Okay, I'm sure you guys are curious as to what the heck is going on with Link. Well… I can't tell you that just yet… that would be called spoiling… which is a major no, no. Oh, and to all of you who are wondering if Link is ever going to get stronger, the answer is yes. It's just hard to build muscle, stamina, and such when you were treated the way Link was. But this is about him mostly, so it will happen.
Anyway, I hope you all continue to enjoy this story. I do not own Zelda.
It had been a couple of weeks since the incident with the manticore. I continued to keep an eye on Link, making certain of my theory before coming to any conclusions. If his other self would rear his head, I would be there to see it. Although, it was beginning to look like it never would.
Link continued to help me with chores on the farm, slowly but surely building up his stamina. It was hard work, and definitely difficult for the Hylian at first. He could barely lift up the milk pail once it was full, but he carried it easily now, having become used to the chores. All in all, he was making fine progress, and I felt like he deserved a fun reward—a surprise.
We walked down the large dirt trail towards town, Link enjoying the smells of the neighboring farms. "I love going to the village!" he said. He ran in front of me, walking backwards to walk-and-talk with me. "There's always so much to see! And I can't believe how many smells there are."
I laughed. "I should take you to some of the bigger towns and cities then. This is nothing compared to what you would see in places like those."
His cerulean eyes lit up with delight. "Do you think we could?! Really?!"
A small, soft smile stretched over my lips. I gave a singular head nod. "Perhaps one day when you're strong enough to make the trip. Until then, you'll have to make do with the village."
"I'll be sure to get stronger then! Just wait and see! I'll be stronger than you in no time!"
"I'm sure you will," I chortled.
Directing the gleeful ex-slave to the other side of town, I had to tighten my mouth to keep from smiling too much. I would surely give away the surprise if he were to ask about it at all. We proceeded up a few rolling, grassy hills, a large wall visible from the tops. A lone tree stood by the gate, welcoming people with its open branches. Banners with colorful tags hung from the gate, giving a quaint and warm feeling of hospitality.
Link looked at me confused, his head cocked to the side cutely. I raised an eyebrow at his childish expression, motioning to the walled-off enclosure with a wave of my arm. He visibly gulped and took a few more tentative steps before finally settling into a comfortable gait. His shoulders were tensed and hunched as he walked, nervous and unsure. I placed my hand behind his neck and rubbed comfortingly.
"Don't be so stiff, Link. Nothing here is going to get you. This is a surprise for you, after all. Last thing I would want would be for you to get hurt. You'll enjoy this… I promise," I told him. "Trust me."
He nodded. "If you're sure."
Entering through the gate, the gentle whinnying of horses seemed to calm Link's nerves. I smiled at him reassuringly just as Malon stepped out of a fairly sized, white ranch house. She wore a proud grin on her own face, just as happy about today's surprise as I was, among other things. "Welcome!" she greeted. "Welcome to Lon Lon Ranch! I feel like you'll have a lot of fun here, Link. We are notorious here in Hyrule for raising the best horses of any caliber and breed, training them for most any job. And today is a very special day, indeed." She continued. "You see, a past tenant here has recently returned from the castle. Would you like to meet her?" Link nodded, unable to even speak. Malon just smiled. "Right this way."
The redhead led us to a corral, a dirt track surrounding it. Inside was at least a dozen horses, all varying in coloring, mottling, sizes, and shapes. I saw a Gerudo Shagya, an Eldin Bay, a Faron Warmblood, and even a couple Hylian Haflingers. However, one horse—specifically a mare—stood out the most. I knew Link had spotted her as well when his face suddenly lit up like a torch.
"Epona!" he cried. The Hylian ran to the corral in a rush, startling some of the horses, but having heard her name, Epona's ears swiveled in our direction, her eyes spotting Link. She gave a happy whinny and trotted over to the fence. As soon as the mare was in reach, Link climbed up onto the fence and threw his arms around her neck. "I missed you so much! I never thought I would see you again!"
Malon's hands found their way to her hips. "Well, would you look at that," she drawled. "I've never seen Epona take to someone so well before. You two must have formed a real bond."
"She was my only friend," Link admitted. "I'm glad to have found her here."
The ranch girl nodded. "Truth is, we only just received her just this morn. A soldier came riding in on a handsome Morgan, Epona trailing behind. I was so glad to have her back."
"Well, it's a good thing she's back," I noted. "I haven't seen Link this happy before… Thanks for letting us visit."
