Hey guys, I know I've been gone for a really long time and I'm sorry. I just hope you can forgive me. A lot of personal stuff has been going on lately and it hasn't really created a good environment for me to write in. Plus, I was taking a creative writing course whose assignments took up most of my time. But now that it's summer, I hope to be able to bring you some more chapters of this story and my other story A New Face in Town. If you want to check out my other works feel free to check out my deviantart page at: It also contains images for my stories as well as my original work. On to thanks. It's been so long, but I don't think anybody faved or followed and if you did, I am truly sorry for not recognizing you. OtakuDrag0n, I'm sorry I left you for so long with a cliffhanger and I'm sorry for another long absence period, but I hope you will enjoy this chapter. Also, my writing style has changed a bit from the creative writing course, so I still hope you will enjoy this story and leave me some reviews on what you think. Now, enough of me. I know present you with an over 4,000 word chapter of The Last Skychild.
Disclaimer: I do not own Legend of Zelda or any of the characters, just my OC and if I did, I would probably have millions of dollars by now...
Chapter 9- Issues in the Forest Temple
"How is any of this my fault!?" Link demands as we look around at the white fog surrounding us, obscuring anything beyond five feet from view. We seem to be in some unearthly plane that definitely seems death-like and everything is silent except for the goddess awful panting sound coming from nowhere.
"I don't know, but I was just following you when this happened. Plus, you're the chosen hero right? Everything happens because of you," I state matter of factly as the mist clears somewhat in front of us, revealing the spirit wolf that transported us here and the source of the non-stop panting that was slowly driving me crazy. "Hey! Not to be rude or anything, but could you quit that panting! It's really starting to get on my nerves," I shout, glaring at the beast and causing Link to look at me like I was crazy. Yes, I just scolded a dangerous spirit wolf that could rip me to pieces any minute now. No, I didn't care and I wasn't going down without a fight. The wolf seemed to let out something akin to a chuckle before transforming into a skeletal warrior and coming at us, sword raised high.
"Great, now you pissed him off. Good job Willow," Link muttered before drawing his own sword and shield to stand defiantly beside me. Hey, how was I supposed to know that the wolf would turn into a battle-ready skeleton warrior! That's not really something you would normally see coming in this kind of situation. Link made the first move, using a jump attack to try and break through his defence. Sadly it didn't work and Link was knocked to the ground like he was just a pestering fly. Letting my annoyance turn to rage, I let out a battle cry and ran towards him, swinging blindly before meeting the same fate as Link. I landed on the ground hard, knocking the wind out of me as well as the anger that had taken over my body.
As Link and I lay there catching our breath the warrior started to speak. "A sword wields no strength unless the hand that holds it has courage. And rage is not a suitable power behind the blade for one so unskilled as you," he scolds as we slowly rise to our feet and look at him. I can't help but feel like that last comment was meant for me. "You may be destined to become the hero of legend... but your current power would disgrace the proud green of the hero's tunic you wear," He proclaims to Link with a disdainful look on his face before turning to me. "Skychild, I expected better from you. Have you not already been trained in the ways of the warrior by your own teachers? Obviously their standards have been lowered considerably if this outcome is what they deem 'trained'. A mere child who can't even control her own temper!"
Having had about enough of this pompous spirit, I start to set him straight. "First of all, what are you talking about! I have never been trained in the 'ways of the warrior' and if I have, then that was before my fall to Hyrule and the loss of my memory. So don't you start insulting me and my teachers for something the goddesses have done. Second, I can control my temper!" I pause, realizing that me screaming my head off at him isn't really proving my point. I continue on in a more controlled voice, "I can control my temper. It's just that it fills me with power that I don't normally have."
"A power that swings blindly with no target in mind, endangering the user and those around them. And losing your memory is no excuse for poor swordsmanship. Although your mind may have forgotten the warrior's way, your muscles haven't. Every technique, every ability is still there, written on your body in the formation of your muscles. That is where you will find your power," he turns his head away from me and looks to Link. "You must use your courage to seek your own power... and find it you both must. Only then will you become the heroes for whom this world despairs. If you do find true courage, and wish to save Hyrule from the horrors it now faces... Then, and only then, will you be worthy to receive the secrets I hold!"
