Author's Note: Don't write this story for, like, a month = 5,000+ including this A/N. Happy? Anyway, going into a lot of stuff today so be prepared for a few plot twists. Ready, set, read! :3
Reviews: Lovely girl 10: Me neither, to be quite honest with you. I haven't had time to read much of your story, only a few chapters, but I will definitely try to when I can :3 And I'm happy that you liked it!
HyruleHearts1123: That would have been awesome if it was Sheik! Anyway, thank-you and I'm so happy that you're liking it.
Vampire-Queen-Kazumi: I'm glad that you're liking it but I'm so sorry for the wait!
Ribke D'Crazy: Oh, I won't because I think the same too. It's so stupid and I don't know why I put it in there. Still, I'm happy that you're liking it.
Favourites & Follows: Thank-you to "HyruleHearts1123", "Lady Isludis", "TheBadBritKid", "Legionary Prime" and "KonekoKai" for favouriting my FanFiction as well as "Lady Isludis" and "TheBadBritKid" again for following it too. So many favourites and follows, I'm so happy!
"There's something wrong with your character if "opportunity" controls your loyalty."
~Sean Simmons~
Ancient Roots
A Skyward Sword FanFiction
Chapter 11: Loyalties
"How is he?" I turn my gaze up from the waters beneath me, sighing a little as Pipit approaches me. I lie against the cool cavern walls of the Earth Spring, mist from the waterfalls on both of my sides caressing my skin. I cup the warm water in my hands, washing it over Link who lies in my arms. Ever since he had returned to us all and his wounds reopened, it was a mad rush to stabilise him. There wasn't a mass amount of blood loss, however there was enough to concern us all. He hasn't woken since, though there doesn't seem to be too much blood flowing through his bandages.
I shrug a little as Pipit kneels into the water. "Better." I reply, though he doesn't seem as convinced as I would expect him to be, so I quickly add: "Fi says that there's certain properties in the water that will help, so we should be able to try our escape when morning arrives." The both of us twist our gazes upwards to Karane, who is on her knees atop the main platform before the Goddess Statuette, hunched over the map that we created. My shoulders slump forwards, my final words hanging on my mind.
With what little supplies we used, the back of the map of the Eldin Province is what we know of the Earth Temple. I was only able to fill in the two rooms that I have explored and was imprisoned in, and it was Karane and Pipit who filled in the pathway that they took in order to reunite with each other, and then with Link and I. It isn't much, but it is something that we can work with. We can try to understand what routes we could potentially take, and others that we need to avoid at all costs. It will be a struggle, especially with how tired and injured we are, however we have very little choice in this matter.
"I remember Karane saying something about playing a song to the Statuette in the Skyview Spring that you found." He remarks after a short silence,shifting his position so that he sits fully in the water now. "Will we need to do the same here?" I nod. I had been thinking about it for a while, and Fi had reassured me that it would aid us greatly if I revived more of those images. I don't feel happy with seeing more of these images, ones that I cannot fully understand I must add, but like with our escape: we don't have much of a choice, do we?
Our voices die out for a longer time, and I note a gleam in Pipit's eyes that he has held ever since he and Karane had freed me. Nonetheless, this isn't the time to intrude (no matter how much I am desperate to sort this out for them), and I can't fight their battles; I have enough of my own at the moment. "We should take shifts." I blurt out suddenly, making sure that I cast my mind away from my previous train of thought. Pipit passes me an incredulous look, so I clarify for him. "We all need to sleep, but we can't let our guards down. Not with our enemies ready to bust down the door of the Spring."
He raises a brow at me, most likely at the last part, though nods in agreement. He gestures towards the Goddess Sword with his head. "Fi?" He asks the air, causing the spirit of the blade to appear momentarily in a burst of light that illuminates the water with a combination of purple and blue. "If we were to take shifts, would you be able to alert us on when to change so that we can get equal hours of sleep?" I tilt my head slightly. It's not that I am not the only one who can speak to Fi, but there's something in his tone that makes me question it.
"I will, Pipit." She answers kindly, yet does not return to the Goddess Sword like she usually would, leaning down to meet Pipit's gaze promptly. "Please excuse me for my boldness, Pipit, but your aura has shifted rather dramatically in the past hour or so after sundown, most likely due to stress and clouded thoughts. To alleviate such concerns, I suggest speaking out to your companions, and especially conversing with Karane, as most of your worries concern her."
Pipit stares are her, dumbfounded at her analysis as she returns to the Goddess Sword. Before I can say a word, he whirls around to me. "What did you tell her? You have no right to do that!"
My jaw drops. "Pipit, I never said anything!" I exclaim, eyes glinting with confusion. His gaze does not falter, causing me to shift my weight uncomfortably. "Look, all I had said to you was that something was up, didn't I? She may have caught that, and Fi's role is to analyse; whether to be places, threats, or even allies. I don't know what happened, but she has sensed what we all ever since Impa turned on us, because we have all been feeling it too." I sigh a little. "We are all scared about what is going to happen next, but we all have each other. We can't be alone in this."
He continues to bore into my eyes, desperate to trust me and what I am saying. Something shifts inside of him again, but I cannot fully understand it until he finally avoids my eyes. I shuffle closer to him, even with Link in my lap, and touch his hand lightly. His orbs meet my own, and the world stops around us. He's struggling to cope with everything that is going on almost as much as I am, and I understand that. What I don't he understands is that I do as well, I get why he is frightened of this, and willing to fight against this.
I understand him.
"How can you stay so calm when all of this is happening?"
His voice is but a whisper, and I retract my hand from his. Calm wouldn't have been my first description of my reactions towards this journey as a whole so far, but I exhale a little in thought. "I have struggled more than you know to look calm, but I know that I have to. I can't let my enemies know that I am petrified of this, because they will take advantage of me. They seem to care more for Link and I more than you and Karane, so I can't let my guard down. But, most of all, I need to stay calm for you. I can't let any of you feel what I feel." I pause. "It's not how it works, I guess."
