A/N: I apologize for the last chapter. It sucked, and you deserve better; however, I'm too lazy to go back and change it. Hurr.
Le gasp! First double-digit chapter! :O
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War's Hold
Chapter 10
Saria's eyes snapped open as she heard the cell door open, and a brief flash of light was emitted from the door, before the door slammed shut and it vanished.
"Ah, Saria, Saria, Saria." Her captor's face leered up at her. "The little girl who's been killing all our soldiers. What an honor to come face to face with you."
Saria gazed down steadily. "Indeed."
"Do you," the Deku began. "Realize what your death will mean?"
"My death." It wasn't a question.
"Yes, your death. You are, you know, a sacrifice. Just like the Zora girl. An example to those who would bring us down. That not even the strongest among you can withstand our collective might."
Saria blinked. "Truly?"
"Yes, truly. I believe your death benefits all parties greatly." The Deku got closer; Saria leaned back as far as the wall would allow her to. She hissed as a knife just missed her throat, and the thorn-laden vine binding her neck fell to the ground. Her right arm's restraint had a similar experience, and the fingers curled around the hilt of the blade pressed into her hand as if she were greeting an old friend whose presence had been greatly missed. The Deku came closer, if that was possible.
"I want you to get out, and stay out. I want you to go back to Hyrule, and never come to Termina again," He whispered. "Do not try any heroics." He stepped back, and made to leave the cell. As he opened the door, he glanced back and murmured, "I truly regret that it must be this way." He bowed his head respectfully before exciting the cell.
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The Sage of Forest blinked, trying to take in all she'd seen in the past five minutes. With a deep sigh, she set to work trying to undo her other binds. It was simple, now that she had a hand free and her sword; she soon found herself on the ground, looking around the cell.
It was large, cast in a dim twilight glow, almost exactly like the one she and Dark had found themselves in. As a matter of fact, she was willing to bet that it was the same cell.
Same cell…
She smiled to herself and glanced to the east of the room before making her way to the edge and feeling the bottom. Ah, there it was. The same tunnel. She crouched down and made her way in. Same dimensions, same tightness, same constant bumping of the head; it gave the Sage a sense of familiarity and nostalgia; she grinned in spite of herself.
Appearing at the other end, she got up, dusted herself off, and peered at the temple in the distance. Of course she would not go home; she had a war to win, or at least to aid in the winning of.
"Reconnaissance mission." She smirked. "Reconnaissance mission? I'll do more than that."
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The forest loomed in front of Saria as she jumped a log, attempting to be stealthy, in case of an attack. She stumbled as her feet misplaced themselves, but continued onwards regardless.
"Tch!" The Sage blocked an oncoming Deku Nut with her sword; her former captors had evidently gotten wind of her escape. Panting, she reached down and grabbed a large piece of wood. It wasn't exactly shield material, but it would do. She slipped under a branch blocking her way, sliding down a small mound of dirt before executing a roll to steady herself; she continued to sprint through the dark, damp woods, smacking away the nuts that came her way, increasingly intensely as she neared the temple. She was out of breath, but she couldn't afford to stop, not now, not when she was so close to her goal.
She tripped and went flying roughly down a steep hill; out of the corner of her eye, she spotted two Deku Scrubs waiting at the bottom to attack. Shifting her weight, she began descending vertically, and as she neared the bottom, she unsheathed her sword, spinning it in a circle; blood splattered everywhere.
She reeled about dizzily for a moment, whirling with here long, spiraling descent. She shook her head, trying to clear it, then continued her sprint towards the palace, faltering as she tried to fend off both her attackers and her continuing dizziness. "Come…on!" She told herself. "You can make it!"
Reaching the castle, the Kokiri paused, hiding behind a large tree. She climbed it carefully, the bark coarse beneath her hands; reaching the top, she knelt in one of the uppermost branches, which was thick with leafy growth. She poked her head out, eyes narrowed, grateful for the camouflage her intensely green clothes offered her. What's my plan?
A plan? She hadn't actually thought of one, hadn't expected to come this far.
"I came to gather information," she told herself quietly. "I was captured, but now I want to do something to aid the war effort beyond gathering strips of information." She clenched her fists. "So what could I do to defeat them…?" She let the question hang in the air. A single finger stroked the foliage thoughtfully. She'd always liked trees. When she was young—mentally speaking—she was forever surrounded by trees, and she and her friends would break off large sticks of wood to build a fire. It was always great fun to watch the twigs dissolve into ash, consumed with the flames.
The memory of simpler days brought a smile to the Sage's lips, bigger as an idea formed; she alighted from the tree in total silence and dashed the rest of the way to the palace, which if all went well, would be gone by the time she finished.
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The light flared in front of her, hot, bright. Saria tried to quiet her breath, shrinking beside a wall where shadows played. She felt like crying, she was going to cry, because, oh, oh, why should the poor jail guard be punished for trying to help her escape? Tears threatened to snake down her sooty face; she had seen the look of anger, shock, hurt, that had crossed his face when he caught her eyes, the orange tongues of flame licking his lower body.
She shook her head, willing the salty tears to stay in their place. "No, no, no." She tensed the two long sticks clutched firmly in her hand. "Not now." She braced herself, wiping an arm across her face. "Three…two…one!" With that, she dashed out of her hiding place, made a flying leap over the pit of fire, the makeshift torches alighting.
Eyes blazing as fiercely as the inferno she carried, she ran through the halls, scraping the sticks along the ways. Three minutes. You have, at most, that long to light the whole place on fire and get out.
Without remorse for the cruel way in which she killed them, she struck out at the Deku guards, their leafy bodies bursting into flames; she left them where they fell, attempting ineffectually to put out the fire, screeching hideously.
She tossed the sticks behind her, then ran along the bank, hoping to be able to jump into the water if need be. Never mind its sickly purple color, illuminated by the inferno reflected in its depths.
She gasped, coughed in the smoky air, but on a burst of speed, and escaped into the deep, untouchable forest just as the explosions began.
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The Sage of Water sighed, placing a hand on her now exponentially expanded stomach. How far along was she? It couldn't be very long now, a few weeks at most. "A month. What could have happened to her?"
Zelda looked up from her general inspection of the weaponry to say, "I have full faith in Saria. Whatever fix she has gotten herself into, I am sure she is capable of getting herself out of. She is strong." The princess smiled contentedly, lifting her nose. "Ruto…? Do you smell that?"
"Yeah…" Ruto tipped her head. "Smoke. Coming from the west."
Zelda placed her hands on the nearest tree's branches, then nimbly made her way up it, like a squirrel, blue Sheikah uniform flashing in the sun. Her eyes widened. "The Deku Palace…it is burning."
Ruto raised her eyebrows. "No," she breathed, not knowing whether to be horrified, jubilant, or simply surprised. "Do you think…"
Zelda clambered down. "Yes, I think. I just hope she got out alive."
"Me too." Ruto nodded determinedly, fists clenched. "But she has helped us quite a bit, either way."
"Yes," Zelda replied, a small, almost imperceptible grin etched upon her face. "Yes, she has aided us greatly, has she not? I believe…" She licked her lips, choosing her next few words carefully. "I think…a final battle could settle this all."
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A/N: It probably sucked. D: But…it's a little longer, no? :D…?
Reviewers!: Zeldagamer96 (no, I'm going to crawl into my little ball of shame now… ;A;), Sky Chain Lilyana (good thoughts, but I have the whole story planned out from here on. :), ZeldaRubix (thank you very much for your sweet words… ;w; And I never thought of chapter three that way. ;3), and Gejen (hm. Interesting.) *Showers with snickerdoodles*
Happy Easter, ya'll~