Took me three days to get this started and five hours of brainstorming to have this idea pop into my head, but I must say that I'm rather proud of what I came up with. It makes me happy to look upon my writing and think that I've come up with something innovative, if not entirely original. Although it does bother me that it took so long to finish. Blasted writer's blocks and Disgaea hunting (Geez, I have to pay $60 for it used?) This means that I might not get a new chapter up within the next week or two, but it'll come if you're patient.
Due to the fact that there are more negatives than positives within the hassle, I decided to leave the chapters as they are. It would have made plot twists far easier, but then the reviews would have been out of place and coming up with chapter titles is far more difficult than it actually seems. Besides, later twists will really throw you over.
My keyboard has been on the fritz lately; a few of the buttons refuse to respond on occasion as the stubborn bastards they are. Until I get a new one, this problem may or may not mildly hamper the progress of this story. I just felt the urge to vent, especially because it took almost nine button presses just to type the letter "j".
IMPORTANT: ANY REVIEWS THAT MAKE A DIRECT REFERENCE TO ANY POINTS WITHIN THE STORY THAT COULD POSSIBLY RUIN THE PLOT FOR ANYBODY ELSE WILL HAVE THEIR REVIEWS BLOCKED AND/OR DELETED
Disclaimer: I don't own the Legend of Zelda. Last night, I took a cold shower to cool off the rage that came from reality's slap to my face. Half of the prior statement is true, I took a cold shower merely because I could.
Link awoke from his slumber yet again and rose to record his extent of imprisonment. This time, however, the tree no longer stood.
Link allowed his eyes to wander, searching for some kind of explanation for the missing growth. Finding none, he looked down upon the stump to discover some sort of hole etched into it. It was wide enough to fit a person standing upright. Rather than wait for the forces above to decide his fate, Link picked up his weapon and jumped in feet first.
It was quite a long descent, and Link had plenty of time to ponder and consider the consequences and counters of those effects of his decision, mainly how he was going to prevent his body from splattering across the floor when he reached the bottom of his drop.
Link's wonder was answered when his fall slowed to a stop, his feet just barely tapping the stone when the invisible harness that had saved his life collapsed, sending Link the floor in a crumpled heap.
Groaning in agitation, Link stood up and rubbed his tailbone, shook his head and sighed. He observed his surroundings and glanced around. He saw absolutely nothing within his vicinity, but he could hear a faint ringing slowly growing louder around him. The sound was unfamiliar, and yet he could still see nothing.
"Tell me, do you have your answer?"
Link spun around and withdrew his weapon faster than any normal person could blink.
"Relax and tell me."
Link shook his head and shrugged, "Honestly, I still haven't figured it out. Why are you teaching me these things?"
Kyou Gekido closed his eyes and folded his arms across his chest, "Our organization is known as shi, meaning death. It is a common misconception that our purpose is to bring death to those surrounding us."
"Doesn't seem like that would really be that inaccurate."
Kyou Gekido held up his hand, signaling Link to cease his speaking.
"Our goal is our name. We test these possibilities by finding the strongest and bravest of them all, those whose names cannot be spoken without the turning of every head in a crowd. We test these individuals, and if they succeed, they join our cause."
"Then why is it that so many people have died at your hands?" Link demanded, rage boiling within his heart.
"Those who wish to confront death head on are the ones who become warriors in the first place. If they are not prepared to face such an outcome, then they have taken the wrong path. Those who have what it takes are tested extensively. Currently, we've only had sixteen go through the process."
"And how many have passed?"
"I'll tell you that it's less than five."
Link raised his voice, "And how many have failed?"
Kyou Gekido, "We like to keep things simple. Going over the millions is something we prefer not to do."
Link was silent. How many dreams had died? How many families had been destroyed? How many memories had been lost?
In anger, Link raised his weapon and charged forward. In a lightning-quick reaction, Kyou Gekido waved his hand through the air, knocking the weapon from Link's hands and sending him to the floor along with it.
"I did not expect you to understand, but things will remain the way they are. And you are one of the few with potential."
Link stood up and snorted, "What is your real purpose?"
"In time…are you ready?"
"Ready for what, death?"
"Relax, it's your second task."
Link sheathed his katana and locked eyes with Kyou Gekido.
"Tell me," Link spoke, "what's next?"
Kyou crossed his arms, "Close your eyes, you'll need to relax as much as possible."
"Why's that?" he demanded, clenching his fists.
"Now it's your turn to tell me," Kyou Gekido said coolly, "have you ever heard of something called culture shock?"
Link shook his head.
Kyou Gekido walked up to him and placed his palm over Link's eyes.
"Then this is going to be tough for you…"
Link instantly felt an immense pain within his head. He sank to the ground, squeezing his eyes shut and clutching his head, applying a great deal of pressure to counteract the overwhelming ache.
