The Door

There was a calming rhythm to the arc of Link's sword and the heat in his muscles despite the adrenaline of the fight. A Wolfos howled when his sword landed deep in its side, and Link yanked the blade out to swung it at the next beast. Their panting and growling surrounded him.

"Look out!" Tatl called from behind him; he immediately lunged toward the sound, burying his sword into the neck of a Wolfos mid-leap. The creature crumpled, falling away from his sword, but the next was already on him. "Link!"

Pain tore through his shoulder, but he didn't flinch. He drove his sword through the Wolfos' gut before it could find his neck with its teeth. If one of the beasts got its jaws around his neck, there would be little he could do.

He turned, striking away claws and teeth as he surveyed the carnage around him. Five Wolfos down, including the one dropped by Epona's first kick. Two remaining. But pain was quickly deadening any other sensation in Link's arm. He still had the precision of his strong arm, but only half the power behind his swings.

"This way!" Tatl cried. Link followed the voice with the tip of his sword and struck true into the neck of one of the remaining Wolfos.

The final beast trembled, its eyes wide with panic. Link saw the desperation in its eyes before it struck and brought his sword up between them. The Wolfos tensed, its muscles coiling for the lunge, and then it was coming, all snarls and claws. It met Link's sword with a jarring impact that sent pain lancing through his wounded shoulder, and the blade went clean through the Wolfos until their bodies were touching. Claws ripped at Link's back, and panic rose metallic in the back of his throat when he felt its hot breath on his neck and the sharp rip of teeth against his spine. But there was no strength behind it. The Wolfos slowed and finally fell limp against him.

Link pushed the dead beast away, angling his sword to let the body slide off. Sweat slicked his clothes to his body everywhere, but the hot wet on his right side was from blood. He ignored it for the moment, turning to scan for Epona. Her whicker pulled his eyes toward the trees at the edge of the clearing, and she separated from the shadows, stepping through trunks so tightly spaced she hardly fit between them. He wiped the blade of his sword against his tunic—it was already splattered with blood anyway—and then met her at the edge of the clearing. He let her press her head against his side and nip at his tunic while he checked her for injury. She snorted complaint when he raised each of her legs, but otherwise surrendered peacefully to his inspection. Aside from a shallow cut on her flank, she was fine.

"Hey, look," Tatl said, jangling to catch his attention. Link looked up toward the fairy and then past her to a huge, rusted set of iron doors that stood at the far edge of the clearing. "Think they were guarding this?"

Link shrugged his good shoulder. "Could be."

"Let's check it out!" the fairy suggested, bouncing in the air.

Link pressed his hand against his wounded shoulder and looked at Epona. She stared back with one huge blue eye. "What do you think?" She gave a noncommittal snort, so he nodded and turned back to face the doors. "Let's go."

The ache in his shoulder was dulled by adrenaline, but it was starting to sharpen. He pushed it aside for the moment in favor of crossing to the wrought-iron doors. The design on them must have been intricate once, but the accumulation of rust and the light ivy growth made it impossible to distinguish. Link brushed aside a vine and found that the iron behind it was almost shiny compared to the rusty metal around it. The design had to be some sort of scene; he thought he could make out part of a face, but it was hard to tell.

"Open it," Tatl jangled, impatient. A small smile pulled at Link's mouth in response, but he did as the fairy asked. The door handle felt weak with age, so he pulled gently at first.

It didn't budge. There was no help for it; he would have to put his back into the pull. The doors must have rusted shut, and it was entirely possible he would rip the handle off before getting them open. He wiped his bloody hand on his tunic and wrapped his fingers around the handle, paused to gather his strength, and then lunged backward.

The groan of the hinges sent a chill down his spine, and then the handle gave a sharp crack and broke off in his hands. He nearly fell back, but he caught his balance and straightened. The door was open a sliver; he wedged his body into the gap and then pushed backward, forcing it open further.

The forest on the other side did not match this one. Link stepped back to survey it, returning his hand to the wound on his shoulder, which was bleeding again. Absently he reached into a pouch on his belt, his fingers digging around for a potion bottle while he looked through the doors. On the other side the trees were spaced more naturally and sunlight streamed through them, making the ground almost bright compared to the gloom of the Lost Woods. In the distance he could see the trees break away to grass, and there was a house in that broad, grassy clearing. There was none of the eerie atmosphere of the Lost Woods.

He put a hand on Epona's shoulder. "Ready girl? Let's take a look."

Epona whinnied. Link stepped away from her to move through the doorway, but he heard her following behind. He began working the cork free of his potion bottle as he crossed to the other side.

The change was immediate.

Heat, openness, and agony.

This chapter was re-uploaded on 2/19/16 to reflect some minor revisions I've made as I get back into writing it. If you like my writing here, please also check out my Wattpad account, Karrie Zai.