~Chapter 4~ (Yup – 'nother short chapter)
Link walked over to the other side of the hall, leaving behind the clamour of the demon guards that were attempting to enter the hall. As he crossed the floor, lightning flashed from outside and illuminated the room. The howling wind blocked out the sounds of panic. The shield was as the wild-men had described it – a silvery white shield with the kestrel and moon that Link had seen almost everywhere within the castle. He reached up, and somehow managed to just grab it with his fingertips, taking it down from the wall. Strange… it did not seem to reflect the health of the land, nor did he feel a great inner peace come over him, but he put these down to exaggerated myths and legends created around the shield over the centuries since its creation.
It was then that he noticed the other presence in the room. Or rather, he felt it. Slowly, still gripping the shield between both hands, he turned around. There was a figure in the room clad in white and blue armour that was chequered on the left breast and down the right leg and he was holding a white lance. There was also a sword on his left hip, and a mace on his back. Whoever it was, he could not tell because he was helmeted, but Link suspected that this was Sir Jerusinus.
"So this is the fairy boy from the far away land that you told me about, Fuorresh?" Link looked around, but he did not see the demon creature named Fuorresh anywhere. The knight appeared to be talking to himself. He is the Hero of Time. Fuorresh answered in his telepathic way, and yet his words seemed to reverberate around the hall as if they had been spoken. "The 'Hero of Time'? A grand title for a child – one I am sure you deserve and earned with courage and strength," the knight mused. He drew his mace and cast his lance aside. "However, your epic days are over, child. You made a mistake coming to Morëkotu. Your time is up – 'hero of Time'!" The knight advanced towards Link, and Link lifted the Shield of Irishati up over his head in defence.
The mace came crashing down onto the shield, causing a huge dent in it and the sound of buckling metal echoed about the room. Link was forced down onto one knee under the pressure of the blow, but he still held fast and kept his strength. The mace struck another blow, and the shield shattered, and Link's hopes of restoring the land along with it. The knight laughed. "And now, for you!" Link turned to the staircase - and ran.
The knight followed him up onto the second floor, and Link clambered out of a shattered window onto a small ledge. Holding onto the cracks in the wall, he edged his way slowly along until he came to a flat part of the roof. The demon archers below had spotted him and were attempting to shoot him down, but as of yet the nearest arrow had missed him by a metre. Snow blew about him fiercely, aiding him by hiding him from the archers, but hindering his own sight. He drew his sword and shield and he put a hand up to his eyes and looked about him wildly, his heart beating fiercely in his chest with a mixture of fear and adrenaline. Something on the roof made a sound and Link swivelled around to see if it was his pursuer. The knight was on the roof, but not at the point where the sound had originated from; in that space, there was Fuorresh. Knowing that Link could not face them both, he backed away from them, coming closer and closer to the edge of the roof. He could see that there were no demons down below him, only the soft white snow and serrated mountain rocks. All of the time his mind was trying to devise some sort of escape plan, yet he saw nothing that he could do. He withdrew onto the very edge of the roof, and wobbled slightly, arching his back to regain his balance. But just as he thought he was stable again, his foot slipped in the snow, and Link fell.
~End of Chapter 4~
A/N: I would love to know if the fighting scenes are antagonising, boring, or completely devoid of anything coming anywhere near to provoking any sort of emotion. Writing fight scenes is a lot different than reading it for the first time. So if anyone could send in a review about this particular point (and possible ways to improve), I'll be very grateful. Thanks!