The sounds that flooded the nerves within his ears and head brought Link such a deal of pain that he could not force himself to stand straight.
Straining himself to open his eyes, Link was startled by what he saw. Releasing the clenching of his teeth and looking up, Link realized that he stood somewhere he had never seen before.
Link was positioned within the center of a decorative fountain. People walked to a fro all around him, seemingly speaking to themselves with small black objects hanging from their ears down to just in front of their mouths. They dressed in strange jet black fabrics and wore shining shoes, carried great deals of luggage and moved at a pace that made Link's head spin.
Large metal objects sped past the people, carrying more people who looked to be far too preoccupied to even notice a change in the weather. They moved so fast that Link's eyes widened.
These people weaved around everything, going in and out of and around buildings that ranged from single floors to those that seemed to scrape the sky. Multi-colored signs and pictures flooded his vision and left Link disoriented.
The skylight was filled with a dull orange glow that came from nowhere in particular, this nauseating shade eventually shifting to a starless midnight, moving on to a austere grayish-blue of daylight, and the process repeated itself indefinitely and hastily, as if time had simply lost its patience.
Feeling it yet?
Link looked around. He saw that nobody had stopped to speak to him. Cautiously, he stood up and followed his instinct, drawing his weapon and preparing himself for an attack.
Chill, your trial has yet to begin.
Finally realizing where the sound came from, things around him seemed to slow to a stop as he listened to the messages that his mind received.
You know who this is, and I'm here to give you your assignment.
Link closed his eyes, Yep, what is it?
Obviously, you have no idea where you are, and I'm not here to explain. But your task is simple: you will just have to find me within this jungle of metal and flesh.
But where am I supposed to start? This place is huge!
Look up.
Link opened his eyes to see a bright blue beam jutting from far in the distance and reaching far beyond the sky as if willing to touch the heavens.
You're joking, right? I thought this was supposed to be difficult.
Have you already forgotten your situation?
The noises came back as time returned to its normal speed.
Link heard a faint whisper within the back of his mind; You might want to put away your weapon…
As time resumed itself, the sound surrounding Link lowered, Link looked around to see several people staring at him in fear.
"Officer, he's in possession of a weapon!"
"Get away from that maniac!"
"He must be the one who caused that huge burst of energy."
It took a large squad of authoritative officers who rushed towards Link's position to realize that the people nearby were talking about him.
Turning around, Link hopped from the fountain and broke into a sprint. As he ran onto the darker colored ground and ran for his life, he heard a loud honking to his side. One of the large metal objects came at him, its wheels screeching against the surface. Link withdrew his weapon and cleanly sliced the vehicle in half straight down the center. The man inside jumped out and ran away.
Just then, a smaller, red vehicle sped in out of nowhere faster than a speeding Epona and struck Link against his side with about five times as much impact as being tackled by a fully equipped Hylian soldier in fifty-pound armor.
Link felt his ribs shatter as his body fell to ground in a crushed pile. The machine simply pulled away and moved around him, leaving him in the middle of a death zone.
Grimacing from the pain, Link knew that he couldn't stop, regardless of the discomfort. Finding understanding in the thought that getting beaten unconscious by a group of law enforcing citizens, Link sucked up his irritation and ran away.
Each sharp breath brought powerful jolts of pain into his lungs, but Link kept telling himself that it was nothing compared to what would happen if he was caught.
Geez, not many people can survive, no less stand after being pulverized by a car. Those things weigh at least half a ton.
Link ignored Kyou's comments and ran for his life. Realizing that he wasn't going to get anywhere just by running, Link looked around desperately for some mode of transportation. A burly man in a sleek, hoodless red car slowed to a stop as Link reached the corner of the block. He ran up to him and pleaded.
"Can you help me? I seriously need a-"
"Dammit, dude. Get your hands off my ride!" Link withdrew his hands. The man floored it and sped off.
Link swore underneath his breath and waited for another car to pull by. A plain looking man stopped his vehicle by the crosswalk and honked loudly, signaling Link to get out of the way. Frantic, Link ran up the driver's side and begged the man to give him a ride. The man pulled a cup from the side of his seat and splashed it in Link's face. Link clutched himself and urged the burning to subside as the man drove away.
Swearing rather loudly this time, Link dove around the corner and watched as several officers stormed past his position. Searching around, Link saw a staircase directly behind him.
Choosing not to question this turn of events, Link darted upwards and ran as fast as he could, not allowing his opponents the chance at his capture. Figuring that he could simply hop from rooftop to rooftop towards his destination, he thought that unless his pursuers had access to air travel, he was fine.
Bad assumptions put Link in quite an awkward situation.
As he hit the rooftops, Link looked downwards to see himself hundreds of feet above the ground. Taking a gulp and ignoring the consequences of him missing his step, Link ran forwards and leapt from the rooftop to another, somersaulting as his body hit the cement to absorb the momentum.
