K'ger: Ok, not much to say here, except be weary, again, gory stuff, dark themes, death. Should be used to that by now but I'm gonna be cautious.
But I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas!
(I got Ocarina of Time 3D! Its amazing!)
I do have a question for all my readers, though. Do you think I should switch to an M rating? Is this too dark? Too gruesome?
Touched by a God
Malon looked at her father, worry sparking in her blue eyes.
"Are you sure you can handle the ranch all by yourself? It's been years since you've even picked up a pitchfork, let alone take care of close to twenty horses." She asked, glancing at the compound, horses were grazing in the pastures, and a few Cuccos were scratching around, digging up worms and eating insects they happened upon. The thought of leaving her now elderly father in charge of her home was frightening.
Talon laughed softly, waving her off with a dismissive flick of his wrist.
"Oh, I'll be alright. Go, someone has to help Romani through this. And these old bones weren't made for travelin'." He answered, looking past Malon. Epona and Cerus stood beside the front gates, tacked-up and ready, with full saddlebags hanging over their haunches. Next to Epona, the young mahogany filly stood, big brown eyes taking in every detail of the huge world around her, and occasionally yanking against the rope halter that kept her close to her mother.
Epona would then give a half-annoyed whinny, and nudge her foal with her muzzle, urging her to be calm and stand still. Not an easy task for a young foal.
Jack and McKenna emerged from the house, heavily packed satchels hanging over their shoulders. McKenna had changed from her usual red and gold skirt and chest wrapping, opting for a more travel-hardy red, form-fitting shirt, and cotton trousers. Jack had changed less than her, the only difference being the vest that he now wore. It was pure tanned leather, with delicate tooling over the chest and shoulders.
Following closely behind them, Kara and Rinku bounced out of the house, the little girl was wearing a simple white dress with purple embroidered flowers and miniature work boots. The little boy, on the other hand, wore a tunic of blue fabric, and the same boots as his sister.
Malon hugged her father quickly, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, and then moved over to Epona with a nod of her head. She swung easily onto the huge mare's back, and leaning down, brought both children onto the horse with her, settling them in front of her and keeping her arms around them for safety.
With a final wave, Malon kicked Epona through the gates, the young filly trotting bouncily alongside and Jack and McKenna following behind on Cerus.
"Mommy, where're we goin'?" Kara asked, craning her head back so that she met her mother's eyes. Malon's fake smile faded altogether, and to comfort herself, she began to run her fingers through Epona's thick white mane, focusing on the way each individual stand slipped through her fingers.
"We…uh…we're going to visit your cousin, Romani…"
They rode for the remainder of the day, across Hyrule Field and entering the forest. As they traveled through the thick forest, Malon kept a careful watch, always searching for a clue, a sign, anything that pointed to where Link was.
The sun was starting to set, falling below the tree line in a blaze of reds and oranges, and as the group broke through a particularly thick bit of underbrush, the horses stopped abruptly. Before them, the ruined remains of the Escorlan Estate were spread. Smoldering rubble, embers occasionally still clinging to the wooden beams that remained intact on the ground.
Malon couldn't suppress a small gasp, and quickly covered her mouth with one hand to quiet herself, not wanting to frighten the children. Jack and McKenna rode up beside Epona, both of them with their mouths agape at the ghastly sight that was laid across their lines' of sight.
"Momma, what's this?" Rinku asked in a small, meek little voice, one that was obviously underused. Absently, Malon reached forward and rubbed a hand over his small head in a reassuring way, fingers brushing against his bluntly pointed ears.
"It's ruined…" She said breathlessly, putting both hands forward and holding the two children more snuggly against her. She tapped Epona's sides with her heels, urging the mare to take them closer to the rubble, and sat with a stiff back, shivering as a chilling thought came to mind. Had Link gotten caught in the fire? Would she find Link, dead, in the rubble?
These thoughts spiraled out of control as the mare slowly made her way down the hillside, each one worse than the last.
But as the group rode somberly over the rubble remains of the estate, they found no sign of Link, or anyone, for that matter. That is, until they reached a barren patch Malon guessed to be part of the courtyard. Epona stopped abruptly, and soon after she caught sight of why the horse had stopped, Malon gasped and whirled the horse around in an instant to keep the children from seeing what she had viewed.
Looking to her right, she saw that Jack and McKenna's horse, Cerus, had stopped as well, and both of his riders were staring at the same thing she had seen. She leaned to the side, so that only they could hear.
"I have to get these two out of here, they don't need to see that." And with that, Malon spurred Epona forward, urging the mare into a brisk canter over the rubble, further toward the east with the filly following obediently beside her mother.
Jack and McKenna stared at the gruesome sight before them for a few minutes more, entranced, before snapping out of their stupors and quickly wheeling Cerus around, bidding the stallion to follow after Epona and Malon.
They quickly caught up with her, and rode alongside as Malon whisked them all away from the sickening pile of bodies they had found, blood still dripping from the lifeless corpses. But the more sickening sight had been what lay before the pile. A message had been scrawled in their blood.
