Edits have been made and proper paragraph breaks are in place. Sorry about the lapse.

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Chapter 10: Faces of Evil

Finally the trees gave way to a clearing. The instant Link stepped foot on the grass a cool wind circled around him. For the first time in what felt like ages his lungs no longer burned from the labor of breathing. Beside him, Hero was panting only slightly less, apparently not fully recovered despite the potion.

His moment of relief was short-lived, slain by the sight before him. Though the field had obviously once been very pleasant, it was now devastated. Major portions had been entirely burned away, while others seemed frozen solid, as little sense as that made. What appeared to be broken pieces of stone statues also littered the area. For the first time, Link was very glad that he hadn't been able to keep up with Cid. What had happened here?

Immediately his eyes moved to the field's only inhabitants, grouped beside what appeared to be a small house that had also taken some damage. As he moved closer he quickly identified them. Cid was sitting against the house wall with his eyes closed, resting but no worse off than he had been before. Vincent was just coming out of the door; he had no wounds but his clothing indicated there were many not long ago. Altair stood at the edge facing out with his eyes closed.

With them, however, was someone Link didn't recognize. It was one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen. Vincent's wife, perhaps? She had a great length of red hair, bound in a broad ponytail except for the high arching bangs around her face. Her amber eyes seemed almost to glow softly, even from this distance. Her dress was a light red, close to her body until it split into pant legs that flowed together in the appearance of a skirt.

As he approached Vincent waved a greeting; the others didn't move and the woman only looked curiously. Eventually he reached the group, but all he could manage to do was lean on his knees and gasp for breath. For a moment his muscles thanked him as the burning finally stopped, then they began pestered him with aches and pains again. He was not cut out for this.

"Din, these are the other two," Vincent introduced. "That's Hero and the young man is the one we still call Link."

"I'm pleased to meet you." Din dipped her head gracefully to both of them. "Thank you for taking care of my husband."

"You… you're welcome," Link panted, dropping back to sit down and give his legs a rest. Cid had the right idea, not moving a muscle, conserving strength. If they'd found Vincent's wife, things hadn't gone so badly after all. Other than the creepy Link in white and the strange tower, anyway…

"Hey there, hot stuff," Hero said by way of greeting. "I'll be looking forward to getting to know you better, you know what I mean?"

Din blinked for a few seconds, then glanced over at her husband. "Is he retarded?"

"Err, no," Vincent coughed. "I didn't get a chance to tell you about him yet. It might take a while for the whole 'marriage' thing to sink in."

"Ooh, is this your wife?" Hero asked. Without waiting for an answer, he attempted to elbow Vincent in the side and was deftly blocked. "You're a lucky man. Is she a good kisser? I'll bet-"

"Oh, for the love of Goddesses, shut the hell up!" Cid winched open one eye, glaring Hero into silence. "We just got done fighting; can't you give it a rest?"

"What happened here?" Link managed to ask. Vincent quickly turned back to him.

"To make things simple, we fought the two Geurdo mages we met earlier, as well as a bunch of Armos they apparently brought with them. We had barely finished when the two of you arrived, actually. Cid says there are problems in your direction, but it's probably best to recover for now."

"I'm not complaining!"

"By the way, I have something for you." Vincent handed him a large golden feather that Link took curiously. "That is a Roc's Feather. I used it in my original quest, but it doesn't do me much good anymore. It might be useful to you."

"Is it really okay for me to take this?" He turned the object over in his hands, wondering at it. Obviously magic, even he could tell that, but he had no idea what the purpose might be. Was he supposed to hold it, or would it work if he just had it in his pouch?

"Just be careful. Using this will make you jump pretty high, so if you don't know what you're doing you can hurt yourself. Once you've recovered, feel free to try it out. We'll probably stay at my home for a while."