At this point the mist clears away some more, revealing in the background the full glory of Hyrule Castle. Link and I stare up at it in awe, almost missing what the spirit begins to say. "I will now teach you the ending blow. Enemies that are filled with energy will quickly recover and attack again even when stunned by a powerful strike. The ending blow is a secret technique you can use on stunned enemies to end their breath before they spring back into action." He goes on about how to properly execute this move, but I'm only half listening. I feel like I already know this stuff, hmm I wonder why. Is what he said before about muscle memory true? I am brought out of my reflections when I hear the clash of blades. I look to Link and the spirit quickly to see them cross their swords together before Link goes on the attack. I can tell the spirit is taking it easy on him, since Link quickly breaks through his defence and knocks him down before performing the ending blow. Well it is just training really. "Hmm. That was a pinpoint strike. Never overlook the opportunity to finish your opponent," he advises Link, who nods and looks up at him with determination.
"Now Skychild! It is your turn." I do have a name, you know, I grumble as I take my position across from him and cross our swords. I keep my anger in check this time as I break through his defence and send him sprawling. As I leap to perform the ending blow, he seems to give me a condescending grin before rolling out of the way of my blade, causing it to be lodged deeply into the ground. "A warrior must always be prepared for the unexpected. Some enemies will be faster than you are and will therefore have an advantage," he says while quickly getting to his feet and preparing to strike me from behind. Not this time you cocky bastard, I growl as I heave my sword out of the ground and perform a spin attack, knocking the spirit warrior down and giving me an opening. I successfully perform the ending blow this time and jump back, sheathing my sword. The skeletal warrior also sheathes his sword while speaking to us. "The first hidden skill, the ending blow, has been passed on! There are still six hidden skills for you to learn. These are only for the one who carries the blood of the hero... the one whose spirit is that of the sublime beast." He casts a look at me and I narrow my eyes in response, daring him to say something, before he turns back to address the both of us. "Grow powerful. Test your courage. And when you find that you need another skill to overcome the threats that face you... Search for the statues that howl with the sound of the wind. Seek the sound that calls to the spirit of the beast to awaken me again." We both nod in response, wondering what that actually means, as he starts to back away from us. "A sword wields no strength unless the hand that holds it has courage. Remember those words... Farewell."
As he says that, everything goes white again and we wake up to find ourselves sprawled on the ground at the entrance to the tree trunk path. "Well... that was interesting, if not a little weird." Link states, getting up and rubbing his head. Couldn't agree with you more there, I think while also getting up and looking around. In the time that we've been gone, night has already fallen, leaving the air full of cricket chirps and fireflies. A slight chill has also entered the air, causing me to shiver as I look up the winding path towards the great temple that sits at it's end. "Should we go to the temple now or wait for morning Willow?" Link asks expectantly, apparently waiting on me for an answer.
"Since we don't have any camping gear with us, I don't think we should sleep out here in the cold. Even after all the work we've been doing, I'm still not that tired. Plus, I don't think there will be any more monsters in there now then there would be in the morning. So I think we should get through this temple so we can get it done and over with." I reason as I start to walk up the path with Link, who has to walk a little faster to keep pace with me. "Unless you're tired, of course. I wouldn't want to make you do something if your not up to it. I'm not that kind of person," I finish, stopping to look at Link with concern.