Regaining his posture, Link looked upwards to see the beacon of his destination shining as brightly as it had before.
This is where it gets tough.
Before Link could ask his instructor exactly what he meant, he felt the familiar sense of chaos within his mind as he heard the return of unfamiliar sounds. Something that sounded similar to a pitter-patter of rain against glass, Link was very disappointed to see a large black machine flying above his position. A man poked his head from the seat and aimed something at Link, something that Link had no intention of discovering the purpose of.
Rolling away and diving from the rooftop, Link heard a loud sound of blazing fire, followed by a sharp, high pitched ringing that made him cringe. He tried to tune it out, but couldn't overcome the pain within his mind and completely missed his target, his hand slipping from the edge of the cold metal, plummeting to the ground below.
…
"Indulge me, how's his progress?"
"Honestly, I'm surprised his mind has yet to crack from the pressure."
"Do what it takes, and take note of how he overcomes his handicap, if he happens to do so at all."
"Should I-?"
"Nope, this is a test, and a test is something where the pupil needs to use his prior knowledge to discover the solution to the situation at hand, and hopefully learn something important in the process."
"Yes, sir," Kyou Gekido spoke coldly.
…
He didn't know how he'd done it, but Link understood that he had crashed through a pane of glass into somebody's workspace, quite suddenly by his observation, and of course implied by the woman in the business suit's screaming in pure shock.
Wiping the dust from his tunic and searching frantically for the nearest exit, Link spotted a glowing green sign that pointed him directly where he wanted to go. Leaving his curiosity of how lights could be green like that for later, he sped up the stairs, ignoring the shouts of turmoil and the blaring alarm overhead.
They still pounded against his nerves, but Link kept telling himself that being in pain was a reminder that one was still alive. At least that gave him a dash of comfort.
As he reached the peak of his ascent, Link burst through the door to the rooftop. Instantly spotting his target point, he ran and made a jump for another building.
As if the Gods were toying with him, an entire squadron of at least ten of the blaring jet-black flying machines surrounded him and emitted a high pitched wail that again threw Link off his balance.
Struggling to counteract this flaw, Link righted himself within the air and jammed the tip of his blade into the brick wall that sped past him at a hundred miles an hour. Hoping that it would slow him enough, his hope was shattered when his predators swerved in from around the corner of the structure. Acting as quickly as possible, Link withdrew his weapon from the wall and leapt across the ten-foot gap to the other building, hoping to crash through something that might just save his life.
Once again, he was disappointed to see his chances fall. Acting instinctively, Link planted his feet against the wall and again rammed his weapon into the surface to slow his fall. The weapon's use increased two-fold as one of Link's chasers caught up to him and opened fire. Using his weapon to block the incoming projectiles, Link's blade moved at a blinding pace in order to protect its wielder, seemingly moving upon its own will.
Looking around frantically for some kind of method of escape, Link kicked himself through a nearby window and ran for cover from the incoming gunfire, weapons blazing louder than fireworks.
As the chaos surrounding him grew louder and stronger, so did the pain within his mind. Link could barely focus as glass and fire rained around him. It was far too much to handle, even seeing such advanced technological creations were enough to send his mind far over the edge of stability.
Link couldn't think anymore, his mind had completely lost its ability to rationalize, his body simply moved on its own. When Link willed it to move somewhere else, it reacted accordingly, this primary function being the only one that his brain was currently capable of processing.
Urging himself forwards, Link's legs hopped across the burning sea of shattered sand and ran right through a window across the other side of the building. Leaping from the windowsill and reaching for a handhold along the side of another structure, Link's fingers tensed themselves as they strained to support Link's bodyweight from plummeting to the earth below.
They retracted, moving in unison with his arms to reach for a higher point, hoping to ascend to the top and find another way out of his entire mess.
As his body pulled itself up onto the roof, Link's brain finally started itself back up, along with the throbbing pain he had grown to recognize within the last few minutes.
Rather than allow this to disorient his mind again, Link drowned it out by quietly humming to himself, playing Saria's song through his head again and again, filled with hope that its soothing melody would be enough to keep the delirium at bay.
As he realized that his predators were once again gaining on him, Link knew that he'd have no choice but to do something unpredictable.
Link ran to the edge of the building and leapt, but this time he knew what he was doing, and hoped that his opponents did not.
He jumped up into the air as high as possible, almost an inhuman distance of ten feet. As soon as gravity cancelled his height, Link reached for one of the machine's propeller and grabbed the end of it, hanging on as if the fate of the universe were dependant upon the grip of a fourteen year old struggling against centrifugal force. When he felt the time was right, Link let go and sailed over the city.
