Dargon: I'M SITTING HERE AS I WRITE THIS AND IT'S RAINING REALLY, REALLY, REALLY, REALLY, REALLY, REALLY HARD OUTSIDE. AND IT'S ALL COLD. THOUGH TECHNICALLY WE'RE IN THE MONTH OF APRIL. WHYYYY APRIL WHYYYYY?

Anonymous: Because April showers bring May -

Dargon: I KNOW THAT

Here's the next chapter of Epidemic! Finally drew some cover art for the story, for the cover image... Though I'm not sure if you guys can see it yet. Hope you guys enjoy! THANKS TO ALL OF THE READERS AND REVIEWERS WHO CONTRIBUTED TO THE LAST TWO CHAPTERS! Andddddd… LEZ DO DIS!


Invisible forces swirled around Vio as he and Shadow hurtled through an absolute, pitch-black universe, threatening to tear away the grip he had on Shadow, but he managed to barely hold on. Just as he began to feel as if his arm would snap off, he slammed into hard, firm ground, his knees nearly buckling from the impact. A wave of searing heat greeted him as Vio wrenched his eyes open. Somehow, he was in a large, earthen chamber, with Shadow next to him, the charred rock walls pressing in on them. Ahead, the chamber opened up into a twisting tunnel that wound out of sight.

Shadow grimaced and slumped against the wall for support, taking deep breaths to steady himself.

"You okay?" Alarmed, Vio reached out to help Shadow as he slid down to the ground, but the dark Link waved his hand away.

"Yeah. I'm fine... I guess it was the exertion from entering his memory bank…" Painfully, Shadow clawed his way back up, panting.

"So… this is his mind? We're in his mind right now?" Vio asked, looking around at the cave walls, basking in the stuffy heat.

"No… more like… the entrance."

"The entrance?"

"Yeah. You'll see in a second." Shadow pointed to the tunnel up ahead, and the two walked forwards, following its twists and curves. As they walked through the corridor, Vio's mind wandered to what Shadow had said before.

"We could possibly die, be driven mad for the rest of our lives, slit in half, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera, all depending on what's going on in that thick brain of his." Were there different dangers that they would encounter, different from the hazards they might find in another person's mind? How did Shadow know all of this? Had he… done this before?

Vio was suddenly torn apart from his musings when they turned a corner, and were greeted by another chamber. Nearly taking up the whole of the chamber floor was a gigantic pit of lava, bubbling and frothing as splashes of orange and red spewed out. The heat was tremendous; dimly, Vio wondered if this was what it felt like to be the turkey in the oven.

Shadow pointed to the pool. "That's the entrance." He glanced at Vio, who said nothing, but only bit his lip and nodded tightly. "It's the only way in. Ready?"

Vio sighed. "As ready as I'll ever be."

"Set…"

"You know what?... Let's just get this over with." And it was Vio this time who leaped forward first, Shadow right behind him.


When he was certain he wasn't sinking through lava anymore, Shadow opened his eyes. His vision was covered by a viscous layer of brown sludge that was burning hot to the touch, and Shadow quickly wiped it away from his eyes.

It wasn't really lava after all, he noted. More like a thick, gooey substitute for it.

Vio was next to him, covered from head to toe in the same thick substance, wincing as the hot goo slid over his skin. Doing his best to wipe the substance off of himself, Shadow got up, looking around him. "Yep. Welcome to Red's mind."

Vio blinked, staring in stunned surprise at the world laid out before them.

It was as if the earth had become a bizarre, warped and demented dimension. The tall grass the two were standing in was a bright, neon-orange color, nearly too bright to look at for long. Trees with trunks spiraling to the blood-red sky in circles waved in the slight breeze, dotting the landscape as far as the eye could see. A few yards away from the two Links lay a colossal, crystal ball, perched on top of a golden pedestal, its facets reflecting the cobalt-blue sun's rays.

"That's what we're looking for." Shadow walked over to the crystal ball, placing his hands on the sides of the chiseled globe. He began rotating it this way and that, clicking the pieces together, all as if the sphere was just one gigantic puzzle. Fascinated, Vio watched him, noting the ease in which Shadow did the whole thing, as if he knew exactly what to do.

But… did he? How many times has he done this before? Who did he do it on?

With a final chink, Shadow slid one last piece into place, and a portal shimmered into existence, forming in front of the Links. He dusted his hands off, as if the whole thing had been just a casual act. "There we go."

"How -" Vio began to say.

"Now's not the time." Shadow cut him off sharply. "We gotta figure out why Red wasn't turned into a zombie, then get out of here as fast as we can."

He's definitely hiding something. Nevertheless, Vio nodded. It was slightly unsettling when he thought about it, being inside his counterpart's memory bank, and the distorted world around him did nothing to make it better. He pushed the thought away and followed after Shadow, leaping through the portal. The sooner they got this over with, the sooner they could get back to the real world.

Immediately, the distorted world fell away from the two Links, folding in on itself rapidly until it was gone, and only a white haze surrounded them. A sharp intake of breath from Vio behind Shadow caused him to whip around.

What he saw almost made him want to be violently sick.

A man was standing over Red, his back turned to the two Links, not too far away from where Vio and Shadow were frozen. Red had collapsed; he lay facedown in a heap, thick, dark-red blood pooling underneath him. Clearly visible on his neck were two gaping puncture marks, like that of a viper's bite. Vio growled and started forward like he wanted to teach the man a few lessons, but Shadow quickly thrust an arm out, preventing him from taking another step.

"I-It's only a memory," he hissed, but he wasn't sure if he even believed himself as he gazed down at the sight of Red lying there.

The man turned, and Shadow could recognize him as one of the mindless, zombie-like people in the glass container he had seen at the town square before.

