Big Brother
My hands were sore and spotted with blisters, and my feet ached from hours of combat. The vision in my right eye was dissipating as the gashes and wounds drained the blood from my body. My limbs were becoming cold, numb, and discolored, and I was having an incredibly difficult time sucking air into my lungs. I was hopeless for escape, but as long as I could move my legs, I kept running. Every few seconds I'd lose my footing in the thick underbrush of this part of the forest, but I'd quickly pick myself right back up and keep running. Nothing but the loss of my legs could stop me now, as I was far ahead of the demon. Suddenly, I saw light peak through the trees. Feeling adrenaline rushing into my veins, I ran as fast as I could for that acute spectrum of light without another thought. Glancing back I saw that the demon had somehow managed to catch up with me, his hand extending to grab me; but I sprinted beyond his reach just in time. Unfortunately, I did not noticed where I was until I fell through the air and landed on a rocky hill, back-first. Tumbling down, the skin on my back was torn repeatedly, and my neck felt as if it could snap off with the very next roll. I couldn't managed to get my ground but it was too late. Once I hit the bottom of the steep hill, my skull smacked against a jagged rock, splitting it open in the back. My blood bubbled against the steaming rock and my eyes were foggy. I looked up at the cliff where I fell, and saw the familiar demon standing there; and although disoriented, I knew I saw that humanoid-seeming demon change in appearance. At first he had black, smokey skin, red eyes, white hair and a black tunic, but then I saw him fade into a pale-white skin and black hair, but the same red eyes and black clothing. As my eyelids drooped, I saw the man turn around, and calmly walk away from his work. I wasn't conscious long enough to calculate where he was headed, but I did see something odd: he looked just like me...
The first thing I noticed when I woke, was the intense, humming pain. It would become more and more intense then slowly dissipate, but it would always be there. My ears were ringing too loudly for me to listen to my surroundings, and it was as if my eyes were glued shut. I could barely breathe with how much pain I was in; struggling to lift my chest, yet I even tried to move any part of my body. I felt a cool breeze caress my cheek and a fur blanket covering the lower half of my body. I shivered painfully as I felt the need to cough, but swallowed it back and tried, repeatedly, to force my eyes open. Finally, after several attempts, I managed to peel open my eyes just a slit. There was a thick, slimy film covering my eyes, but I could see well enough to tell I was indoors. As the ringing died down I blinked hard, getting rid of most of the slimy residue, and looked around. I was unable to move my head, but I could see far enough to spot a tall, and thin elderly woman. She was draped in an apron and wore a long, purple dress. Pearls surrounded her neck and diamonds hung from her hylian ears. I must've been found by someone and brought to castle town. I struggled to capture her attention, but only air came out when I tried to speak. Frustrated, I closed my eyes and tried again; a painful groan escaping my chapped lips. That worked well enough to at least grab the woman's attention, but I need to ask her questions.
She spun around and stared, as I glanced over at her. Her face lit up with shock written all over it as she shouted: "He's awake! He's finally awake!"
She ran to the door, flinging it open and ordering the guards to go get "her". I noticed that a shorter guard had peaked into the room, glancing at me with wide-eyes. I was confused and didn't understand what the fuss was all about. I was injured thoroughly enough to die, yes, but why the hell would these strangers care so much about me? I sighed quietly and watched as the white-haired, red-eyed woman scrambled items all over the desk she was standing over earlier, until she picked up a piece of premium paper with hylian print on it; smiling joyously. I swallowed despite the soreness of my dry throat and spoke weakly, "who the hell are you people," before screwing up on "people" and coughing horrendously.
The woman rose her brow and managed a soft smile. "Oh, I see. You must have lost some of your memory through that terrible head injury you had. Maybe I can help you," she began as she grabbed a seat beside the bed I was in. I stared at her, watching her speak largely with her hands as if I were a foreigner. "I," she points two coned hands to herself, "am Impa; guardian of, not the castle, but your ruler. I also take the positions of being her councilor, day-planner, secretary, makeup artist, mercenary, friend and mother. I am responsible for everything that ever so slightly even involves or effects her or simply someone close to her, at all."
I stared, silent for a long while until I managed to speak a little more. "Where am I? W-Who is the other woman you called for," I wheezed.