Link…
Link's reactions snapped at the message. It was no longer unusual for him to hear voices within his head. What confused him was that it was the gentle voice of a woman.
Can't recognize me, can you?
Nope, who is this?
Much to his surprise, he heard his communicator giggle.
Link, I do believe that you've met my sister, and that you're already quite an adept with a few of my spells. I didn't even think of the quickness spell until I was thirteen, and I had had many years of practice than you have. I must say that I'm a bit impressed.
Link's face expressed one of pure shock, Farore?
Bingo.
But why are you speaking to me? As much as I appreciate the praise, I'm in a little bit of a predicament right now.
Exactly, close your eyes.
Link did as he was told, his body still soaring hundreds of feet above the Earth.
Now, think hard about what would be the most practical way to get out of this situation if you were me.
…
"Sir?" Hebi Suterusu spoke nervously, kicking the sole of her shoe against the floor.
"What do you want?"
"One of those crystals that I took from that kid is gone…"
"What do you mean it's gone? You were supposed to be watching it."
"That's just it, the thing simply vanished while I was staring at it."
Kage chuckled, "Heh, this kid gets more interesting every time somebody tells me something about him."
…
Link plummeted towards the ground in a dive, knowing well enough that it was the last thing that his opponents would expect.
Looking into his palm, he clutched the gem of Farore's wind and smiled.
Just before he hit the Earth, magnificent bright green wings extended from the back of his tunic, making Link take a sharp turn upwards. His weapon gained its own jade glow as well.
You have your power, use it wisely…
As he ascended towards the sky, dark luminous clouds moved in and unleashed a heavy rain. The droplets of water simply bounced from Link's shoulders and fell back towards the Earth unhindered.
As he used the resistance in the air to bring himself to a halt, Link spun around and swung his weapon downwards, preparing for anything that might come his way. A bright emerald crescent emerged from the tip and shot downwards, cleaving the pavement in two.
A bit startled by his new ability, Link looked around nervously, hoping that he hadn't injured anybody in the process. A lone bystander stood in shock as his briefcase had been cut in two. He looked upwards and unsurprisingly mistook Link for a green angel with anger issues. After a few moments of staring in awe, he turned around and darted into a nearby building in cowardice.
Although nobody had been harmed, his predators had certainly been alerted and sped up to him, each of the ten machines opening fire towards his position.
Link curved his wings inwards, the bullets bouncing off of the bright emerald feathers.
He leaned back and fell again, drawing his opponents' attacks. Right before he came near the asphalt, He spun forwards and righted himself, leaped high into the air with a blinding amount of speed, cleanly sliced the machines in half.
Flipping backwards this time, Link swung his blade horizontally, a beam of intense energy taking down two more machines.
The remaining six pulled out several larger projectile weapons, each firing at least five clusters. Link raised his organic shields again and felt an unfamiliar sense of pain shoot through his wings and down into his spine as the missiles exploded against them, sending him reeling backwards into the air.
Shaking it off and righting himself again, Link charged straight between the two that hovered immediately in front of him and sideways, looking behind him to make sure that his chasers. were having trouble keeping up.
This time, they turned around rather quickly and fired another barrage. Cursing, Link faced forward and flew as quickly as he could. As he heard the missiles whistling dangerously close to his ear, he banked right and flew back, hoping to escape the projectiles.
Unexpected to him, the missiles turned around as well, tracing his path with exhaust. Alarmed, Link passed between the same predators that had fired the weapons and was relieved to hear a booming explosion fall behind him as he rocketed upwards. The machines could move decently enough laterally, but vertical climbing might be difficult for them. Or so Link hoped.
Only four more…
Link suddenly realized what he had just done, stopped and shot downwards towards the Earth, completely passing the remaining metal birds and moving close enough so that he could see the ground with a decent view. Relieved to see human activity near the piles of smoldering wreckage, Link touched down just enough to change direction and shot forwards, his speed piercing the air and emitting a powerful sonic boom that shook the Earth to its core.
Seeing his target in closing in quickly, Link retracted his methods of flight and lightly touched the ground, his wings disappearing with a gentle pop as he stood up. Carefully, he stepped forwards and reached out towards the beam of light that stabbed through the dark, heavy clouds.
The moment he touched it, it dissipated and time seemed to stop.
"Looks like you hit the finish line."
Link shook his head, "Why do you keep testing me? I'm sure that you're aware that I'm not going to be joining your organization. I have a job to do that doesn't concern your team's petty goals."
Kyou Gekido said nothing.
"Well?"
Kyou snapped his fingers, "In time."
Link looked around in wonder as time resumed itself and sped to infinitely quick proportions, throwing his mind off balance. People moved almost ten times as fast as they had before. The intensity of the booming noises increased exponentially. The sun and moon rose and fell so fast that it seemed they were passing over one another.
"My mistake, this is where it gets tough."