"I'm fine Willow, it's not like I'm a pampered little boy who's done no work his entire life. I was a farm hand remember? Even if I do get tired, I'll just fight through it. No big deal." Link responds with just a hint of annoyance in his voice. I realize that I might have just been babying him and prepare to apologize when he sighs and wipes his hand across his face. "Sorry, it's just really annoying when people try to baby me. That's why Ilia annoys me so much when she does it to Epona. She used to do it to me too when we were younger before I told her off for it. I guess she just saw me as a lost lamb that needed to be taken care of. I'm just not used to people looking out for me. So just don't take what I said too seriously, okay?" I nod, surprised at how much he told me as we reach the end of the path. After taking out the guards, we approach the entrance to see it covered with an enormous spider web. I hear Link gulp beside me and slightly roll my eyes. Testing the web with my sword, I realize that it just can't be cut through. "Why don't we try burning it?" Link suggests while still keeping his distance from the web.
"Good idea Link, it could work," I tell him while taking out my lantern and lighting it. As long as we don't burn down the entire tree while we're at it, I ponder grimly as I move the open flame closer to the web. As soon as it's close enough, the web catches and in a great whoosh goes up in flames and disappears, leaving the way clear for us to continue. "Chosen heroes first," I say while motioning him to go. He hesitates for only a moment before squaring his shoulders and setting off down the tunnel. "This might take us a while," I remark, sighing as I follow him into the temple.
A few hours later...
"Wait, so if we...ummm... go... this way? No, that way, then we should be able to reach here. Wait, no, we'll reach here. Maybe..." Willow puzzles while looking at the map. I sigh and rub my temples in frustration at her lack of directional skills. What happened? She had no problem leading us to the tears of light, so what's the hold up here? I can only assume that her directional skills are linked to her feline form. We've been stuck in this side room for nearly a half an hour trying to figure out where the last monkey is, since we need four to be able to cross the broken bridge. Willow thinks we should be fine with just three, but then I remind her of the fatal drop between both sides of the bridge and she goes back to looking at the map. No longer being able to fly has brought back her fear of falling, which doesn't go well with my fear of spiders since this place is full of them. We've been doing pretty well though, all things considered. I've been reassuring Willow that if she falls it won't be that far and she's been taking on the spiders for me. Although, I think I'll still have nightmares of those skull-faced spiders chasing me...
"Hey! What's the hold up, we're supposed to be out of here by now." Midna exclaims, popping out of Willow's shadow and scaring the crap out of her. "Here, let me see that." She demands, making a swipe for the map only to have her hand pass through it. Grumbling something about the 'stupid light world' she leans closer to the map to get a better look. "No wonder you can't find where you're going, the map's upside down and you can barely see anything!" Midna says, squinting at the paper and instructing Willow to 'turn it upright, for goodness sakes'. "Hey Link, get your lantern out so we can actually see this thing instead of just standing there doing nothing." Sighing at her demanding tone, I open my pouch and quickly shut it as the sound of irate squawking echoes throughout the area.
I grin sheepishly at the two of them and ask Willow to use her lantern. "I wish we had never found that thing in the first place. She's almost as noisy as the monkeys and she talks way too much." Willow complains as she hands over her lantern for me to hold. Actually being able to see the map, Midna quickly finds the room we haven't been to yet and Willow and I set off to go free the last monkey. Once all that is said and done, we finally head to the broken bridge where all the monkeys span themselves out on the line, ready to swing us across. Even though I'm not afraid of heights, I was still nervous when it came to crossing this chasm. Not only are you depending on monkeys to get you safely across, but there are also strong winds running across the chasm which makes it that much harder to get across. I look back to see how Willow's doing to see her curled up on the ground, leaning against the path wall with a terrified expression on her face. "I can't do this," she says faintly to me as I sit down beside her.
"Yes you can, I know you can. This fear is just controlling you, tricking you into thinking you're weak against it. And you don't like to be tricked, right?" I explain, putting my hand on her shoulder. She nods, her large fearful eyes narrowing in determination as she realizes that she can do this. "So let's go take on this chasm and get to the other side, alright?" I ask, lending her my hand to help her up. Nodding again, this time with more vigour, she takes my hand and gets up to move towards the monkeys. "Wait! Willow!" I panic as she moves to make the first jump to the monkeys. She looks back at me quizzically, asking me what my problem is. "Maybe I should go first. You know, to test it." She agrees with me and steps aside to let me go. Taking a deep breath, I run towards the monkeys and jump. Getting across wasn't so bad as long as you didn't look down and I made it over with no trouble.