Silence falls upon the area, and no one (not even Karane, who has picked up parts of our conversation) dares to utter a word. It's strange to talk about myself as if I have courage to fight this, yet in all honesty I feel far from that. Any form of courage that I may have shown is by sheer luck and acting on a sudden instinct that takes over my core, and nothing else. In reality, I am far more scared of the Surface than in awe like I thought that I would feel. This world is tainted, and we will be shrouded by it sooner rather than later.
"I'll go on watch first." I declare without much of a warning, leaning Link up against the wall and hoisting myself onto my feet, catching Pipit's attention as I do so. He tries to stop me by grabbing my hand, however it merely slips through my fingers. I turn back to him with a small smile. "Go and get some rest, Pipit. We're all going to need our energy in the next few hours." He notices something in my eyes that I can't understand, and his sudden intent gaze concerns me a little. I raise an eyebrow. "What?" He snaps free from his daze, shaking his head a little.
"Nothing."
I watch him for a few more moments before reliving him of whatever he was staring at. "All... right." I mutter. "Night." He mumbles some form of response that I don't hear properly, shrugging it off as I wade through the water and towards Karane, who raises her head towards me when she comes to terms with my presence. I take a seat beside her, Pipit shifting against the wall where I previously sat. "Anything yet?" I ask quietly, leaning over in order to look at the map fully. There have been minor changes to the map, though there seems to be much more detail than last time; even with limited resources to draw the map itself.
Karane shrugs lightly. "Not really." She says, pointing towards the map. "The Temple is rather small, but there are too many points where monsters could and have been appearing from that could ambush us just as quickly. They're expecting us to attempt an escape, and we'll be watched as soon as we leave the Spring." She meets my gaze evenly, eyes glinting with a sensed of panicked serenity. "The question isn't how we're getting out, but will we have the strength to."
I cast my gaze down to the map at my feet, careful with my fingers as I brush the tips against the darker spots eating away at the edges of the Temple map. My stomach twists violently, my eyes glued to the scrap of paper before me. "Go get some rest, Karane." My voice croaks out before I can even think about it, my tone hoarse. "I'm going to stay on watch. F-Fi will notify when we need to swap..." Karane studies me, though I avoid her gaze for a long time. When she reaches out to touch my shoulder, I flinch. "Please..."
She unwillingly complies, shuffling away to give me the space that I so desperately need at the moment. I don't catch where she moves off too, but the sound of boots wading through water is easy enough to lead me into believing that she has planted herself beside Pipit and Link. Finally somewhat isolated, I continue to stare down at the map; something festering deep inside of my core. I grit my teeth, unknowing of what the particular emotion is.
As soon as I throw the map into the waters surrounding me, I understand that the emotion is nothing but anger.
I bite my tongue in order to halt myself from crying out, releasing the burning emotion before it singes my heart, eyes boiling with non existent fire as I bore into the scrap of paper as it plunges deep into the water of the Spring. My heart clenches in irritation, though my mind is a blurry of images and thoughts that are not coherent enough for me to grasp. I don't care, however, as I no longer have to look at the map fully any longer. I pull my knees up and bury my head in them, unsure of what else to do.
"Mistress?" I don't shift, causing a spark of light to appear at my side. "Mistress, you are clearly upset, and have a high chance of expressing these emotions in a way that you will regret in the future." Fi explains to me quietly, but I still don't shift; I think if she could sigh, then she would. "Dominae, I have analysed past emotional outbursts, and have come to a conclusion. Speaking about your concerns have a high chance of releasing "weight from your shoulders". Would you like to express these worries to myself, or would you prefer to awaken one of your companions?"
I shake my head, whether it be at Fi's question or at my overwhelming thoughts, I'm not quite sure. I slowly untangle myself from the confinements of my body, meeting Fi's eye line for a moment before collapsing down onto the platform beneath me, resting my back on the cold, hard stone as a means of support. "I'm doubting this, Fi." I begin in a whisper, staring up at the cavernous ceiling and counting the numerous cracks embedded into it. "I'm doubting a lot of things, and I'm struggling to find some means of hope or... or positivity in this."
Fi kneels down before me, though doesn't move close enough to become intrusive. "Would you care to elaborate, Dominae?" I snap my head over to her. "If you clarify specifics, then I believe that there is a higher probability in which you shall understand yourself about what is bringing you down so low for one with a tall spirit."
I smile a little, part forced part genuine. "I just... I just..." I hold my hand up to try and elaborate with gestures, only for them to drop back against my stomach harshly. "I'm tired of not knowing." I say finally after a pregnant pause. "The Surface was supposed to be a beautiful place, and wondrous in every way. And, in a way, it is, but I never asked for this to happen. I didn't want to find myself cowering from an enemy that I didn't even know since, what, a day or so ago? I didn't want to... be a part of this." Fi tilts her head in an attempt to understand what I mean, but I doubt that she will.
"Are you suggesting that you regret accepting your destiny, or you are struggling to become a part of it?"
I huff, taking her back a little at the thought of agreeing with the former. "I-I don't know, Fi. If the Surface had ever been opened up in my lifetime, then I want to believe that I probably wouldn't be stuck in this situation, but deep down, I know that no matter when the Surface opened up; Link would still be in danger, we would all still become injured in some way, shape, or form, and I... no, it's nothing." I turn myself onto my side and away from Fi, yet she does nothing but persist.
"I may believe what you are saying." I don't answer, leaving her to carry on by herself. "While I do not have the capability to fully understand the human spirit and emotional capacity, I see a high chance in your mind set showing doubt in yourself." I raise a brow, but she doesn't see as she adds: "You see yourself as unable to accept this destiny because you do not have the strength to overcome certain trials laid out before you, especially ones such as this one. At this moment, considering the possible outcomes before you, you do not see yourself as a worthy one of being able to protect your friends from your new enemies as well as this destiny set out to you."
