AUTHOR'S NOTE
Being sick is the WORST. I've been sick for a week now. And I developed an allergy to the antibiotics the doctor gave me. Good news though; more writing more often! Bad news; shorter chapters. This is one of the short ones. But hopefully you enjoy it anyway!
Thank you for the follows and favorites! You guys are the best.
CHAPTER 4
Helping Hands
Link hated to admit it, but Dark had possibly been right about the rooms behind the hidden doorway in the elevator room. There had been several more dark hallways to crawl through, opening up to small rooms with surprisingly high ceilings. The main source of light in these rooms came from creatures that Dark called Chu Chus, which resembled blobs of jelly. At first glance, Link had thought their bodies glowed in the dark, but he soon realized their radiance was caused by a field of electricity they were able to generate at will. Aside from the electricity they didn't seem to be dangerous, but Link wasn't in the mood to get close enough to find out.
As promised, they had encountered several more empty treasure chests. Link knew that Dark wasn't carrying everything he had taken on him, but he surmised that if he were to look a little closer around the room with the tree, he would find it all. The most interesting empty treasure chest had been located in the third room they encountered. It was a large chest, one that was already open when they entered the room. It rested on a pedestal in the center of the room that had ancient Hylian characters inscribed on it. Dark claimed that this one had been empty when he found it, and his reluctance to admit it told Link it was true. Unlike most treasure chests, this one was not meant to have something taken out of it. It was meant to have something put in it. If only he knew what that something was, he felt he would have been able to unlock the secrets of the temple - or at the very least, of that room.
And now, reflecting on the things, or lack thereof, they had found, they were both standing on the elevator as it carried them to the floor below. Although it initially had reminded him vaguely of the elevator in the Forest Temple, but with a torch attached to every corner of the structure rather than simply surrounding it, this particular elevator operated in a different way. Despite jumping on it, changing the order of the torches, examining the another hidden switch, and simply begging it to move, the elevator stood still. Finally, though, while standing on the structure and looking up in anguish, Link spotted a small, black circle on the roof of the elevator; a second slab of wood supported by four poles. Reaching up to touch it had resulted in it falling off, revealing a small torch that needed to be lit in order for the elevator to move. Considering the amount of effort Link had to put into locating that, he wasn't surprised that Dark hadn't realized that the elevator had any function beyond being a decoration.
As they descended to the next level, Link tried hard not to think about the flickering torchlight above them, or how the elevator would most likely dump them to the ground as quickly as possible should that light be blown out by the sudden increase in airflow caused by the elevator's movement. Instead, he chose to focus on Dark's hands gripped around one of the supporting poles of the elevator, his knuckles turning whiter and his eyes widening at every passing second. He obviously suffered from a fear of heights, and Link guessed he was worried about falling. As the structure neared the ground, he jumped off, rolling to his feet and turning around to smile at Dark.
"Need some help?" he asked, extending his hand towards his frightened companion. Even though the elevator was now safely on the ground, Dark was still holding himself up by the pole. For a second, it looked like he might actually accept the offer, but then he let go and shook his head.
"You Hero types are all the same," he criticized, hopping off the elevator like the trip downstairs had been nothing. "You see weakness when it isn't there, and worse, you offer to help instead of eliminating it. You make me sick." He walked past Link, plunging into the narrow walkway that was meant to lead them to the next room in the temple. Link followed behind him, resting the hand he had offered to Dark at his side. Hearing something he had devoted his whole life to, something that was naturally in his nature spoken about in such a way was hurtful. He bit the inside of his cheek, trying to not say anything in response. He still needed Dark's help if he was going to make it out of the temple. And he felt sure, now more than ever, that Dark would not willingly help a true Hero. But he couldn't just stay silent. He always stood up for what he believed in. That was his way - a Hero's way.
"I think that maybe us 'Hero types' just realize that everyone needs help once in a while, and needing it doesn't have anything to do with weakness." They exited the walkway, which had opened up to a small rectangular room that looked like many of the others they had encountered in the Temple of Light. "There's nothing wrong with letting people know that someone is there for them." Link pulled out his longshot, shooting at various areas on the wall. He had done this in all the rooms they had gone to in the hopes of finding something, but in this case he was simply using it to drown out the rest of the words he was saying under his breath.
"If people want help, they'll ask for it." Dark had to shout over the clinking of the longshot. He walked once around the perimeter of the room, and then stood in front of the doorway to the next room with his arms crossed. Link looked at him with curiosity. When he was exploring, he was usually content to just walk around and look at things, but he took the extra measures by using the longshot and his other weapons in every room of this temple because Dark had asked for his help. All this time, he had been wondering why Dark only guided him to each room, but never helped him look through them. And he wondered about that even more now that they were in a room Dark clearly had not been to before. But maybe there was a simple answer. Maybe it was because Link hadn't asked.
