Disclaimer: Legend of Zelda and all of it's characters belong to Nintendo, I'm simply borrowing them for my own humble piece of fanfiction.
Shattered Mirror
A Legend of Zelda fanfic
Chapter One-
One Last Chance
Thunder crashed. Lightning danced and sparked across the stormy night sky. Rain slapped against the lone window with such a fury that one might have expected the somewhat tainted glass to shatter under it's constant abuse. And all of this set the perfect mood for the silent confrontation currently taking place within the walls of the windowed tower.
Click. Click. Click.
"You have failed me, Shadow."
"Yes m'lord."
Silence. The swish of a cloak. A long, drawn-out sigh.
"I expected better of you."
A pause.
"Yes m'lord."
"I suppose that you know your fate as it stands now, am I correct?" Red eyes flicked to the shadowed figure who knelt before him. "You have already evaded the of your predecessors, my Phantom and that worm of a dragon. Even Morpha has perished into the vortex between realms as punishment for his defeat. You have been lucky, Shadow."
"Yes m'lord."
Click. Click. Click. The Evil King stopped, whirling around to face the dark boy. Shadow stared, unblinkingly, at the ground before him, seemingly oblivious to the myriad of cuts, bruises and scorch marks that littered his dark body. There was not a quiver or a wince in his demeanor to betray the intense pain he was silently suffering, both physically and mentally. The King smiled sadistically. The boy was perfect.
"I'll give you one more chance, Shadow."
Another silence, then a curt nod from the boy.
"Yes m'lord."
------
Meanwhile, elsewhere in Hyrule, silence also reigned supreme, but for a completely different reason.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Tap. Tap Tap.
Tap. Tap. Ta-
"Will you stop it!"
Link paused, one foot hanging in the air, and stared in confusion at his fairy partner. Navi, her blue locks hanging askew and framing her petite face, buzzed up in front of the forest boy's head and landed daintily atop his nose. An expression of deep annoyance crossed her features, and she sharply cuffed the boy's forehead with her tiny hand. "What is the matter? You've been pacing forever!"
"What? Can't a guy pace for no apparent reason?"
"No."
Link sighed, sliding down into a sitting position and frowning at the blue fairy who was now fluttering around his head. "Sorry, Navi. It's just..." He trailed off, unsure of exactly what he was trying to say. Sorting out the chaos of thoughts streaming through his head was no easy task, even for the apparent Hero of Time. Navi's annoyed buzzing didn't help matters in the least.
"Well?" The command was sharper than intended, and Navi, realizing this, offered Link a small smile. "I'm getting worried about you, Link. You've been weird since we beat Morpha in the Water Temple." She frowned. "Well, weirder, anyway..." She flew over to the young man's shoulder and sat gently upon it. "What's wrong?"
Link sighed again. "You'll laugh."
"I won't!" Privately, Navi added that she didn't dare bring her charge's temper, for fear of releasing the slightly more maniac side of him that seemed to emerge whenever provoked.
Silence.
"Well, how about I guess then?" Receiving no answer, the blue-haired girl put a hand to her chin, tapping one of her teeth with a fingernail. "Is it... You're worried about the princess?"
"No. Well, I am worried, but I'm sure Impa kept her safe."
"Well then... Is it what the Duku Sprout told you? About being Hylian?"
"Nope, try again."
"The quest in general?"
"Nope.
"The Zoras?"
"Try again."
"Is it..." The fairy's eyes sparkled for a moment, and she smiled. "Could it be that shadow, Dark Link?"
"No-... Yes." Link rolled his eyes as Navi did a victory lap around his head. "You know me too well."
"I'm you're partner, it's my job to know you. Now why are you worried about that thing?"
There was a long silence, as Link stared off into the unknown reaches of space. Then, suddenly, he turned and looked at Navi. "I wonder what happened to him."
"What?"
"You heard me. I... I wonder if he's alright."
The fairy snorted. "Ganondorf most likely sent him to... That place he sent his Phantom to. Why do you care anyway?"
Link turned his gaze to the clouds floating lazily in the sky above them. Noticing one that looked a bit like his Ocarina, he stared at it for a bit, before saying, "I feel sorry for him, you know?"
Navi flopped down onto her back and followed her partners eyes. "No, I don't know. How can you, after all that he tried to do to you?"
"He is me, after all."
"Hardly."
"He was one of Ganondorf's flunkies. He didn't know any better or worse than what he did. He didn't have a choice."
The fairy looked in bewilderment at her partner. "How do you know that? Maybe he was just trying to take you out so he wouldn't have any competition in Kakariko's annual 'Hat Wearing Hero' contest."
Link laughed. "I somehow doubt that."
"You get my point though."
"Yeah, yeah..."
Navi smiled. "Who knows, Link. Maybe he survived Ganondorf's fiery pit of doom and is still out there somewhere." Seeing Link's smile, she continued, "If he's half as stubborn as you, he's lying in wait so he can get a patent on that fancy spin thing you do with your sword."
Link had risen to his feet while the fairy had been speaking. Now, he laughed, stretched, and took a glance at the sun. "We should get going. Malon told me that she'd give us a place to stay if we could make it to the ranch by sundown."
Navi flitted over and settled down atop Link's head as the hero set off. "Or maybe he's stalking you, because he wants the book rights for your autobiography."
"Navi..."
---
Meanwhile, hidden in the shadowy treetops, a figure watched the scene with a devilish smirk on his shrouded face.
Watched...
...and waited.