"They've made quite a mess of things," Din said softly, walking away from the group as she somberly surveyed the clearing. "I realize this is just one place and these people have apparently made a mess of entire worlds, but it still hurts. I've tried to bend the seasons to begin repairing, but natural processes move slowly. It will be a long time before things are back to normal."

"Din!" Vincent called out at the same moment her eyes widened in surprise. Cid vaulted to his feet, hand on his sword, but it was already too late. Two massive skeletal horses landed in the clearing, sending a shock wave that nearly knocked Link down again. Each was ridden by a tall man with flaming red hair and dark eyes, clad in dark Geurdo armor.

They thundered just past the group, taking them off guard. One of the men, wrapped in a grey cloth, bent down and grabbed Din by the waist. Her expression was filled with shock and then it was gone entirely as the horses turned sharply. Their hooves bit through the grass as they galloped into the forest.

"What was that?" Hero gasped, looking around at them dumbfounded.

"Just run!" Cid commanded, taking off after Vincent. He was streaking across the field with surprising speed, but the horses had already vanished among the trees. Link pulled himself off the ground and managed to catch up with Cid and the confused Hero, though his body was already crying out in protest.

"-can't-" he managed to choke. Cid glanced down at him and then reached into his tunic, pulling out a blue vial and handing it to him.

"Drink it. Not a good idea for long term, but it'll give you enough energy to keep up." The older man smiled thinly when Link immediately pulled the stopper and downed the potion, still while running. He was learning.

Energy instantly pumped through Link's body, even while he could still feel the potion running down his throat. It was a bizarre high, obviously unnatural and leaving his body tingling with magic, but all aches and pains were gone. He felt like he could run forever. At the rate things were going, it seemed they might have to.


A slight smile on his face, Light picked up the small black shard. Against his glove, it seemed to contain unfathomable darkness. Once he had looked at it for a moment, he dropped it back onto the pedestal and stepped backward.

That very instant a burst of purple energy scorched the air where he had been standing. Ignoring the hair that whipped around his face, Light glanced in the direction of the attack with a mildly curious expression. There were two men standing in the large arch that opened into the heart of the tower. Both were tall, red-haired, and wearing Geurdo clothing. Ganondorfs. How interesting.

"Evening, gentlemen," he greeted them. "Did you enjoy your trip through the tower? I imagine it was rather easy, following in my footsteps."

"This is as far as you go," one of them snapped, pointing a finger at him. "That Shard is ours!"

"Oh? I should think it belongs to me."

"You fool!" Purple energy flashed around Ganondorf and he took a massive step forward. "Do you think I care about ownership? We're going to kill you and take it by force!"

"Sorry about the confusion, we seem to have miscommunicated. This is quite a bother." Light lifted a hand to his face, then abruptly slid apart his fingers so one eye gleamed out at the two men. "That was what I meant."

And then he was no longer standing by the pedestal, but just in front of the other two, his sword flashing. It raked the stones behind them as both ducked and moved in opposite directions. An instant later Light found himself facing one of the Ganondorfs. This one hadn't spoken, eyes merely blazing at him with incredible hatred. Odd, that, but ultimately he didn't care.

Several blows came his direction, but Light easily deflected them all. The Ganondorf drew back his long blade, energy running along its length. Light's lips parted in a slight smile, but before the attack could come he was tackled from the side by his other opponent. Interesting; this one was quick.

Relatively. As they dropped toward the ground, Light pushed off his opponent's shoulder, twisting in midair above him. White boots hit the dark armor's back and the Ganondorf smashed into the ground, his face sliding against the stones a short distance. Just as Light jumped off him, the body began to burn with purple flame. Ganondorf rose into the air, roaring in anger as his power built around him. The force sent dust spiraling away and pounding against the walls, scorching the air with dark heat.

Light's sword slipped between his ribs. As the purple flames died, he shoved it in a bit further, smiling at the grunt of pain he received.

"Impossible…" Ganondorf gasped. The word brought blood to his lips. "Only the Master Sword should be able to harm me!"