Malon waved me off, her calloused famer hands retaining their daintiness. "Think nothing of it. You two are allowed here whenever you wish. If it wasn't for that little rebellion, I wouldn't have my favorite horse back. I owe you and the rebellion more than you know, Shadow."
I shrugged. "Well, I'm sure if you offered to breed and train horses for the rebellion—though I'm not quite sure we can be called that anymore—I'm sure the higher ups would be more than grateful."
She hummed, her fingers threading through fiery hair, twisting strands. "I'll have to consider it and talk it over with daddy, but I could see us contributing to that kind of cause."
We looked back over to the Hylian and the mare who were trying to get as close to each other as they could. Epona looked just about ready to jump the fence, but it was quite high.
"Uh oh," Malon said, heading for the corrals gate. "I better get this gate open quick before Epona has any bright ideas."
What did she mean by that? Was Epona seriously considering jumping over the fence? It was nearly taller than her! "Bright ideas?" I questioned, wanting to be sure.
Malon nodded. "Sometimes I could swear that this horse could jump almost anything."
The gate flew open, and out ran the horses into the pasture for some grazing. Epona came right up to Link, nuzzling his cheek. The Hylian laughed, running away joyfully, the horse following after in a game of chase. Link looked so happy. His face was bright and smiling, but I knew something else was hidden underneath that smile. Like a snake coiled beneath the grass, skimming between the blades—something dark and sinister was coiled beneath Link's surface. But it wouldn't emerge… Not here at least.
A frown marred my face. It was strange to think that someone like Link had a dark side. Despite all that had happened to him, he seemed so untouched and pure; untainted by the evilness he had been surrounded by. But he was touched by the darkness. And now something, evil or not, was inside of him.
Malon's hand on my shoulder drew me from my thoughts. She smiled at me, eyes shining. "Would you mind helping me bring out more feed from the silo? The horses have eaten most of what's in the barn and I need to restock. Usually, I'd have daddy help me, but he's doing business in town."
"Say no more," I smiled back. "I would be happy to help." I turned to Link who was still being chased by Epona. "Link! I am going to help Malon with the feed if you need me!" The boy stopped to wave before being head butted by Epona. He fell over and laughed, rolling on the ground as Epona snorted at him, tickling him with her muzzle. Chuckling, I rolled my eyes and headed for the silo.
Malon unlocked the metal door and it swung open with a creak. Bags upon bags of feed and loose grain were revealed. A couple stray two-by-fours were propped up against the walls. The rancher pointed to a cart. "We'll put the bags of feed in the cart and pull it to the barn later. We need to pile it high."
I nodded. "Will do."
We began to tote the bags of feed to the cart, muscles straining under the tons of weight. How Malon did this every time, I would never know. I would get pretty tired of this pretty fast. "So how is your father? I haven't seen him making his rounds lately," I asked, returning to the shelves to grab another bag.
Malon shrugged. "He's fine, I suppose. Still lazy as all get out, but he tries. He's actually been in the capital for a while now. He's been donating a lot of milk and cream to the refugees to help them get back on their feet." She smiled. "It actually surprises me a bit. While daddy is a nice and generous man, he rarely ever does anything that doesn't mean a profit."
"I don't blame him. I imagine it's hard to live the lifestyle you guys live. I mean, if one cow or chicken stops producing then that's a good portion of your income down the drain." I moved to heave another bag over my shoulder.
She looked my way, nodding. "Yeah, it can be pretty tough but—Look out!" Malon's baby blues went wide as she pointed above me.
I turned, dropping the bag of feed, hearing a groaning sound behind me. Like Malon's, my eyes went wide as one of the upper shelves of feed came crashing down on top of me. Acting on pure instinct, I threw my arms over my head and dropped to the fetal position. The shelf fell first, trapping me in between it and the wall of the silo. Luckily, it kept the bags of feed from crushing me.
I coughed as the dust from the feed settled. "Shadow!" Malon called from outside the collapse. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah! I'm fine!" I looked down at my leg, though I couldn't see it in the dark, an ache in the bones. I pulled up my trouser leg and touched at my ankle. It radiated with tenderness. "I think I may have twisted my ankle, though."
"Okay, just stay there! I'll go find help!" Malon yelled, her footsteps fading as she ran out of the silo.
"Sure," I grumbled. "Not like I'm going anywhere…" I looked around my "tomb," a small beam of light catching my eye. Maybe I could shift the boards enough and push through the bags of feed to escape. Lifting up my arms, I felt around for a weak point in the structure of the collapsed shelving. As I pushed, the wood around me groaned in protest, dust settling around me. It was working!