"What about if I asked for help?" He held his longshot up, finger pressed over the trigger as he waited for a response from Dark.
"You don't really need my help." Clang. Link pressed the trigger, shooting the longshot up at the wall yet again. "Just my eyes, and maybe my sense of direction. And those won't help you with that thing you keep using." He gestured at the longshot, obviously not quite sure of what it was.
"It's called a longshot," Link supplied helpfully, holding it out to him. "It doesn't seem to do too much in here. But when we get back to Hyrule, I can show you how it's meant to be used." In this temple full of carved stone walls and smooth doorways, there was nothing for his longshot to grab onto. But outside, where there were a wider variety of textures, the possibilities were endless.
"You're from Hyrule," Dark stated matter-of-factly, ignoring the offered weapon. Though he had been away from the world for a long time, it didn't surprise him to hear that. From what he remembered about the people of Hyrule, they were polite and helpful. That certainly seemed to describe Link. "What's it like?" He asked the question softly, both curious and afraid to hear the answer.
Link looked at him in confusion. "Aren't you from Hyrule too?" He had always imagined there was more to the world than Hyrule, of course - a world hidden beyond the reaches of Lake Hylia, buried deep under the sand of the Gerudo Desert, or at the end of the seemingly endless maze that was the Lost Woods. But never had he met someone who had traveled past those areas, should it even be possible to do so.
"Yes," Dark shot back at him angrily. "I just haven't been there in a while, that's all." It was the truth, he supposed, though he wasn't sure if the area he still thought of as 'home' was considered a part of Hyrule anymore. They had been in the middle of a war when he left, after all.
"Well," Link said, tucking the longshot back under his belt. "It's changed a lot in the past year, that's for sure." That was the easiest way for him to put it, when he wasn't sure when Dark had last been there or where his loyalties lied.
"Changed how?" Surely more changes had gone on since he had left than just the ones from the past year, but he still wanted to know more about Hyrule as it was today.
"For the better." He wasn't about to give out any additional information, not when it was possible that Dark was one of Ganon's supporters. "When will you be returning?"
"I won't be." Dark's tone turned bitter, and he turned away. He had accepted years ago that he would never see anything outside the temple again. But that didn't make it any easier for him to be reminded of it.
"You have to cross through Hyrule to get anywhere else, you know." Dark's resentment hadn't gone unnoticed by him, but he didn't think Dark would be the type of person to take kindly to inquiries about his well-being. Shaking his head slightly, he pulled out the lens of truth to make sure he hadn't missed anything.
"What's that?" Dark asked, his gaze zeroing in on the purple lens. He approached Link, grabbing the lens from his hand before he had time to react.
"Hey!" Link cried out, but Dark had stopped paying attention to him. He examined the glass, taking in its purple handle, three-pronged red spikes, and the red slit in the middle of the glass that looked eerily like an eye.
"Where did you get this?" Dark held onto the lens protectively, glaring at Link in an accusing way.
"Kakariko Village." Link held out his hand, staring at Dark as he reluctantly gave up the lens. "I like to travel, and I seem to pick up a new souvenir every time I do so." Even though he didn't really consider the tools and weapons he walked away with to be real souvenirs, other people might see it differently. "This is just one of the many things I've collected." There had to be a real person behind Dark's arrogant and impish facade, and by sharing something about himself, he hoped that Dark would reciprocate.
"That's too bad, really." He had lost interest in the lens as soon as he heard it was nothing more than a simple keepsake to his companion, and he had lost interest in being in the same room with Link as soon as he realized he wasn't going to tell him anything important. He wandered out the door and into the next room, leaving the echo of his words behind.
"It's too bad that I like to travel? Or it's too bad that I pick up souvenirs?" Visiting new places meant there were new people to meet and new things to learn; and souvenirs, whether they were small objects or impressive weapons, always held memories. Link didn't think either one of them was bad.
"Bingo," Dark said, his voice and the accompanying snap of his fingers pinpointing his location. Link walked forward, both hands in front and just a little to the side of his so he didn't bump into anything.
"You found something?" he called out hopefully.
"I'm trying to tell you that you should find a new hobby." He could almost feel bad for Link. But if he couldn't even feel bad for himself, he found no reason to take pity on a stranger. "You won't be able to travel now. You're trapped here. Just like me."
Link stopped in his tracks, the unexpected words hitting him with momentary confusion. "What do you mean, trapped?" It hadn't been the first time that Dark indicated he couldn't leave the temple, but he had thought that was his decision. Now it sounded like he didn't have a choice. He ran forward, ignoring his instincts that were telling him to move slower when he couldn't see very well, and somehow made it past Dark, turning around to confront him.
Dark threw his back against the wall, glaring woefully at the man blocking his path. "I mean trapped. Stuck. We're prisoners. We can't get out." He was surprised by how much it still hurt him to say it out loud. He had heard once that time healed all wounds, but it didn't seem to be true in his case.