But now it was Willow's turn. She didn't do to bad to begin with, she was moving quickly and looking straight ahead. On the third monkey though, a strong gust of wind buffeted her when she jumped, causing her to only grab one hand on the next monkey. Unbalanced from all the weight on one side the monkey's grip slipped on the swing forward and Willow went flying, hitting the very edge of the path in front of me. "Link!" she screamed, but I was already on the move. Diving forward, I grabbed her wrists and struggled to pull her up onto the path, leaving us both gasping for breath. "Remind me... never... to do that... again." She panted before flopping back onto the path. That was a close one, the thought crosses my mind as we get up and move towards the room at the end of the path.
Once we are through the door, bars drop down over it, trapping us here. "Well this is just great." I comment to Willow, who starts to respond before being interrupted by a screeching sound. Looking to the centre of the room, we see the giant baboon who cut down the bridge from before standing atop a pillar holding a boomerang high. I should have expected this guy to be hiding out in here, I think while unsheathing my sword and preparing for battle. Willow mirrors me as the baboon throws the pulsing black boomerang around the room, successfully cutting off all the deku babas from the ceiling and sending them towards us, before jumping from pillar to pillar. "Willow! You go after the babas, I'll take care of the baboon!" I shout to her as she nods and goes off to take care of the babas. Turns out that this baboon is really dumb. I just have to wait for him to throw the boomerang, roll into the pillar, and wait for the boomerang to come back around and hit him. Easy peasy. Willow keeps the babas at bay so I can attack the monkey when he falls off the pillar. We repeat this strategy several times over before the monkey has finally had enough. Holding his poor butt, he hops around in pain and runs straight into a pillar, knocking him out and causing a bug to fall off his head. Having realized that the bug was controlling the monkey, Willow runs over and quickly stabs the bug with her sword, causing it to explode into a tiny cloud of bug guts. Waking up, the monkey turns to look at us, screeches and runs away, using the pillars to reach a far opening in the tree.
"Was that strange for you too, or was it just me?" Willow asks, rolling her shoulder and walking towards me. I shrug and tell her there's always a first for everything which makes her laugh. "Well if it's all the same to you, that's one first I could've done without," she laughs as we move to leave the room. "Oh wait, I almost forgot." She says before running back, leaving me standing there with a confused look on my face. As she approaches a pile of leaves, a small cyclone whips up and blows around the room a bit before moving towards Willow. I'm about to warn her when she makes a grabbing motion and the cyclone immediately dies away. I ask her what that was all about, and she answers with a smug grin on her face, "I just got the Gale boomerang." That must have been what she grabbed out of the air, I discover as she walks towards the door, takes aim at a spinning turbine over top of the door and lets it go. The turbine spins, raising the gate across the door and allowing us to move on. "Come on Link, let's go!" Willow shouts, turning back to look at me before running out the door.
A few more hours later...
"Damn it Willow! Are we sure that this is the last one?" Link asks me as we walk down one of the tunnels. I bite back a sarcastic remark before I can let it lose. He's tired, injured and he just wants to get out of here, don't take it out on him. I take a deep breath and tell him that yes, this is the last monkey. "Thank the goddesses, I don't think I have much patience left for these guys," he sighs in relief as he rubs the calluses on his right hand. I copy his actions and rub my own blisters that have begun to form due to excessive sword wielding. "I hope we don't have too far to go to get to the next monkey or I'll- AHHHHHHH!" I rush forwards as Link falls off the end of the path and into a giant pit.