Or not…
The more I pushed, the more the structure—all around me—shook. There was no way, I would just shove the boards and bags off without risking the whole thing coming down. If those bags fell on top of me, I would suffer from more than just a twisted ankle. Those bags weighed fifty pounds easily, possibly more as well. I let my arms drop in defeat, coughing as I inhaled dust and pollen. What was I going to do now?
The sound of someone approaching my entrapment alerted me. "Hello?" I called out. "Who's there? Malon? Link?"
The only answered I received was the telltale sounds of boards me safely moved from atop of me and a couple of grunts of exertion. Suddenly, I could see again. Light streamed in from the holes now formed, nearly blinding me as I attempted to look upon my rescuers. "You know, I think you're more trouble than you're worth," a voice said. I looked up into red irises. "But the boy seems to like you, so I guess saving you is a small price to pay for his cooperation."
Link… no. This… wasn't Link. This was Dark.
The rest of the boards were removed and I was lifted out of the rumble, my arm draped over Link's—Dark's shoulders. "You're a demon, aren't you? A shadow demon, and you're possessing a part of Link."
"So there is some intelligence in that head of yours, after all," the demon answered from within Link, letting me sit on a nearby stool. "I thought you were doomed to stupidity having been so easily duped by the manticore."
I glared. "Any mother is dangerous, no matter the circumstance. That's beside the point, however. I would like to ask you some things."
Dark laughed. "And I would love to not answer them. Later." Like a stone, Link's body dropped to the ground, his eyes rolling back into his head. Malon squawked in alarm, dropping the bag in her arms. She rushed to the unconscious Hylian, checking his pulse. I just huffed out in irritation. I've dealt with demons before, not shadow demons, but none were as infuriating as this one. And I had only just met it!
Looking to the unconscious Link, I sighed. This wouldn't end well.
Malon continued to look on, confusion on what had happened written clearly across her features.
An Excerpt on Shadow Demons:
Shadow demons inhabit a plane unlike that of any other save our own. It exists parallel to the plane we call earth, mirroring it almost exactly—a "shadow" as some might call it. It's beings, however, are completely unique, only sharing possible similar physical traits and auras to people on the earthly plane.
These shadowy people can only be brought to the earthly plane in very few and limited ways. One which way is to summon them with an elemental art known explicitly as "shadow magic" or as teneumbra arte. However, this practice is strictly forbidden as shadow magic is a dark art that causes nothing but grief. It's practice is punished at the first sighting of someone gifted in the art, usually resulting in death.
Shadow demons are usually unintentionally summoned at the awakening of shadow magic—being the user's first time to truly use it. This results in the summoning of the demon into our plane of existence, essentially trapping it here. Like the name suggests, once a shadow demon is trapped on the earthly plane, it is forced to wander as a shadow. It is a mere image of its true self, often the cause for ghostly shivers and the occasional movement of objects.
The only time a shadow demon can physically walk in this dimension is to inhabit a vessel that has a spirit and aura compatible to its own. The demon is usually complacent once it inhabits a host, content to watch the world around it, only indirectly affecting it through its host by giving them physical and sometimes intellectual enhancements.
Once bound to a host, the demon cannot leave it, lest it once again turn into a shadow. Even then, it would be drawn back to its host.
There are no records of a shadow demon ever returning to its dimension.
It is unknown what would happen were the summoner and demon were to ever meet. Effects would most likely be catastrophic. To try is ill-advised.
I stared down at the sleeping Hylian, his sleep anything but peaceful. His eyelids darted behind his eyelids and his body was wracked with spastic jerks and tremors. Link was having a nightmare and he had yet to awake after being controlled by Dark.
Stroking his hair softly, my gloves still clasped firmly on my hands, I made soft cooing noises. His movements slowed and his pained sounds died down. He was coming down from the fear.
After doing research on the creature dwelling inside of Link, my mind was wild with thoughts. To have pulled Dark from his dimension someone most likely dabbled in shadow magic. The only question was who or what.
Another thought suddenly came to mind. At one point in my life, I was new to shadow magic and had performed it. My hands were proof enough of my sin. I rubbed my hands softly, phantom pain coursing through my skin. If I had done shadow magic, who had I pulled from the Shadow Dimension?
Where was my demon?
Well, I finally updated. And I hope you guys enjoyed it.
By the way, those horse names just came form the top of my head. I combined parts of real names with Zelda names.
Leave me a comment!