"If there's a way in , there's a way out." Link was nothing if not confident.
"And when the door slammed behind you on your way in, did you bother to see if it would open again?" Link didn't have to say anything. The look on his face said it all. "Didn't think so," Dark said, almost triumphantly.
"How long have you been here?" Link asked. It didn't make a difference, he supposed. But he always liked to try and prepare for the worst case scenario. Besides, he wanted the answer for other reasons.
Dark leaned forward, getting as close to Link as he dared. "My hair was shorter than yours when I first set foot in this temple." He lifted his hair up, gazing at it with distaste. The ends of his hair rested halfway down his torso, hanging limp and greasy from his head. He had recently considered cutting it with his sword again, but wasn't sure he wanted to take the risk. Last time he had tried to make it shorter, he almost injured himself with the sharp point of his blade.
"We should go check on the door." Link's hands were shaking, but he held his head high as he walked back the way they had come, like facing the situation with pride would change the outcome. Dark did have a twisted sense of humor, and it was entirely possible he was lying. But it would explain a lot, if he was right - such as why he wasn't searching any of the rooms as heavily as Link. Why expend all your efforts at one time, if you know you have the rest of your life to look?
"If you want to try and leave, go ahead." Dark followed him, resisting the temptation to whistle a cheery tune behind him as they entered the narrow walkway to the elevator. "But you'll see, I'm right."
They were finally there. The moment of truth. Link stood once again at the door to the Temple of Light, almost afraid to try and open it. The handle was right in front of him, yet it seemed millions of miles away, his hands taking forever to reach out and grab it.
"Go on," Dark urged him, sounding almost as anxious as Link felt. It was like he, too, was unsure what the outcome would be - that even though he knew what should happen, he was holding onto the hope, and the fear, that it would be different this time.
Link's fingers grasped the handle, and his arm twisted as if to open the door. But then he stopped, and without warning whirled around to face Dark. "Did you ever try and open it? Even once? Or did you just assume that you couldn't leave?"
"Of course I tried," Dark told him, sounding almost insulted. "It was the first thing I did, when...well, it doesn't matter." He looked like he didn't want to discuss this any further.
Link faced the door again, sighing before quietly asking his companion: "What happened?"
Dark rolled his eyes, knowing that Link would never open the door by himself. He pushed past him, grabbing the handle. "Here," he declared, yanking hard on the door. It opened, revealing a wall of rock, daylight peeking in through the cracks and lighting up the hallway just enough for Link to see clearly.
"But…" Link looked at it in awe, not sure whether to be more alarmed, or impressed, that the rock he so clearly remembered blowing up had somehow repaired itself and covered the door again during the time he had been exploring. He started to feel the first touches of fear at the back of his mind, fighting for control. He pushed it back with a question. "How?"
Dark laughed at him, like it was the most ridiculous question he had ever heard. "How would I know? I certainly didn't put it there, if that's what you're implying." He moved to shut the door, but Link stuck his arm between him and the door, blocking his way.
"I want to check something out," he explained. Dark shrugged, stepping backwards to let Link do what he wanted. There wasn't any way he could make the situation worse, but he also firmly believed there was no way to make the situation better. Might as well let him figure that out himself.
Link stepped closer to the entryway, feeling the magic on the wall crackle around him ominously. And then he remembered – the illusion. The rock wall over the door had been an illusion, and he had still been using the lens of truth when he walked inside. They could probably just walk through it. And even if they couldn't, the wall obviously had some weak points. He could use a bomb to blow it up, creating a space for them to exit through. But he had to be sure.
His fingers brushed past the door, reaching out towards the rock. He could feel the warmth of the sunlight outside, and he even thought he heard the wind, and Epona shuffling through the grass. He stopped, hesitating, before he reached forward.
Dark was watching, part of his mind screaming at Link to stop and the other part urging him on. He had never once reached out to touch the rock. He had seen it, and that was enough to realize that he would never truly see the outside world again. In some ways, he worried it would be too real, to touch it. If he never investigated further, he would spend the rest of his life thinking he was trapped - and he would rather that, than explore and find out that he really was trapped. But now, seeing Link doing without hesitation what he had always been scared to do, he wondered if maybe he was wrong - that there was a way out of the temple, after all.
Bang. The loud noise interrupted his thoughts, jerking him back to reality. He heard a rushing noise, and caught sight of Link in the air above him, flying backwards. His back hit the floor, his groans lost amid the echo of his fall. Dark wasn't exactly sure what had happened, but when he looked at the still-open door, he could guess: Link had been thrown backwards from the cause of the noise; a gently glowing forcefield that had appeared over the temple doorway. He had his answer. They really were trapped.
IN CLOSING
I know, I know. It was short. Still not as short as Chapter 1, mind you.
Don't forget to check back for Chapter 5: Half the Battle. Thank you for reading / following / favoriting / reviewing!