"Watch your backs."
Who would have done such a thing? Ever since Ganon had been defeated six years ago, most people didn't even dare touch Hyrule, let alone massacre the entire estate of one of the most affluent Dukes in the kingdom. It was a grand statement all right, teetering on a declaration of war. But who was declaring it was yet unknown. The nearest kingdom was Termina, and although it was true that Termina and Hyrule weren't allies with one another, they had never diplomatically shown distaste, especially with such a brutal display.
They rode quickly through the remainder of the forest, eventually slowing to an easy trot when the forest became sparse, only a few trees dotting their views and instead being replaced by the massive expanse of an open field.
The grass was tall, and swayed in the gentle night breeze. The moon shown down on the field, giving the grass a haunting, ghostly appearance, like the grasses of an ethereal plain talked of in the legends of old.
They rode slowly into the field, horses bobbing their heads, sniffing at the unfamiliar air and taking in the scents that surrounded them. Kara and Rinku were both leaning against her chest, quickly being soothed into sleep by the gentle rocking motions of Epona's steps. Their travels continued silently for another hour or so, heading deep into the night, not a one of the adults making a sound, all too scarred to speak.
Instead, they merely listened intently to the sounds of the night. The soft chirping of crickets that hid deep in the grasses, out of sight but serenading the few creatures that stayed awake to hear their desolate song. The occasional twittering of a bird that had been woken from its slumber. The thud of their horses' hooves on the ground, a rhythmic beat like the solemn pounding of a drum.
As they listened, and tried desperately to forget the gruesome images that were currently locked tight in their minds, Malon, Jack and McKenna were jarred abruptly from their thoughts as the horses came to a standstill.
Cerus pulled his head back, ears slowly turning to lie flat against his neck, and Epona gave a cautious tilt to her shoulder, both shielding her foal from oncoming danger and making it easier for herself if the need to take flight arose. Malon looked forward nervously, eyes once unfocused now sharpening, coming to rest on a strange looking creature a few hundred feet away. Epona's muscles tightened underneath her saddle, and Malon grabbed tight to the mare's mane as she gave a warning stomp of her hoof.
The strange creature did not move, other than tipping its head back a miniscule bit. But from deep inside it's thickly furred throat, a startling howl erupted. It was a low, baleful sound, piercing the night sky and sending a shiver down Malon's spine. The melancholic howl drawled on into the night, dying off low, and the creature turned slightly, it's face twisting toward them a few more inches and coming into the direct light of the moon.
It was an odd creature, the shape of its body resembled that of a stag, tall, with a long body slumping down toward the back and blending seamlessly into its hind legs. Its legs were thick, but elegant, curving inward and becoming thinner toward its hooves, and a thick ruff of brownish-gold fur covered its heavily muscled neck, hanging low in front of its thick barrel chest. But its head was arbitrary for its body, with a long, narrowing muzzle, like that of a wolf, and eyes centered more toward the middle of its face, again more like a wolf than a dear.
Its eyes blazed bright gold in the dark, with silver pupils that reflected the moonlight.
Epona threw back her head, ears flicking back and forth out of fear and distrust, and she put her head down, nudging her foal away and turning sideways when the creature started toward them. Its gait was like the movement of liquid silver, pure and smooth, the very essence of grace.
Its head remained completely still as it walked, lifting each hoof high into the air and setting it down without the slightest waver. The horses neighed cautioning words in their own tongues to the creature, willing it to stop, to go on its own way.
But the creature did not listen to the horses' reasoning. It continued toward Epona, eyes completely affixed on Malon as it stepped even closer. Malon remained atop Epona, frozen as the creature came so close that she could feel its breath on her face. It reached forward with its narrow muzzle, pressing its nose against her forehead, taking in her scent. Its nose was wet, and cold against her skin, like the nose of a dog.
She looked into the creature's eyes, and the blood drained from her face as it opened its mouth a small ways, revealing the sharp, yellowing teeth that lined the inside of its mouth, lodged firmly in the pink flesh of its gums and glistening with saliva.
Her eyes momentarily flicked down to where her two children were leaning against her, peacefully asleep and completely unaware of the creature that stood mere inches from them. The creature met Malon's gaze again, then turned quickly, its body bunching up tightly before it sprung, leaping like a deer.
It bounded away, dodging to the left and right sporadically, and all three adults stared in wide-eyed awe at the trail the creature left behind.
The padded down grass where the creature had landed started to glow, a faint white light at first, but growing brighter as the creature fled further and further into the night, until the only thing they could see were the prints it left behind.
Looking to direction in which the creature had fled, Malon could vaguely see a strange silhouette on the horizon. A tower, highest point clawing at the black velvet sky, giant walls protecting it from below, and the face of a massive clock shining like a beacon in the night, illuminated by flickering firelight.