"Who says this isn't one? They're practically common-place, these days." He cut off whatever response was to come by forcing his sword sideways, ripping through flesh bit by bit. "But I think you're missing the point. Do you really believe such things apply any longer? Our legends are over. Every idiot like yourself that can't adapt is going to fall by the wayside." Abruptly he shifted to a chillingly friendly smile. "But I'm monologuing. My apologies."

The blade ripped out with a shower of blood. Ganondorf crashed to the ground, his rasping breaths growing slower as his life soaked into the dark stones beneath him. There was no magic, no forces casting him to the Sacred Realm. Just the pain and the blood and the encroaching darkness…

As Light turned to face his other opponent, his smile faded. He was alone, or at least he would be once the fool at his feet had finished dying. His hand grew tighter and tighter around his sword as he quickly moved across the room, looking at the pedestal to confirm what he already knew.

How could he have escaped so quickly? Was there a portal nearby of which he was not aware? Perhaps if he searched he could follow the other Ganondorf and kill him fast enough to get the shard back. But no. He could already tell that the others were beginning to climb the tower. It would take them only minutes to reach his current position unless he went to great lengths to stop them.

Giving a disgusted sigh, Light picked up the bleeding body and held it distastefully away from him. With his other hand he drew a gold ocarina from his pocket and placed it to his lips. One note haunted the chamber for many seconds, then yellow light began to swell around him. As it swirled around his body, he gave one last glance back at the room. Perhaps it would not be a bad idea to leave them a present after all…

For a moment the darkness vanished, replaced by a total lack of color that defied comprehension. It had already slipped his mind by the time he looked up into the dark room. Only blue flames lit it, casting the entire room in a strange glow and filling it with innumerable shadows.

One end was completely dark, but he could tell it was there. Even at its enormous size the creature made no sound, but it somehow loomed even when invisible, creating a tangible presence. Not wanting to concentrate on it for too long, Light tossed the fallen Ganondorf in its direction lightly. The body hit the ground and lay there for a moment, blue lights flickering over the dead eyes. Then the face was eclipsed as an enormous hand appeared in light, grabbing it and dragging the body away.

"Is that the best you can do?" He glanced to the side and found the twins standing in one of the entrances. Koume was silent and looking away, but Kotake was more typically loud. "You didn't get the Shard, so all you can do is take in the trash?"

"Please, feel free to report my incompetence." Light gave them what some might call a smile, a parting of his lips that did not move his eyes. "Tell them that I could only recover a Ganondorf whereas the two of you succeeded in… what did you accomplish again?"

"Shut up," Kotake hissed, eyes narrowing. "Just how do you know about what we were doing?"

"I have eyes other than my own, of course. Surely you don't just rely on them for information, do you?"

"Do you think they'll just overlook that? Defying them is-"

"Enough." The rumbling voice cut off all further conversation. Heavy footsteps fell across the floor as a hulking figure in armor moved toward the small group. Dalboss still held his hammer on his shoulder, shifting it every so often as if eager to use it. "What now?"

"I suppose we need to ask them to locate the Shard." Kotake folded his arms, abruptly not angry. "That Ganondorf seems to have jumped straight from one world to another through a crack of some sort. If we can track it down we should be able to kill him."

"If they can locate Shards, why do they bother with us?" Light asked, an eyebrow rising. Kotake shot him a murderous glance.

"Do not question the doings of the Goddesses. It is not enough to win; the old order must be destroyed. For that, many elements are necessary. If-" Abruptly steel crashed against stone, overwhelming all other noise.

"Stop rambling." Dalboss hefted his hammer back to his shoulder. "I'm going back to hunt more Links. Who wants to deal with this?"

"Count me out," Light shrugged. "I'd rather stay away from them while they're working on that thing."

"Oh, does it make you nervous?" Kotake grinned just slightly, eyes narrow and rather pleased. "I suppose it would, because you are a Link, after all."