Was he… Unknown?

The man looked grotesque, his face sunken and hollow, and his clothes were torn, caked with dried blood and dust. Patches of skin that were visible on the zombie's body were torn off, showing the red, glistening insides of the monster. Blood was dripping down the monster's chin, and the man hungrily licked it off.

The three of them stared at each other for what seemed to be ages, until the demonic man grinned, showing rotting teeth, and hissed, Ah, how foolish you heroes are…Though the townsfolk will all be transformed into the undead, fear not… your friend here - The man brought his disoriented, crooked leg back and swung a heavy, well-placed kick into Red's side, causing Shadow and Vio to flinch - will serve the undead army as a beast. The cursed Triforce he carries protects him from becoming one of the undead himself, but he will be quite suitable as a beast.

Shadow and Vio exchanged worried glances. What was he talking about?...

The zombie smiled. Then, he snapped his gnarled, twisted fingers once, and the limp form of Red suddenly began to shudder. Coarse, crimson red fur began to sprout out of Red's visible skin, and he began to grow in size, becoming larger and larger until he was the size of a full-grown tiger. Red - or what used to be Red - fell onto all fours as long claws grew over his thick paws, scraping against the floor. The beast that had once been the Links' red counterpart turned to face them, snarling and baring its teeth, as a large, scarlet-red wolf. The beast's ears were flattened against its skull, and it was seething at Shadow and Vio with a burning hatred.

Have fun, now, The man laughed. When you get back to your puny little friends, tell them that the boy has exactly seven days before he turns into this beast. He motioned to the red wolf, then shrugged. Or we can kill you right here and now. It would save us from quite a lot of trouble… Yes. Know that, pesky humans, that you were murdered by your own friend, and there was nothing you could do.

Without warning, the blood-red wolf sprang forwards, and in an instant it was upon Vio. The violet Link let out a yell as the wolf knocked him backwards, clawing at him, trying to tear him apart. By pure luck, Vio managed to get his foot underneath the mutt, bracing it against the beast's stomach, and fling the monster to the side. Not bothering to pause and waste even a second, he yelled, "Run!" to Shadow, and they both took off for the portal, leaping through it to the strange world again, as the insane, cruel laughter of the man echoed behind them. Shadow glanced behind them as they ran through the grass to see the wolf streaking after them, gaining with each second. They would have to get rid of it if they wanted to ever leave this place.

Skidding to a halt, Shadow whipped around, summoning a blade of shadow. Just as the wolf lunged for him, fangs bared, claws outstretched, he cringed and thrust the knife straight into the wolf's chest.

Blood spurted out, drenching Shadow, as the wolf howled in pain, collapsing to the ground with a heavy thud. The mutt quickly scrambled back to its feet, growling at Shadow. But the look it gave him wasn't that of a wild, hostile beast considering him as prey anymore; it was regarding him as an equally-matched opponent, somebody that shouldn't be taken lightly.

Keeping its glowing, red eyes on him, the wolf backed away slowly, then bobbed its head as if nodding to him and turned, padding off into the distance until it was out of sight.

Stunned, Shadow lowered his knife. The beast had just let them go, just like that? He suddenly remembered Vio and looked around wildly, searching for him. "Vio!" he cried out. A small, stifled groan issued from behind him and he turned to see Vio standing there in the grass, clutching a hand to his chest.

"Oh, gosh, Vio, are you okay?" Shadow scrambled over to him. "Is it your…" He gently pried Vio's fingers away from his chest. Underneath, a gaping wound shone with blood, the cloth and skin having been torn away. "Was that the wolf?"

"M' okay…" Vio murmured. The world spun and slid sickeningly before him, like a taunting rollercoaster. "Yeah, I think so…"

"We've gotta get out of here. Can you stand?"

Grimacing, Vio tried to get up, but he stumbled and almost fell over, panting heavily.

Shadow winced. They wouldn't be able to make it very far, with Vio's injury. "Here, lemme help with that." He lowered himself, bending his knees slightly so that he could swing Vio over his shoulder, like a sack. Staggering slightly under Vio's added weight, Shadow managed to regain his footing. He could feel Vio's wound bleeding, warm blood soaking into his shoulder, but he ignored it.

"Could use an exit, here," he muttered, and almost instantly, another portal winked into existence up ahead, nearly twenty feet away from them.

"How did you..." Vio winced, turning pale, clutching tightly onto Shadow as he swayed weakly. "Uh, never mind."

Shadow began to walk slowly, carrying Vio to the portal. It was a slow process; Shadow had to stop at intervals and readjust Vio on his shoulder so he wouldn't fall off. But soon, they were nearing the portal, now only a few feet away.

"Getting close," Shadow reassured Vio. "You'll be fine, soon."

"Oh, joy," Vio murmured, trying to joke lightly, but his speech was slurring, mixing into an unintelligible whisper. Worried, Shadow cast a glance at the violet Link, and saw that his eyes were nearly closed, on the brink of passing out.

"Hang on, Vio." When they had reached the portal, Shadow gently lifted him off of his shoulder, leaning the wounded Link against him and grasping his pale, clammy hand in his. "Okay, on the count of three, we step into it at the same time. Got it?"

Vio nodded.

"One…"

"Two..."

"Three!" Shadow and Vio stepped through the portal. They both felt themselves lurch forward, and then they were falling through complete black.

As they fell, a soft voice suddenly issued throughout the darkness, sweet and gentle.

"Heroes…"

Shadow started in surprise. Who...?

"Remember this… Slaverus Draconius… remember..."

What?... Shadow wondered, but it was too late. As if it were a real, living being, the darkness around them suddenly lunged for them, the dark matter licking up their skin, and swallowed them whole.