"What in the hell was that…thing-?" Jack asked breathlessly, wrapping an arm around McKenna's waist from behind her on Cerus. Malon stared after the creature as well, eyes occasionally moving down to the path that the beast had left behind.
"I might be wrong, but I think that thing was a God." McKenna answered, leaning back against Jack's chest. Malon jerked her head toward her travel companions, and then gave Epona a soft kick. The mare started forward obediently, but her gait was reserved, bunched up with nerves.
"Mal? Where are you going?" McKenna asked, watching as her friend rode swiftly after the strange creature.
Malon stopped Epona for a moment, and turned the mare to the side so that she could look at her friends.
"I think we should follow it…"
Link was led out of the wagon, wrists tied behind his back. He stole one last glance at Benji and Annalise, grimacing at their frightened gazes before the door was slammed shut by Mistress Fala.
"Get moving, boy." The other woman commanded, pressing a hand against his back and pushing him forward. He gasped from the force of her push, and staggered for the first few steps he took. When he lifted his head, he found that the woman was directing him toward another wagon. This wagon was open-faced, and the inside was stuffed to the brim with metal. Scrap metal, rusting and battered with age.
The two horses that stood, hitched to the wagon, were a sorry sight. They were old, geriatric in Link's eyes, with heavily swayed backs and gray hairs peppering their brown coats, until they looked whiter than the latter. Their hooves were cracked in places, and on their sides, underneath their harnessing, he caught a glimpse of ribs protruding from beyond their coats.
Another man was standing alongside the wagon, and he took a hold of Link's ropes when he drew near.
The man that held his bonds was actually shorter than him, with short black hair that was balding around the top of his round head. When their eyes met, a chill rippled through his body. The man's eyes were lifeless, black portals to an empty soul, and when he tipped his head slightly to one side, Link saw the black swirling lines of a tattoo similar to his own cascading around the man's neck.
He was another of the woman's slaves.
"Keep this one close, Zepora. This one isn't broken yet, and as a wild spirit." The woman mused, addressing the man holding him. The man dipped his head, acknowledging her, and after, the woman smiled and strode toward the front of the wagon, swinging onto the seat.
Moments later, the cart heaved forward, accompanied by the familiar clatter of horses' hooves and creaking of wagon wheels. The man called Zepora tugged on his ropes, dragging him forward after the moving wagon.
He was led through the town, not allowed the time to wonder at the narrow streets that darted off from the main road, or eye the wares that street vendors were peddling. Instead, he was dragged through at an impressive clip, reaching the field on the other side of the city walls within minutes…
He ground his teeth as he walked. The ropes were digging into his skin, leaving red, raw marks in its wake, stinging as it rubbed the first layer of his skin away and revealed the bloody flesh beyond. The wagon shuddered beside him, drawing his attention, and he stopped when he bumped softly into the man that was dragging him along.
The wagon had stopped, and edging forward a small bit, Link saw that the horses were staring straight ahead, into the shallow foothills that they had been heading toward. The small group that had been accompanying the woman gave collective sounds of awe, surprise and fear as the horses neighed softly, and then dropped onto their knees in an action that resembled that of a bow. A few hundred feet away, a strange looking creature stood.
The creature startled the group, all save Link, who could only stare at it with interest, when it suddenly leapt forward, covering close to fifty feet in a single bound.
The horses remained in their bow as the creature leapt again, and again, coming closer until it was mere feet from the group. The other members backed away, but Link stood where he was, curiosity and interest sparking in his deep sapphire eyes.
The creature, after looking at the woman intently, came directly over to him, stopping only when its wolf-like face was mere inches from his. He shuddered slightly, but stayed still when it reached forward and pressed a cold wet nose against his forehead.
"Kill that demon!" The woman shrieked suddenly. Only a split second later, Link leapt back when a gut-wrenching roar ripped from the creature's throat, and the strange beast rose up onto its hind legs, kicking out wildly with the front as an arrow buried deep into its side.
Shimmering blue blood quickly began to drip from where the arrow now resided, matting the creature's brownish-gold fur and spilling onto the rough leather of his boots as he desperately fought to dodge the beast's flailing hooves.
A cruel laugh came from the wagon, and glancing to the side, Link could see that the woman had stood from her seat, and was smiling an evil, half-crazed smile as the creature staggered on its feet, pain and anger sending it into a blind panic.
After a few more moments, the creature fled, swerving to either side, unable to hold a straight line in its pain. It disappeared beyond the crest of one of the many foothills, heading toward the south, leaving a trail of blood.
A strange feeling started to buzz in the back of Link's head, and as he was urged after the wagon again, he couldn't shake the feeling that he had just been touched by a God…
K'ger: Ok, please, everyone, I promise that this story will get lighter, more fun, fluffy, ect. I just find that the beginning to this story has to be this dark, so bear with me, please.
Next chapter will have some Jack antics in it, which should lighten things up a good deal!
Shout out to Link'sLily! Her story, According to Legend, is getting better by the chapter! I really, really hope anyone reading this will check it out! Its great!