Chapter Three: The Truth
Paul Dinletir

Link's eyes widen, his feet moving backwards involuntarily. He trips over a stray book, barely managing to catch himself on his elbows. Zelda's tiara shines in front of him, almost teasing him, reminding him he was too late. It takes a moment for him to get over the initial shock and stand up, and then he mentally slaps himself and starts thinking.

Well, the Princess being forcibly removed from the Castle premises means that there is definitely something more sinister going on here than a mere kitchen servant's accident. This fire is magic-made - the abundance of black smoke in Zelda's study shows that magic had been used here, but the young blond doubts the torch was set here as well. With the small, dwindling hope that the Princess is still in the Castle, but no time to grieve or think further, Link puts his weight on his heel, turns around, and leaves the room.

From the broken window, a mass of darkness steals into Zelda's quarters, scoops up her tiara, and seeps away once more, unnoticed in the roaring flames.

As Link races, breath catching in his throat, clothes singed from ash, this small black puddle-like thing drops carefully down the side of the tower, across the burning courtyard, and out of immediate danger of the blaze. It slowly begins to take form, stretching and solidifying until it becomes human like, and then it gains features. Bright eyes, glowing red in the fire-lit evening, skin paper-white and almost gray (as if smoke has collected behind the features of the creature's face), dark clothing appearing clean and unaffected by the fire around him. The oddly familiar features of a boy who is not far off, but sharper, a hat that seems to have a mind of his own.

The shadow of a boy looks down at the tiara now lying in his palms and grins, flashing sharp canines and sinister intent. He admires it for a bit - holds it up to the light of the moon, traces the intricate leaf design with a fingernail - and then he laughs, short and malicious, before transitioning back into darkness and racing across the freshly flaming lawn.


Link runs to the doors to the Sanctum, but they have been destroyed and lay in pieces around him. It's definitely by force or magic - no way a fire or breaking wall could cause it to smash into pieces like this. It scares him more than he can think about, and he takes the massive adrenaline he gets from fear and turns it into energy, climbing over the biggest parts and dropping with an even roll into the former Throne Room.

The seats of the Royal Family, across the circular room, have been singed and broken beyond repair. Ash floats through the room, suspended as if the air has suddenly stilled. The atmospheric candles have fallen, the wax dripping over the stone, the fire rises all way to the top, the stained glass windows only exist in colored shards sparkling on the floor, the whole room looks terrible.

Link has never seen the Castle in such a state of disarray, or this room lack of people, and it strikes him. It tells him that the Princess, as well as her aging father, are gone. It takes the hopeful spark in his chest and snuffs it from existence, laughing at him and leaving his chest empty and hollow. Despite this, the boy runs forward, ash collecting on his tunic and hat as he stirs the air around him. The fire burns his eyes, he doesn't know how long his eyes have been watering, nor how long his shoulders and legs have been being singed with ash. He doesn't have the time to focus on his pain, however, he just wants to see if anyone is here -

He gets about halfway across the room before he trips, this time over something that makes a loud clanking noise behind him. It takes him a second to collect himself, and he stands on one knee and listens to the lightning crackle of the flames as he prepares himself. Whatever he tripped over could be anything, likely a sign to who or what was in this room previously. Finally, Link turns around, and falls once again to his knees and elbows in shock.

Instead of the belonging of a monster or evil being, it's something quite familiar - his father's sword.

The boy stares for a moment, unable to process the ownerless blade in front of him. After a second, the fire pops around him and he suddenly realizes his Father was likely in here, and now he's gone. His mind starts shutting down and his vision gets hazy, fog covering his mind for a few seconds before his subconscious reminds him he needs to get going. If his Father had to flee (or some worse fate) so quickly as to leave his sword behind, something terrible happened here and he needs to leave before something happens to him. If his father and the Princess are both MIA, it's only a matter of time before whatever is behind this fire gets to him.

Link picks the Guard Captain's sword off the ground and heads immediately for the doors. Before he can get there, the ground shakes violently, throwing him onto his face for the umpteenth time, and the remaining frame of the door collapses.

"Din dang it!" The young hero yells, at this point fed up with how poorly everything has gone. He stands up in a second, and immediately begins scaling the small pile of door parts that have collected, all while dragging his father's sword. He doesn't want to leave it, as, despite the implications, it could be all that remains of the Guard Captain.

Finally, he gets back to the hall. It seems like the fire goes out wherever he goes, and he doesn't know why, but he's glad it's dying. The small ideal of peace he suddenly gets is just as swiftly shattered by the very ground under his feet, though, as it shakes violently. He doesn't fall on his face, but his heart skips a beat and terror seizes his body. By the time Link gets over the shock, the largest of the tremors is over but he knows it's not the last. It's an earthquake.

He wonders to himself why all this is happening. It's been less than a year since the Four Sword was returned - according to all known laws of Heroism, it should be his great-great-grandson who fends off the next bad guy. And this fire is definitely magic-made - the strange way it acts is proof of that. It even shied away at the prospect of an earthquake, and normal fire doesn't do that.

Link runs down the hall with all the speed he can muster in a smoke-filled, collapsing castle of broken dreams and hidden passages, hoping to get out before something happens. As he runs, he shoulders his father's sword to try to go faster, and starts thinking about the Four Sword. He hopes it's going to be okay - in all seriousness it should, as the Four Sword Shrine is a ways from the Castle, but the blue-eyed boy can't shake the feeling that something will happen to it during the course of today (tonight?)'s events. The feeling does not go away as he enters the next hall, trying to find his way out among the inaccessible halls and closed-off rooms.

Down this hall, however, the ground begins shaking violently again and the teen is flung against the wall in self-preservation and instinct. He watches in awe, unable to move, as the red carpet and stone down the hall begins to crack far to his right. The freshly-made hole in the ground doesn't seem to be going anywhere, however, so although the ground shakes and throws him off balance, Link decides to take refuge in the nearest room he can find. Halls are never safe in earthquakes.

As if sensing his movement, the split in the previously pristine flooring suddenly speeds up. Link panics, tripping over his own feet and dropping his father's sword on the carpet. The fissure moves toward him quickly, and he knows he has to think fast. He can either save the Guard Captain's sword and fall into a crater who-knows how deep, getting trapped and possibly killed. Alternatively, he could cut his losses and make a dash for the door, which has a much higher survival rate. Even as he considers, he knows which he has to pick - it pains him, but he picks himself off the ground, abandoning his father's memento, and speeds away from the splitting floor. He doesn't have time to cry, or to say anything, before the earthquake pushes the crack to him and he falls, powerless, downward.


WHAT IS IT WITH ME AND CLIffhangers danG

Is Link gonna survive? How much longer until the four are here? What happened to Zelda? His dad? Also how long until there's four? Who was that boy? HOW MUCH LONGER UNTIL THERE'S FOUR?

Yo questions will be answered in due time mah dudes

-Starr