I close my eyes for a moment, thinking through her words. In a way, there is some truth in her words, and I can understand what she means; but there is something else that simmers under the surface of that too. While I do not see myself worthy, as she explained to me, there is another sense of emotion behind that which reveals something else entirely. It is the same emotion that I had felt at Mother's funeral, when I had first descended to the Surface, my first battle with Ghirahim in the Skyview Temple, and now: lying in confinement with evil clawing at the pathway we will use to escape.
"It's the fear of the unknown." I realise, the truth dawning on me. "I don't understand my destiny, I don't understand why I was chosen, and I don't understand what this will all achieve in the end, but it is the future that I fear the most. The future that I may not survive to see, or my friends won't, my family won't. The future where I don't understand until it is all too late. The future that is a world that we can't or don't want to live in, one where we don't have what we love and care for, or one that isn't what the Goddess intended for it to be."
Fi doesn't respond for a long time, although it takes a while for me to register it. I fall deeper into my thoughts, attempting to fully understand what I feel. However, it isn't long after I do that I realise that Fi hasn't said anything whatsoever. What I had brushed off before as nothing but her trying to decipher my words (for she cannot understand human emotions, like she had said) becomes something that physically begins to concern me a little. I twist back over to meet her, but she avoids me eyes, intently focused on something that I cannot see.
"Fi?" I question lightly, pushing myself upright to watch her further. "F-Fi, are you all right?"
Without warning, her head whirls up to meet my gaze evenly, though there is a cold glimmer of emotion embedded deep within her clear eyes that concerns me greatly. "The Sheikah that betrayed the trust of you and your companions is approaching the Earth Spring at a high speed. I conjecture that she will arrive in less than one minute, and immediate action is required." Her tone is extremely calm, however I can hear the tiny buzzing of concern intertwining into her voice as she reports the news to me.
I don't even begin to hesitate, moving before Fi has even completed speaking to me directly. Blinking over to me companions, all three of them thankfully resting peacefully, I scoop up my scabbard from the platform after I had left it for easy access and to relieve my back from the weight of it, picking up my Harp that rests beside it too. I leave my shoes on the platform, recklessly crossing the Spring in large steps with bare feet that glisten with water as it drips down my legs. Fi immediately returns to her place within the Master Sword, leaving me alone to run through the Spring that is barely lit up by the flickering torches.
I nearly collide with the door leading out of the Spring, and it takes me a few moments to steel my courage before I press my quaking hand against it, swallowing thickly as it fades away; revealing the fiery Earth Temple before me. I inhale a deep breath, forcing my stiff limbs out into the humid air before me. The room had been unchanged by Ghirahim's magic and presence, even the ground has not been stained openly with blood so badly that I instantly notice. I shake myself free of my thoughts before they become too much of a problem, too much taking my brain.
Problems such as the Sheikah.
Impa slowly strolls up the wide ramp towards the Earth Spring with an extra spring in her step, as if she is extremely pleased with herself. "Ah, Your Grace, it pleases me to see that you survived your capture." Her lips twist upward, though there is a glint in her eyes that I cannot fully understand straight away. "What of your other companions?" I ignore her, knowing that she is trying her best to take a stab at some nerves, ones that I refuse to let her do. I straighten and tighten my grip on the Goddess Sword, gritting my teeth.
"What do you want now?" I ask sternly, raising my sword up. "After you gave us over to Ghirahim, I'm surprised that you are even attempting to take a stab at me and my friends." Impa shakes her head lightly, her grin increasing. "To one who was so loyal to the Goddess, why are you do eager to attack us?" I lower my stance ever so slightly. "We haven't done anything to you." I pause. "Yes, we have been holding Link away from Ghirahim, but that's completely different. We haven't done anything at all to you."
Impa laughs, crossing her arms; not even drawing any of the knives attached to her sides. "I have not come to answer your questions. I have come to question something that had irked me ever since our first meeting in Skyview Spring." I tighten my grip around the Goddess Sword, my jaw tightening as she continues. "Why are you so intent on throwing yourself into danger for him, Your Grace? You know more than anyone that he is capable of handling himself."
"I know more than you ever believe you do." I retort honestly, lowering myself back into a battle stance, poised atop my toes. "I want to protect him, and I have had no choice but to follow my destiny with—" Her cackle is what stop me first, twisting my gut in an unnatural way that only further ignites my anger. "You honestly believe that I will ever listen to a word that you say?!" I cry out. "You may have come here to "question me", but I don't believe a word that you say. You want my barriers lowered so that you can harm my friends because we are going to beat you, and you can't let that harm your ego, can you?"
"Hmm, so I suppose you do have some spice to you..." She muses, uncrossing her arms and lowering them to her sides; still not drawing her knives. "Nonetheless, you are completely wrong – though this isn't the first time." She takes a step towards me, and it takes all that I have to give not to back away from her. "You are the one who all ready has weak barriers around your heart. You are the one who believes that you have harboured "love" and "affection" from the boy, and it is I who can see right through those lies."
I grind my teeth further into each other., blinking down then back at her "You don't know what he and I have been through, he more than I!"
Her grin widens, knowing that she has me where she wants me. "No, but I do know the last Bearer. The feelings that you believe are there is nothing but his Soul playing with his mind. Have you seen how closely related they are? How easily they have fallen for Her Grace or those related to her?" She leans in within inches of my face, my heart leaping to my throat. "He doesn't love you! It is the last Bearer is the one in love, and you are too tied up in pining for his attention to understand!"