Cracking a slight smile, she nodded, "You sure are in for a surprise." I narrowed my eyes, confused before she continued. "What /do/ you remember anyway?"
I paused to think, "I remember a-" I coughed and sighed. "I remember a shadow man and a pale man-me in two different... forms." Frustrated, I closed my eyes, speaking softer, "I don't know, I don't remember much about my childhood either. I only remember... well, me: Link Marq Harkinian. I'm just a peasant-a ranch hand at some place called "Ordon". I can only assume that-"
I was interrupted by a woman, letting herself in. She was tuned and refined, and her posture showed that she had quite a bit of poise. All together, she was basically... elegant. "Well, well, well if it isn't the Hero of Twilight," she teased subtly.
"He remembers very little about himself, or anything else really," Impa informed her.
"I see," she proceeded. "Well, then it is only polite to introduce myself properly." she sat on the edge of the bed and stared out the window. "I... I am Princess Zelda. You knew me on a first-name basis, for I am-" she paused. "I was your friend."
"Zelda," I whispered, startling her.
"You speak!?" Her face showed more shock than anything else.
Swallowing hard, confused, I nodded slowly. "Y-Yes, I do?" I noticed her cheeks flush darker than the makeup she had on. Uncomfortable, I continued, "Where am I? What even happened to me?"
She stared as she answered, "Ilia, your friend, told me everything." She grabbed my numb hand and continued, "You left Ordon to 'get away from it all'. Ilia was the one who noticed how you were gone longer than you usually are, so she went looking for you. When she couldn't find you within the forest, she asked the village people for help. We they couldn't find you they prayed to the goddesses for help. When that prayer went unanswered, Ilia rode Epona all the way to the castle, instead of writing the letter that would have killed you." Sighing, she cleared her throat, certainly disturbed by her own words. "I sent the three surrounding provinces in search of you-your body," she struggled, trying to hide her emotions.
Impa continued for her, trying help me understand. "We found you that day, unconscious, but alive. Your body was covered in wounds-blood and dirt, and your head was split open behind you left ear. You may have noticed how your right eye is... damaged."
I weakly blinked a few times, realizing the severity of my eye injury. I was blind in my right eye. Swallowing away the lump in my throat, I started to panic. "H-How long was I out? Why can't I move?"
Impa and Zelda exchanged looks before Zelda stood up, letting go of my hand and getting a sheet of paper off of the table. Holding it up, she examined it's contents carefully and cleared her throat. "Today is first of August, and we found you on the twenty-seventh of June. So this means you've been out for exactly thirty-four days."
"T-Thats six weeks..." I mumbled to myself as I started to feel faint. I frantically scrambled to sit up, my arms doing all of the work. Fully panicking now, I started to shout, tugging the stitches on my throat. "Why can't I move my legs?" I started to wheeze again, coughing more.
Impa pressed her hand against my bare chest and hushed me, the pain making me hiss. Glaring at her, I caught my breath and eased back on my elbows. "You were found at the bottom of a steep, rocky hill. You've had to have fallen from it to obtain these injuries. Although, some wounds seem to show struggle of other natures-as if you were in a difficult battle before the fall," Impa paused, "The point is, we believe you broke your back, but we can't be sure, because you had a twig stuck inside of your thigh, showing through the other end. You're lucky you didn't cut any serious blood vessels."
I sighed shakily and closed my eyes as I tilted my head back. "Goddesses, help me."
Zelda set the sheet of paper back down and brushed her hand against my forehead. I opened my eyes to look up at her as she pulled her hand back. "The fever's finally gone... How do you feel?"
"Well I don't know princess," I glared. "I'm pretty sure I'm going to be paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of my life."
Impa sighed and turned away. "Zelda, let's let him get some rest; It's getting late." Zelda nodded and followed her out.
I growled, "Wait, I'm not even tired," but was ignored. I stared at the door for a long while until my gazed was interrupted by a foot step inside the chamber.