"Link! Are you okay?!" I shout, worry creeping into my voice. I hear him call up that he's okay and 'who would put a giant pit at the end of a path?'. That is a good question, I think while looking down into the pit. Movement catches the corner of my eye and as I spot the cause, my stomach drops. Oh no, why did it have to be... "Link! Look out!" I warn him as the giant spider starts to approach him. Link turns around and freezes into a statue the minute he sees the spider skittering towards him. Goddesses damn it all. "Link snap out of it!" I order as I throw the Gale boomerang at the spider to knock it off balance. It works and Link reanimates into a hero again, taking this opportunity to slash and stab the spider, killing it quickly. I breath a sigh of relief before seeing Link fall to his knees, clutching his right arm. "Link!" I shout, voice only worry this time as I jump down into the pit and run to his side. Kneeling next to him, I see that his right arm was torn open by the spiders pincers and is bleeding heavily. It's not too deep, but it's still pretty bad. "Okay Link, just hold still and I'll get some red potion and some bandages. I'll fix you right up."
"No." That was all he said, but it stopped me in my tracks. I look at him with wide eyes, seeing sweat darken his bangs and his jaw clench. "It's nothing serious. I can fix it on my own. No biggie." I start to argue with him but he just shakes his head. "I don't want to be a burden on you! I don't need you to look after me, I can do it on my own! Without your help!" He shouts at me before I slapped him, hard, right across the face. That shut him up and he just looked at me with shock. I wonder if that's how I looked before, the thought flits by before I launch right in.
"Shut up! What the hell are you talking about?! Burden?! BURDEN?! Did you really just say that?! The only way you would be a burden to me is by doing what your doing right now. There is no way in hell that you'd be able to wrap that arm properly and it would just bleed more later on. And what if that happens during a fight? Huh?! What then? It could kill us both! So shut up, stay still and let me properly wrap your wounds." Still possessing the shell-shocked look on his face, I start applying the red potion and bandages to his arm. "Plus," I go on in a softer tone, "we're partners. We're supposed to be able to rely on each other. If you can't let me help you then what good am I to you?" I finish treating his arm, put my supplies away and stand up, walking towards the vines on the other side of the room. "You can't do this all by yourself. You're not invincible. That's why the goddesses sent me here. To help you. So swallow your pride, get up, and let's go kill the big baddie on the other side of that bottomless pit, okay?" I say softly, turning around and giving him a weak smile. He doesn't say anything, but he gets up to follow me anyways. As we start to climb the vines, Link cringes as he puts weight on his right arm. "Do you need help?" I ask sincerely only to get no response, but he does let me help him climb up the wall. It's a start, I suppose. We finally rescue the last monkey and make our way to the final room. "Do you think you'll be okay to cross?" I ask him as the last monkey joins the chain to swing us across.
"Yeah, I should be fine. Red potion heals wounds fast, it'll just be a bit tender for a while. And I'm sorry about before. Ever since I was young, I never really depended on anyone except for Epona and I always felt like a burden to the village. So, I guess you could say that I never really had a good friend that was my own age. This is a new experience for me so I guess we'll just have to work through this together, right?" He apologizes, rubbing the back of his head and blushing slightly. I grin broadly at him and tell him not to worry about it causing him to sigh in relief. He straightens up and rubs his face saying, "but you didn't have to hit me though."
"Well then I'm sorry for hitting you," I apologize bumping my shoulder against his. He rewards me with one of his rare smiles and gets ready to jump to the monkeys. "Wait, maybe I should go first this time Link." He nods as I jump, grabbing both the monkey's hands and swinging across safely to the other side. Link follows me, only slightly wincing from the strain on his arm. We walk towards the giant locked door and stop before entering. "Are you ready Link?" I ask and receive a 'as ready as I'll ever be' in response. Heh, same here. Link unlocks the door and we both walk into the dark room beyond, prepared to face off against whatever waits for us on the other side.
Sorry for leaving you guys with another cliffy, but chapter ten is already in progress and I promise to have it posted within the month. So did you like it? Find the change in writing style weird or barely noticeable? Please let me know so I know you guys are out there. Dying Reader lowering herself back into her coffin till next time. So long!