"You're wrong!" I shout in protest, raising my blade up further. "They're nothing alike, Impa! My Link is nothing like the last Bearer. I do not throw myself into danger to gra his attention, nor have either of us expressed our love in such a—" My eyes widen, my heart suddenly sinking into my stomach. My mind screams for me to agree with my own words, but my heart rises from the sudden combustion in my stomach. I look up at Impa. "No matter what our relationship is, I won't turn my back on him; nor my other friends." I take a step towards her, leaning into her face as best as I can. "I don't listen to those with sick, twisted minds."
She raises an eyebrow. "Then do not listen to yourself, Your Grace." She throws me bodily away from her, though I am back up and on my feet in an instant. She places a hand onto her hip. "He proclaimed more to me in the time that we spent crossing the Surface than he has to you in a lifetime, multiple lifetimes in fact!" I narrow my eyes, more so in confusion than anything else. "Multiple lives"? "You may not want to trust me, but there is no one else that you can trust. Not even the boy!"
She whips out something that forces a startled gasp to be released from my lungs. Dangling off of a long, thick string-like chain is a wooden charm of a flower; one of the wild flowers that grow on the banks of lakes in the Sky Realm. Link had made it for my fourteenth birthday because of his extreme craftsmanship, though he had kept it safe for me when Groose had tried to throw it off of Skyloft on the day of the Wind Ceremony; which he almost succeeded at too. My lips part. "H-How did you get that?"
"There really isn't anyone that you can trust." She pauses suddenly, and I expect another retort from her; although what she says next is far from it. "But you can trust me." My jaw drops in alarm at her words. The glint in her eye that I couldn't understand is true more than ever now, and is nothing but a shining ray of truth. This doesn't seem like a part of her act, though I thought the same outside of the Earth Temple when she went against just that. "Please." She holds her hands up in peace, the necklace still dangling from her hand. "Allow me to explain myself."
"What is there to explain?" I question apprehensively, gripping the hilt of the Goddess Sword tightly.
She glances down to the ground, casting her gaze back up to meet my eyes evenly in moments, stroking the charm on the necklace. "I have been watching you and Link ever since both of you arrived onto the Surface." She begins quietly, silently listening out for any other presences like I am. "I had to find out more out Ghirahim's strengths and weaknesses as my enemy, so I agreed to join him as a betrayed Sheikah. This obviously meant that I had to find Link and hand him over, and you saw that I had."
"What?"
"This act of mine was able to prove my false alliance to him." Impa continues, completely ignoring my words and dumbfounded expression. "Ever since Ghirahim set Scaldera out on your friends, I knew that it was time to sever the alliance, so I saved your friends from having to fight Scaldera and possibly die." She raises her head. "I am not proud of it, but I did what I had to so that I could follow the orders that I had been given long after the Great War had been quelled." She nods towards the door behind me. "And if you simply let me into the—"
It is my turn to begin laughing.
"Oh Impa, you really haven't changed, have you?" Her eyes glint with a strange glitter of surprise, one that I barely notice as I continue with a light shake of my head. "Did you honestly think that you could win me over with words before slipping into the Spring to finish what you started back on the surface of the Eldin Province?" She moves to speak, but I get there first. "I can trust many people, Impa, but you are not one of them. You are an Exile, and nothing else. You have betrayed me and those close to me, so don't even think that you will ever gain that trust again."
The Sheikah watches me intently for a long time, as if she is legitimately hurt by my words. But I am far from caring, distrustful of almost everything that she says, no matter what it is. After a pregnant silence, the lava sizzling and popping around us, the Sheikah bows deeply towards me, holding her arm diagonally across her chest. "I am deeply sorrowed that I am come to appear incredibly disloyal to you, Your Grace. I serve the Goddess, therefore it is my duty to prove to you that I am on your side." As soon as she straightens back upright, she pulls out some form of nut from a pocket in her uniform (like one I'd use in the Slingshot) and throws it onto the ground, causing me to shield my eyes at the light that it creates.
By the time that I look back, she's gone, as if never there.
I stand there for the Goddess knows how long, contemplating her words as they spiral and echo around my brain. Casting my gaze down to the necklace hanging in my palm, I tilt my head in an act of deep confusion. Link had given Impa the necklace because he had trusted her, and it was before she had betrayed us all, but there has to be a reason why she gave it to me. On one hand, she has given it to me in order to unhinge me, and so that she can make sure that I am questioning all that I can in the time when she is not around. Plus, she may have charmed it so that she could track us, or something even worse.
And yet, there is a tiny voice at the back of my head that is rejecting that as an offer of trust from her. After all, she did say that it was her duty to make sure that I can trust her in the future; giving me the necklace in order to show that I can trust her in some way. It's not a loud voice, although I can hear it over the din of the war inside of me. My stomach twists uncomfortably, the small voice snuffed out by the majority of the former voice.
I can't trust many, not even myself, but I certainly cannot trust her.
I shuffle forwards a little, though not too far from the entrance to the Spring in case Impa appears again and enters while I am not looking, seeing that there is no one else that I can see in the area; not even my gut telling me that anyone is around through the period of doubt that follows it. Swallowing thickly, I turn around and race towards the door before I can explore my doubts any further, wishing to be in some form of comfort before we all face the Earth Temple together
I sheathe the Goddess Sword and place my hand against the door, tightening my grasp around the necklace as it fades out of existence momentarily. My hand twitches for my blade before I step inside, and it takes much of my will to stomach it, merely allowing myself to twist my head over my shoulder to look down into the humid room one last time. "Who are you?" I whisper to the air quietly. "What do you want with us?" The air surrounding me hands me no response of course, but the deathly cold silence does not help to quell my fears.
I spin back into the Spring before anything else happens.
