs to finish some stuff up. Come on! Let's finish this game!" he dashed to his seat, clutching the die as if his life depended on them.
As much as Link wanted to continue, he knew that he had to get to his unpacking. If he didn't do it now, then he would be too lazy to do it tonight and he would leave it for tomorrow. Besides he was getting quite hungry, and from the looks of the game, they weren't going to end anytime soon. The journalist stood up, earning a look of curiosity from everybody.
"Sorry, guys. But I should get to my unpacking."
"What?! But we were getting to the good part! I was about to lay siege on your castles!" Pit pouted. Link smiled apologetically.
"Sorry, but I have to go. Besides, those are your brother's properties, not mine, remember?"
"There are no family ties in this game, Link! We go all out on each other!" the clerk grinned happily.
Link couldn't stop his smile from widening, "And that's why I have to go. I'll ask Nadir to return to the game."
"But…"
"Just let him go, Pit. He can play with us again tomorrow, right, Link?" Ike hinted. The journalist nodded in response. It was true. It wasn't like Link really had any important matters to attend to. The story he was hoping for didn't seem to exist, so he might as well spend his week here having some fun with his new friends. After all, his boss was paying for the trip. Pit slouched in his chair, the disappointment obvious on his face.
"Oh…all right then…then can you call Pittoo for us? He was heading to the storage room. You go do the hall next to this room, go all the way to the end, and turn left at the fork. There should be a door with the word 'Storage' on it."
"Sure thing," Link's smile turned apologetic once again as he headed towards the door. The group waved good-bye to him, a gesture he returned. By the time he closed the door, the laughter seemed to have returned. He smiled to himself at that. He was glad that his new friends were having fun again.
The journalist began to head towards the storage room. However, an oily sensation underfoot stopped him. Link looked down in disgust to see what he had stepped in. His disgust quickly turned to horror at the bright red puddle beneath him. His foot had set vibrations in the largest puddle, the waves disappearing all too quickly as he stepped back. He flicked the liquid away from his feet, speckling the floor even further. Link tried to convince himself that perhaps it was a spill of some kind of sauce, but no matter how much he looked at it, the puddle resembled blood too much. The iron smell filled Link's nostrils, confirming his horror.
The chills in his spine only increased when he saw more puddles leading away from the door towards the hall, the very same halls that Pit asked him to go down to find Nadir. Link's heart skipped a beat when the flashing thought that perhaps this was Nadir's blood crossed his mind. He could only imagine what happened to have such puddles on the ground. Despite his terror of what he would come upon, Link knew he had to look. The journalist followed the drops of blood down the desired hall. At times the trail seemed to have disappeared before he picked it up again with a chillingly, large puddle of red. It stained the floor, crawled the walls, and speckled the ceiling like a sick spiral of blood that lasted to the end of the hall. Link wondered how the blood could get up so high when he himself could barely reach the ceiling. With every step he took, the sinking feeling in his stomach grew.
He finally came upon the fork at the end of the hall. Once he made the turn, Link's heart almost leapt out of his throat. Almost. The door was there as Pit had said with the little label of "Storage" and all. Yet Link was expecting to see something gruesome like a bloody body or a severed limp. There was no such thing. Only a door as happy as can be. Link sighed in relief. Perhaps he was wrong to think that those stains were blood. Maybe they were just interior designing, really weird designing. The young man made a note to ask Pit about his taste.
Link opened the door to the dark storage room. The only source of light was the outside streaming inside. The journalist could make out some cardboard boxes and dusty brooms. Nothing was out of order. He stepped into the room, blinking against the darkness as the light pierced it to only a limited area. "Nadir?" he called. He waited for something, suddenly becoming conscious of a dripping sound. A creaking sound from above caught his attention, and Link looked up, only to have red eyes staring back at him.
Nadir smiled an arrogant smirk as blood trailed from Tabuu knows where and dripped over his eyes and cheeks. His head tilted to the side, his red eyes staring soulless into the distance. One of his hands seized his own neck tightly while the other rested on the grip of his iconic, bloody staff that impaled his chest. His tunic was shredded to pieces, revealing the horrid injury his own precious staff caused where blood continued to spurt like a weak sprinkler. His legs only showed the bloody stumps that could have been once called knees. The rest of his legs, sawed clean right off, stood upright below the hanging young man, a clear bowl on top to collect all the blood that was dripping down; the bowl was nearly full. Nadir's wings were clearly broken as a hook skewered through them to hang the black angel from the ceiling. Its feathers spread to take flight, his wings were straight as a ruler. The same red that littered the floor also speckled Nadir's wings, especially where the hooks pierced him.
The shocking sight held Link paralyzed for a moment longer before he stumbled backwards, his knees too weak to support him any longer. He felt the bile rising in his mouth as he couldn't tear his eyes away from the carnage. He resisted the urge to vomit his half-digested lunch right then and there. Link finally found the strength to drag himself out of the room. He didn't realize that he was holding in a shuddering breath until the sweet smell of the motel replaced the rusty blood smell. The journalist took deep breaths to calm down his pulsing heart. He knew what he had to do. He had to remain calm and tell the others about this horrendous deed. He wondered how he should bring it up as painless as possible. Discomfort and guilt stabbed at his heart as he imagined Pit's reaction. Though he had only met the two brothers today, Link could clearly see how much they cared for one another. It was most unfortunate that he had to witness this today.
Link hurried back to the room where the friends were laughing. Pit looked towards the sound of the door with a large grin on his face. However, it quickly faded when he saw Link's pale face. He stood up from his seat, his expression turning to one of anxiety.
"Link, what's wrong?"
The journalist took a deep breath to try and calm himself down. He covered his mouth to stop his lunch from rising when he thought about Nadir's state again. The group waited in polite impatience at what Link had to say. The young man finally regained control of his stomach and mind. "It's…it's Nadir."
"What? What happened?"
"He's…he's…" Link shook his head, "I-I can't say it…" He numbly gestured for them to follow him. The group silently stood up, their expressions mirroring each other's anxiety. They left the room and walked down the hall that led to the storage. After seeing Nadir's body, Link again wondered whether those spots were real. However, nobody made any mentioning of it, so perhaps they were actually part of the décor. They soon arrived at the slightly opened door. The familiar smell of blood hit Link's nostrils, and the young man coughed in disgust. Now that they were at the room, he didn't want to show his friends the carnage, but they had the right to know. He pushed the door open and led them inside.
The group shuffled inside, some coughing from the dust that kicked from their movement. Link saw his new friends searching the area for some sign of the darker twin. It always fascinated him that people rarely think to look up. Pit looked at Link worriedly.
"Where's Nadir?" Pit asked, the concern obvious in his voice. The journalist could only point upward. The group looked in that direction, and Link heard the simultaneous intake of air from seven throats. The motel clerk turned back to the writer.
Link expected to see sorrow and tears streaming from Pit's eyes. Maybe even some bawling from him. Yet, Pit's eyes of confusion sent shivers down Link's spine. His group of friends also mirrored his air of misperception. His next words burned into Link's mind and gave him the first signs that there was something seriously wrong with this town:
"I don't get it. What's wrong with Nadir?"