"I thought they'd never leave," he smirked as he jumped down from the window. "I've never seen you ask so many questions. Who knew you were so clueless?" He was mocking me. My head started to ache as I sat up and tried to focus my vision on the figure. It was one of the figures I remembered from earlier; smokey, black skin, shadowy, red eyes and dead, white hair. His black clothes helped his move with the shadows as he walked closer and closer to my bed. Leaning down into the corner of my neck, he whispered in my ear, "I will save you, little brother," then in a quick eruption of shadows and smoke he became the other figure: pale, with white skin and black hair. He caressed my cheek and ran his fingers along the edge of my jaw, laughing quietly.I was silenced by the demon's touch as he made my marked hand ache in a stinging pain. He continued his little game, pulling away after a long moment of silence and locking his bloody eyes with mine. "I will make you whole and healthy, and guide you like a responsible big brother should, okay Link?"
I closed my eyes and shivered, frozen as I shakily replied, "Y-Yes, okay," stuck like a broken record.
He smiled bigger, his fangs bleeding through the suspected innocent smile. Pinching my nose he opened my jaw and gently blew into my mouth, filling my body with life essence-with energy. My heart suddenly stopped beating, making me struggle to suck in air, but once it started to beat again, I noticed how I could feel my legs, and when I opened my eyes, I could see through both just fine. Once my eyes adjusted I noticed that he was gone. I blinked a few times before lifting my marked hand. The golden glow was surrounded by purple-black veins, popping out under my skin. I shivered and slowly, fully sat up. "Don't worry, you're okay now, brother," he echoed in my head. I shook my head and sat on the edge of the bed, looking over my body. I was still covered in scars but my bones were healed, nor did the wound in my leg hurt anymore. I felt like I never even got into the accident in the first place.
Standing, I walked closer to the window and looked at the triforce piece more closely. I gently guided my fingers up my arm, following the dark veins until they ended along my neck like the mouth of a river. Closing my eyes, I breathed in deeply, in and out. I looked around the room and found a wardrobe. Inside, I found a white top and some tan pants to wear. After straightening myself out I took a few things off of the table and got down on the ground. Looking under the door I spotted two guards; one on each side. Breaking a pair of scissors in two, I removed the spring, straightened it out, wiring it so that the handles were connected. Pulling the tips of the scissor halves together, I bent a paper clip into the shape of a jagged question mark and wedged the scissor tips in the hole, before twisting and bending the neck of the paper clip into the space between the blades. Finally, I placed a crumbled piece of paper in between the shape's arch and slide it under the door so both guards would see it. Just as I planned, the guard to my left picked up the makeshift device, putting it under pressure, and making it explode in his face. Spooked, the guard flinched and looked at the other. I quickly shot up onto my feet and hid behind the door hinge against the wall. The door eased open as the first guard entered the room. He slowly approached the bed, with the other guard standing in the door, armed. In one quick, smooth complication of maneuvers, I slammed the door shut and hooked the chair, from the table, under the doorknob. The guard behind the door starting yelling, and the one inside slowly turned towards me with his hands up. I briskly walked behind him and pulled his arms back, tightly tying rope around his wrists. "Lead me out of here safely, and I won't kill you."
The man was still for a moment. "Let him go, Joseph."
I heard the guard step back and murmur, "Alright," before I kicked away the chair and opened the door, pushing the guard out through the doorway.
"Take me off of castle grounds, and be sure that I'm clear of any guards from then on." I urged him forward, letting him lead the way out. I was led through many hallways and staircases, and passed many guards along the way, and was uninterrupted until I reached the main floors. As I started to cross the throne room, I realized that I was being followed, and it sounded like a group. I stopped in the middle of the room and sighed, "Sorry," before I snapped the man's neck, turning to face the other guards, as he dropped. "I suggest you let me go," I tested, keeping my voice low and soft.
"Sorry, but we can't let you go yet," the leader of the group smirked.
I eyed them for a mere moment before quickly darting for the exit, sprinting as fast as I could while they chased after me, swords unsheathed and bows loaded. I was almost to the town square when I slid and fell hard on my back. I groaned, squeezing my eyes shut at the seismic pain, but it wasn't until I opened them that I found I was surrounded. "Y-You can't exactly kill me... Did you forget who I am?" Some of the guards exchanged questioning looks before one behind me kicked me in the back of the head, knocking me out cold.
Thanks for reading, I'd appreciate some feedback if at all possible-whether it's positive or negative doesn't matter. My second chapter is almost done, but please let me know if I should continue it; although, I assure you it does get better. Ideas and opinions on to how to continue the story are welcome. Thanks again!:)