The cool air of the Spring takes me by surprise, yet I fall into its embrace rather briskly. It breathes against my skin harshly, and I intake as much of it in as possible. My bare feet and legs feel the sudden change in temperature the most, chills nipping at the edges of my toes and skin without any form of hesitation whatsoever. I press onward and hop up the steps before me, disturbing the torches as I pass by, halting near instantly at the top when my eyes lock onto a figure ahead.
The lights in the room cast his shadow far across the room, so far in fact that it nearly meets my own flickering inky blot on the cold stone at my feet. He faces the Statuette of the Goddess, arms tucked firmly behind his back as he studies the structure before him. My breath hitches in my throat, a strange sensation overwhelming my body as my tiny gasp takes his attention towards me. As he turns, the tears in his clothing become more apparent, the cuts and bruises clearer than the daylight that I dread to think about.
Link can't finish saying my name before I fly forwards and into his arms, sending him staggering backwards with a flinch. I don't even allow myself room to breathe, drinking in his scent and warmth as much as I physically am able to; relief washing over me. He buries his face in my dishevelled hair, doing the same. "I thought that you were dead." He whispers to me, careful not to wake Pipit and Karane along with the fact that he is far too relieved to speak any louder. "If it wasn't for Fi telling me otherwise, I would have..."
"I thought that I would lose you too." I cut in before he can finish, holding him closer, finally moving away to hold my hand over a scar that is embedded into his cheek. "But we're not, and we won't be if we can flee undetected, so we don't need to care about what could have happened. Besides," I add more so to console me rather than him. "I'm not going any time soon, and neither are you." We choose to embrace again, planting ourselves on the platform beneath our feet and hanging our feet over the edge into the water. Silence befalls the area, leaving us to think for a while as we hold each other close.
"What happened?" Link asks after a pregnant silence ensues. I lift my head up for a moment, meeting his eyes evenly. "While we've been apart, I mean. We wouldn't be resting in the Spring if you hadn't done something to gain some sort of advantage, and so that you wouldn't be..." He stops himself at the right time, leaving me to swallow thickly and rest my head back onto his shoulder, swallowing thickly. He waits for me to speak, though allows me enough time to think first without pushing me over the edge that I currently stand so close to.
"I remember waking in the Earth Temple." I begin softly, realising something at the back of my mind. "I don't remember much, but someone else was there, and they... I think they used some form of magic on me. I couldn't see their face, but I blacked out before I could try and see who they were." I pause for a moment, thinking back as he shifts closer to me. "Then Pipit and Karane found me. We had to fend of Ghirahim and what he sent at us, but we found you. Whatever you awoke in the Statuette replaced you with another." I shudder involuntarily, clasping my hands together. "As soon as you came back you... you almost bled out."
He takes a moment to digest my words before commenting. "He had used force when I refused to pray to the Statuette." He explains quietly, his free hand touching a random scar across his shoulder. "My defiance was pointless, but I had managed to use the power of the Statuette to do what Ghirahim has asked for and fight back too." He doesn't speak for a long time, eyes following the ripples in the water as it is disturbed by our feet. "I guess fate smiled down on us all today..."
"I guess it did." Silence engulfs the quiet conversation immediately, but I am quick to break it. "We only have a few hours until dawn and monster activity goes down, and then we have a small amount of time to leave without being detected." I raise my head, noting Link's questioning glance from beside me. He knows that I am hiding something, a comment from Ghirahim about the consequences of being caught attempting to flee from the Temple, something that I don't want to talk about. "I just know that it isn't going to be as easy."
He raises a brow at me, though reluctantly queries something else instead. "Why were you outside the Spring just?"
"Fending off Impa." His eyes widen slightly, causing me to expand. "Fi had warned me of her presence, so I kept her at bay from the Spring. She gave me this—" I hold the necklace up for him to see, dropping it into his hand when he silently asks for it through his recognition. "—saying that she could be trusted. I can't think why she would say that when she knows that I wouldn't, but there is... I-I just have a feeling that she still has some loyalties to me but... it can't be true." He stares down at the necklace in his hand for a long time, leaving me alone with my thoughts. "After all that she has done, she wouldn't say that. She wouldn't say that she is loyal to us within earshot of Ghirahim unless she was lying but I... I..." My voice dies off before I can finish.
"I don't know." Link says after a long time of silence. "But I guess all we can do is avoid them both as much as possible so that we can fix whatever we have involuntarily started. Choosing who to trust and who you can't can take a long time to establish, longer than anyone ever wants to spend on it, but it's worth the wait. All we can do is endure and hope that we have more that we can trust rather than have us left alone to fend for ourselves like we have been tonight." Strangely enough, I find a small smile tugging at the edges of my lips at his words despite how a sense of sombreness chews at the edge of his words and tone.
"You always said that I had the wisdom, and I had always said that you had your head in the clouds." I say to him, not quite meeting his gaze. He laughs lightly, but not as he normally would. "But I think that you have more wisdom that most see on the outside when it comes to you." He smiles a little himself, yet doesn't meet my eyes like I want him to. A moment of silence ensues, and neither of us dare to speak, although there is one who does dare to speak; one who surprises both Link and I.
Fi appears before us in a bright spark from the Goddess Sword, her eyes watching both Link and I intently as she speaks, hovering elegantly over the water's edge by mere inches. "Mistress, because the Statuette has previously been awoken by the Spirited One—" Beside me, Link flinches both at the title and the memories. "—I have been granted a message from the Gods of Old without need of a Skyward Strike, contrary to the Statuette in Skyview Spring. It is necessary for you to hear this message before you depart, and it is almost time for you to take your time to rest. Do you permit me to translate this message to you, Dominae?"
With nothing else to say or do, I simply nod. "Please, Fi."
She nods herself, bowing deeply and rising onto one foot like she had done in Skyview Spring before shooting off around the Spring. I immediately think that she will awaken Pipit and Karane, however she is quiet enough not to greatly disturb the water or create enough sound with her voice; momentarily erecting a shield in order to protect them from anything that reaches them. "From the edge of time I guide you, the one chosen to carry out the Goddess's Mission. The Bearer of the Hero's Spirit has awakened more memories in the Earth Spring and will soon make his way to a fated place."
