Time Is Running Out
Link shoots up in the hospital bed, screaming, "No!"
Zelda and Gulley are woken by Link's screams. Zelda gets up and walks over to him, "Link? Are you feeling okay?"
Link shivers, looking up at her, "You.. You're.."
Zelda's eyes soften and she gently touches his shoulder, "What about me? What did you dream about?"
Link stares up at her, tears brimming in his eyes, "I saw you.. You.. Were dead.."
Zelda's eyes widen and then she hugs Link, "Calm down, it's okay. I'm not going to die. I'm not going anywhere, I promise."
He shakes his head, pushing her away gently, "Don't make a promise that you can't keep."
Zelda frowns, "Link.. I'm not going to die."
He looks away, "I guess we'll see.."
Zelda goes back to her seat and she sees Gulley already fell back asleep. She sighs and sits down, "Get some sleep, Link. We'll talk again in the morning."
Link lies back down, trying to calm his breathing. He covers his face with his good arm. His falls asleep again and when he wakes next he finds himself alone in the hospital room. This unsettles him at first and he frowns, sitting up, "Gulley..? Zelda?"
He sits up and gets off the bed. He slowly makes his way to the door. He presses an ear against it but he doesn't hear anything on the other side. He opens the door and the hall is empty. He frowns, calling out, "Hello?"
No one answers him and he enters the hall. Shouldn't there be doctors or nurses around here? He continues down the hall, moving slowly. He calls out again, "Hello? Is anyone here?"
He's starting to freak out as silence continues to embrace him. It's unsettling and everything feels off. The hospital should not be empty, it should never be completely empty like this. Link shakes, something feels really bad. He calls out again, "Gulley?! Zelda?! Where are you?! Please answer me!"
He continues down the hall and then the light at the far end of the hall goes out. Link gasps and then there's a figure shrouded in shadow and the figure chuckles. A familiar evil chuckle Link's heard in his dreams. He stiffens, "You.. You're not.."
"So you remember me, do you, boy?" the familiar voice speaks.
Link shakes, stepping back. He's across the hall from the figure hiding in the darkness, but he doesn't feel far enough away. Everything Link's been denying slams full force into the forefront of his mind. Link takes another step back, every part of him wants to run away. The figure chuckles, "Now, this is amusing. I've yet to meet a spineless hero."
Link shakes his head, his body still trembling. He tries to put on a brave face and the figure laughs at him. The laugh shakes the entire hospital and Link falls to the floor. Link's eyes widen, "G-G-G-"
"Poor child trembles as he tries to speak my name," the figure smirks, "Are you afraid, little hero? Because you should be."
Link becomes paralyzed by the fear gripping his heart. He tried to deny everything that had happened, ignore all the dreams. But now the Demon King is in the same room, perhaps in spirit, but Link can't deny the fear he feels from hearing the evil King's voice. The power that resonates within the figure before him. The figure tosses something from the darkness and a small knife skids across the floor to Link. The knife is gold with a silver hilt. The hilt itself appears to be a snake. Link picks up the knife and looks back at the figure.
"You are not worth my time, little boy. You're not like the heroes before you. You are spineless and weak. At the sound of my voice you tremble and cry. You're not worth fighting. You're not even worth killing. I will fully rise very soon. I advise you take that knife and end your worthless existence before that happens. If I see your pathetic face again, your death will be slow and painful, for disgracing me with your continued presence." the figure explains.
The figure disappears into the shadows and Link blinks. As he opens his eyes, he finds he's still in the hallway, but all the lights are on, and doctors and nurses are walking around. Link might have dismissed this as another dream, but when he looks down, the knife is still at his fingertips. He takes the knife and hides it in his swear pocket before standing up. He shivers, the knife is cold to the touch and despite the clothing between the knife and his stomach, Link's skin still feels cold there where the knife rests.
He returns to his room and Zelda and Gulley are still asleep. He stares at them for a moment, and then he leaves the room. He leaves the hospital, trying to pass by unnoticed as he does so. He looks around, and he can see the museum down the road. He takes a deep breath and heads towards it, "Okay, time to be a thief.."
He comes up to the museum and goes inside. The knife in his pocket becomes like ice and Link hisses lightly in pain. He heads towards the exhibit he ran from a few days ago and he is face-to-face with the Master Sword once again. He presses his left hand against the glass containing the ancient sword. The sword glows and Link lets out a sharp cry as the Triforce is etched into the back of his left hand. He cradles his hand, the mark looks like it had been burned on. He groans and looks back at the Master Sword's case. His eyes widen when the sword isn't inside the case any longer.