"A fated place?" We both whisper at once, yet Fi answers moments later through her message.
She shoots past me and into a stop right before me, spraying the refreshing water onto me, light from underneath her shining onto her features as she spins around infinitely like in the previous Spring. "The parched desert of Lanayru, that is where the Spirited One will pass through the legendary Gate of Time into a distant world." As she completes relaying the message to me, the barrier falls and she glides into a halt, still holding herself tall atop the tips of her toes like Mother had once taught me to do during ballet – however I will never be as good, clearly.
My eyebrows knit together. "Fi, what's a "desert"?"
"A desert, Mistress, is a main region of the Surface that is so arid because of little rainfall that it supports only sparse and widely spaced vegetation, or no vegetation at all in most areas." She explains to me near instantly, holding her arms at equal length apart to her sides. "It is also an area in which few forms of life can exist due to these harsh conditions of high and humid temperatures followed by extremely cold conditions at night time." I nod uncomfortably, dreading why destiny has sent us to such an area. "It will take numerous days to trek across such a terrain, Dominae. Therefore I suggest residing in Skyloft for a minimum of forty-eight hours in order to rest properly and prepare for the journey ahead."
I gulp at the amount of time she specifies, yet I am deeply relieved at staying in Skyloft (in safety) for so long, but it is Link who speaks up with concerns rather than myself. "Forty-eight hours?" The spirit of the swords silently agrees, causing him to chew at his lip for a while. "But... but won't there be monsters drawn to Skyloft if we stay too long?" He asks suddenly, taking me by surprise. I hadn't ever thought about that before, although there would be a small chance of that occurring. "It won't help if I am there."
I turn to him with parted lips, determined to halt him, however Fi steps in before I can say anything. "These are small chances, Spirited One, and it will not just be your presence that could spark such an event. However, we may discuss more of these once I assess the nature of our escape within the hours ahead." Link moves to say something else, though stops himself before he can, becoming one with his own thoughts while Fi directs her next statement towards me. "Dominae, you must offer your song once again to the Statuette, reminiscent to the previous Spring. This will, in turn, aid you in your quest."
Nodding in agreement, I pick up my bag that lies a few feet away from me and drag out my Harp from within it, unlocking myself from a silent Link so that I can ready the Harp with more ease. I raise my hand to begin strumming the notes of the song that I am to play, only to halt my motion completely. Something plucks itself at the back of my mind, and I voice it before I can register doing so. "Fi..." She directs her gaze to me immediately. "Can you feel?"
"I must ask you to expand, Mistress, for I do not completely understand the full meaning of your question."
I sigh a little, trying myself to make my way out of the suddenly awkward situation. I look down at my hands, clasping them together as I talk to Fi; not looking up to her. "I was thinking about it while you were relaying the message from the Gods of Old to us, while you were dancing." I finally push myself to meet her stony gaze. "Did the Goddess just... create you, or did you have something else before that? Can you hold emotions?"
"Before my Creation after the Great War, I did have a life." I can't conceal a gasp of surprise, opening my mouth to reply, only to be stopped when Fi continues. "However that is something that I was coded not to disclose. In terms of emotional levels, I was not created to have emotions and "feelings" so I would not attach myself to others surrounding myself. This is when I am no longer needed in this day and age, I can leave this time with the blade that you carry without a chance of me not wanting to leave; as emotional attachments cause that."
"And the dancing?"
She holds her head higher. "I was designed to express messages, such as the one from the Gods of Old, in a way that would have a higher of being remembered by my current Mistress. On the other hand, I can still not show these emotions during these messages." I tilt my head a little, waiting for her to expand, but she does not choose to; leaving me to bow my head and leave me with my thoughts. Fi had once lived, and she was a human being, although the call of destiny transformed her into something that she shouldn't have been made to be.
Was it forced?
I open my mouth to ask this, only for my voice to create another question entirely. "Is it... better not to feel anything, Fi?"
"My calculations assume that your question was formed by mass debate over your emotions and "feelings" ever since you arrived onto the Surface." I slowly nod, agreeing to her mathematical explanation. "And from the information corresponding from the life that I had experienced before I had transferred over into this creation, I predict that—" She cuts herself off, causing me to sharply meet her blank eyes. She rechecks her calculations for a moment, then adds: "—I am unsure on whether having the capability to use emotions is a positive aspect of human genetics or not."
Fi immediately returns to the Goddess Sword without adding anything else, and I watch her leave. As she shifts back into her permanent home, I notice a glint of embarrassment across her stature. She does not like to not know, especially when her "Mistress" has asked her a question, I suppose, so she must leave as quickly as possible so that she could assess why and acquire an answer for future reference. I suddenly feel bad for asking such a thing, though I still feel irritation at the Goddess for doing such a thing.
Shaking my head lightly, I hold myself closer to Link as I hold my hands up into a prayer position, letting my eyes slip shut and allow myself to be drawn into whatever the Statuette has to show me. What I don't expect, however, is for a voice to call out to me as the realm of blackness washes over me. "My Servant may not be able to disclose information of her previous life." They soothe to me, and I can feel their smooth hand brush against my cheek. "However I may reveal this to you, the life of the one most loyal to me..."
~O~
Two figures sat against a thick oak three, one male and the other female. The girl had flowing dark hair that cascaded down her back. She was reading a thick book to the boy, who was illiterate to the Hylian language, something that she did not expect to do until she became a mother; however she was unique in many ways, and not just in this circumstance. The boy, on the other hand, was obviously not one of that world. Everything he had was white, even his skin, doomed and shunned by death's touch. He was a Demon, and yet he chose to serve the Goddess; or so they had been told.
"There is a War approaching on the horizon." He had told her quietly, watching the clouds passing through the sunset red sky. In places such as the Demon Realm, blood forever diseased the skies, and the sight of it outside of that Realm was something else to behold. Neither of them were supposed to understand things like war, yet he did because of where he was from and she could because she acted older than she physically was. They were both young, though their old souls spoke otherwise. "We won't see each other for a while."
The girl smiled sadly, nudging her companion slightly at his sombre tone. "Do not plague your heart with dark things such as war and suffering,Ghirahim." She scolded softly, turning her gaze back down to what she was reading, her voice deepening slightly as she returned to the realm of knowledge that had been sprawled across the pages. "Think only of the present, and you shall not feel so obliged to think incredibly dark about this day and age." She added momentarily, not taking her eyes away from the book for even a moment, even when her companion silently begged for another comment.
"I will." He responded calmly, twisting his body so that he could stare out upon the land again. He had not left the Demon Realm long ago, meaning that he was still getting used to the prospect of constant light instead of the plague of bloody darkness, and also becoming aware of his surroundings more; for he had a singular task to complete, and he would not hesitate in failing to complete that task. Narrowing his eyes into thin slits at the fertile ground beneath his feet, he produced a flower from his pocket and passed it to the girl.
The plant was abnormal, and clearly not one that had naturally grown on the land of the Old Gods. It was a lily, it seemed, which was a plant known for growing in vibrant colours across this land, however the pigment that this flower held in particular was strange and unnatural; but beautiful in its own sense. The petals were dyed in a dark blue pigment, the flower almost glowing against the blood red sun that set in the far distance. The girl turned to him, a curious smile about her lips. "Is this for me?"
"Of course."
She placed the tome on the grassy knoll beside her, taking the lily from his hand and studying it in her lap, breaking the silence as soon as the wind began to engulf them. "You know, Ghirahim, there are many here who are frightened of you due to your... obscure origins. In the beginning, when I had first conversed with you, I'd openly admit that I was the same. You were one of the few to leave such a place in such a way, and those like you did not end up so well in this land." She shuddered at the memories of hanging men and women, claiming to leave their Demon origins behind, only to betray their new brothers and sisters before too long. "But I..."
"But you what?" He pressed, determined to decipher whether his twisted and distorted words had played the part that they were supposed to. The girl parted her lips to reply, though a sudden feminine voice called Fiona's name, startling them both. The two young adults whirled around, spotting a silhouette in the distance. Before Ghirahim could attain the answer that he ever so desperately desired, Fiona rose to her feet, clutching her tome with the flower atop it. She smiled down at him and signalled her leave, however he raised himself onto his feet and carted after her. "Fiona!" He demanded, causing her to pivot back around to him. "But you what?"
She avoided his eyes for a long time, longer than he had expected her to, before finally answering; holding her tome close to her. "But I have changed, and I hope that you won't be the next Demon to be hung like the rest of them were." On that, she twirled around and descended the knoll, leaving Ghirahim alone atop the small hill to think back to her words. As her figure disappeared into the arms of her mother, the Demon contemplated the moment to strike.
After all, he would be tying to noose for those who fought against the Demons.
Within months did the Great War begin. Deep in the Realm of Light did the earth crack open, thousands upon thousands of Demons scurrying out from the fissure in order to mount a brutal assault upon the people of Light. By that time Ghirahim had slipped away from the chaos, aiding in pulling the strings of madness and ending all lives as possible in order to prove that the Demons were dominant over all – no matter what it took, no matter what design the Gods of Old had created.
The War had lasted an age, it seemed, as it was going to be known as the Great War no matter which side won – the side of the Goddess or of the the Demons. The Demons went straight for the humans and the Goddess's followers, taking as many lives as they could before they lost their own under the bright sun. The side of the Goddess battled throughout the day and night with as much honour and justice as possible, taking their victories in the day when the Demons had burrowed back into their fissures leading to the Demon Realm.
Ghirahim had long since discarded of false loyalties, battling mercilessly from the shadows, heart singing as hearts were split apart. Nonetheless, something had stirred within him during this process. Every time that a soldier, man, woman, or child had died, his mind had crossed back to the girl atop the knoll, reading to him with all calm and tranquil presence. Despite the fact that it was his duty to betray such people no matter how much kindness they had shown, he had wanted to see her again; and not just to see her bleed at his feet.
Ever since that day, fate had turned on him. He had searched for the girl despite his best efforts to ignore such plights, completing the task from his Master as well as his own lusts. For what seemed like years, there had been signs leading to the cold end of her death, though he did not falter. Before long, there were a group of Hyrulean Knights that had given him hope, detailing where one like her had gone to; handing him exactly what he had needed without even uttering a word to him.
Killing them was child's play.
Then there was a problem, for the place she had travelled to was a Realm that he could not return to without completing the task that he was given. She had been sent into the Demon Realm along with a Chosen One of the Goddess to see whether the Demon King would actually show himself; or to find some form of advantage against the Demons. By sending somebody as smart as Fiona in, the Goddess (who had descended to the land to support her Army's efforts against the Demons) knew that she would be able to keep herself safe, and sending none other than a Chosen One meant that the Gods of Old would be blessing them with every step they took as well.
So he waited until she returned, internally hoping that she would make it back alive.
And yet, as the Winter chills faded from the land, snow and frost scarred with blood and bodies, abandoned weapons soon picked up by their allies or enemies left on the muddy fields, she had returned. The Allied Forces did not recognise Ghirahim when he stepped into the Temple of the Goddess, though he slipped through the shadows unnoticed until he found the girl that he was searching for. Both her and the boy (presumably the one that she had travelled into the heart of the Demon Realm with) had their fair share of wounds, yet it seemed that the boy had the more serious ones.
"I don't think you'll be helping Viscen on the battlefield any time soon." She mused quietly to the boy, apparently tending to a wound on his arm. He whispered something into her ear, making her laugh suddenly. It was sweet and melodic, something that was not a part of War; only after with the victors once they had mourned their losses. She swatted his uninjured arm. "I don't want you getting injured like you did in the Demon Realm." She paused, avoiding his gaze for a moment. "I don't want to hear a lack of heartbeat from you again."
The boy planted a tender kiss onto the girl's cheek, and that was when Ghirahim made himself known.
As soon as he had made himself known in the silent room, thankful that no one else was there but those two, mere moments passed before recognition came to pass. The girl raised her head at the sudden presence of another in the room, eyes widening in alarm so much that it caused her to whirl around and onto her feet. The boy behind her seemed to recognise the Demon, though wasn't sure where he had seen him before. "You..." She whispered in disbelief, hand twitching for her crossbow.
"It's wonderful to think that you have forgotten me so easily, Fiona." Ghirahim mused himself, taking a warning step forwards. "Quick to turn your back on a Demon, hmm?"
"You never cared for me." She scoffed as the boy behind her rose to her feet, still unsure of where he had seen the Demon before. "I learnt a lot about you in the Demon Realm, Ghirahim, and none of it positive. You dare to step in a Temple of the Goddess, on holy ground, with such a corrupted heart and Soul?" She produced the same lily that he had given to her years ago, not even beginning to wilt away. "This flower, the "Ashes of Love", cannot ever die unless..." With a flick of her other hand, the flower was engulfed in flames. "Go to the Hanging Tree with your other Demons, Ghirahim. I'm sure they'll be waiting."
The Demon grinned manically as the dying embers of the lily draped onto the ground, the boy behind Fiona gently shoving her aside in order to stand before Ghirahim himself. "You are the one who burnt Kakariko to a wasteland." The boy announced in a loud tone, grabbing the attention of many of the soldiers in the Temple. "You are the Demon King's Hidden Commander, pulling the strings of every death of our Army." Without warning, the boy threw the Demon against the wall. Although he was weaponless, he still pursued a battle.
"You..." Ghirahim hummed in realisation. He recognised the boy, even if he had not seen him before. His True Master, the Demon King, had described one like the boy; one who would destroy everything, leaving Ghirahim with one main task to fulfil. "The boy will bring about the destruction of the Demon Army." The Demon King had explained once. "You must sought him out and destroy him. He is chosen by the Goddess, blessed by the Gods of Old, and bears a blade created by the Goddess herself. His light must be snuffed out at all costs..."
The boy was it: the Goddess's Chosen Hero, the Bear of the Hero's Spirit.
"Demon!" A male soldier called from further back in the Temple, catching their attention. Soldiers of Light charged into the depths of the Temple fully armed with swords, bows, and crossbows; some of them even mages. The Demon groaned underneath the grasp of the Chosen One, who had momentarily weakened his hold on Ghirahim. From this, the Demon shoved the boy out of the way, working a knife deep into his once uninjured arm.
As the soldiers circled the Demon, he merely smiled as the boy returned to the girl's side both of them preparing the weapon. "I will not add myself to my brethren who have been hung." Ghirahim declared with open arms, no weapon upon him that any of them could see. "But still your tongues, for I will return to complete my duty." He gestured to the boy, who ripped out the knife immediately, then proceeded to address them all. "It is my duty to make sure that he does not live to support the victory of the Goddess's Army, and I will not cease until his blood is on my hands. You have your loyalties, and I have mine." He turned to the girl, who kept close to the boy. "Let us meet on the battlefield, and allow me to strike you down when you come back to me, blubbering apologies as your loves is struck down at my hand!"
Before the soldiers could attack in any way, Ghirahim was gone, leaving all of them behind with his mark left behind. That evening, once everyone had recollected themselves and the Goddess's Army began to finalise their battle plans with the new information from the Demon earlier in the day, Fiona had departed and returned to her home in the mountains. She went alone, not even taking her love with her, and allowed the wind to carve her path across the land towards the grassy knoll that she had spoken to Ghirahim on all those years ago.
The thick oak tree was still there, and Fiona had not come into contact with it since the Great War had broken out. The sun had almost fully set, casting long rays of blood across the orange sky that was beginning to snuff out the deep blues and purples of twilight. Despite this, she felt the large strands of dark green grass nip at her feet, thankfully no blood or bodies strewn across the knoll. She rested her hand against the bark, flinching violently at the groaning of rope on either side of her, large shadows swinging in the breeze before her. She closed her eyes, desperate not to see those hanging there.
Three of the Demon King's Commanders hung from the Hanging Tree, showing all who opposed the Goddess what they would find.
Fiona shook her head, allowing a tear to fall as she spun around, sinking to the ground as she rest her back against the large tree. Her Mother was buried underneath the tree before the Great War had broken out, no grave to show it, leaving the girl guilty because she had not been able to mourn fully before the War occurred. Still, with Ghirahim's words still echoing around her head, she let her arms rest atop her knees, her tunic creasing as she shifted her weight. A flock of birds flew out from the boughs of the tree, leaving her alone as the wind picked up suddenly. She remembered a haunting lullaby from when she was a child, finding the dark irony in the words now. "Are you? Are you? Coming to the tree? Where they strung up a man they say who murdered three. Strange things did happen here, no stranger would it be, if we met up at midnight in the Hanging Tree..."
In the shadows, a lone Demon smiled.
Author's Note: Well, I did not expect any of that. You know when FanFictions write themselves, well here's a prime example of it! Anyway, I'll be writing another chapter before going onto Sealed Beneath The Waves and Beauty And The Beast so be prepared for a much happier chapter over this one. Anyway, stay random while I write another chapter!
~RandomButLoved~