"Needless creature," Dalboss rumbled, shaking his helmet. "Our strength is sufficient. The Links are weak."

"Not all of them." Koume's voice was soft, as if barely strong enough to get past her lips. Her eyes seemed clouded, like she was struggling to surface from within herself.

"That's true." Kotake's expression became sour and he crossed his arms tightly. "We fought several of them that could prove to be a real problem."

"Strong, yes, but not necessarily a problem." Without looking at any of the others, Light turned and began moving into the shadows. "They could prove useful… if they survive what I'm getting ready for them."

"Do you have to do everything on your own?"

"Of course. I'm a Link." Though he didn't turn back to look at them as he vanished into the shadows, all of them were sure he was smiling.


As the tower drew closer, Link's feel of apprehension seemed to grow. Perhaps it was just the memory of Light, but it felt as though something was wrong in a deeper sense. He didn't spend too much time on his own worries, though, not when Vincent was running not far ahead. The other man's face was tight and his eyes narrow, though he had slowed down some after his initial burst of speed.

It was clear they couldn't catch up to the riders, but he was surprised how fast they covered ground. He knew there was no way he could have run this far without magical aid and he had a bad feeling this would all be catching up to him later. Vincent showed no sign of tiring and Cid looked as though he could run forever by willpower, but Hero had begun to fall behind.

The front of the tower came into view abruptly, trees falling away to reveal the entrance. Large stones lay scattered in front along with the twice-dead bodies, as if someone had blown their way through. Though the group slowed as they neared the entrance, Vincent moved in without hesitation.

By the time Link made it inside, the others had all stopped. Din was embracing Vincent and Cid was standing off to the side. Had she escaped or beaten off her captors? That seemed unlikely given the power they had shown before, but he really had no idea. Things seemed to be alright, though, so he examined the room. It was rather large with a high ceiling, all the walls of the same dark stone as the rest of the tower. As on the island temple, it looked as though there had once been many puzzles and such, but all of them were finished.

At the far end of the hallway were two small stairs leading to the next floor. In the middle was a staircase that looked as though it had once been blocked off by another wall. Had Light already come through here and earned his way to the second floor? Before he considered any further, he realized the others were talking.

"-idea who they were?" Cid asked. Din shook her head.

"At least one referred to the other as Ganondorf, but that means little to me."

"Damn. In my world, there was a legend that the monster Ganon had once been a man named Ganondorf. It looks like our enemies are gathering as well."

"I'm not so sure." Din rested her head against her husband's chest, continuing to speak softly while Cid and Vincent looked at her sharply. "One of them was definitely a cruel man, but the other… his spirit did not feel corrupt to me. He wasn't cruel and was the one who decided to abandon me when they were done. I was planning to kill him, but it made me hesitate."

"What happened?" Link asked, looking between them.

"She says the Ganondorfs used her magic to break into the tower, but after that they left her," Vincent explained.

"What's going on?" Hero emerged in the doorway, panting heavily. "Is it over?"

"Not by a long shot," Cid muttered. "Even if Light isn't here any more, those two probably are. We've wasted too much time here; let's move."

Din and Vincent parted, following Cid toward the stairs onward. Hero groaned and followed after them, grumbling under his breath. They went up several floors by identical staircases, all without windows, until finally they reached another large room that appeared to take up the entire floor of the tower.

A carpet rolled from the top of the stairs straight across the floor to a raised platform on the opposite side. Link barely saw this, however, distracted by the dozens of statues on either side of the carpet, all of them bearing stone weapons. Swallowing, he decided that he was not going to move any more and definitely not touch anything.

The others seemed to be of a similar mind, entering carefully and examining the area. All of them looked toward the sound of a slight hum and watched as an engraved platform floated down from the ceiling and landed atop the slab on the opposite side of the room. Standing in the center was the cloaked Ganondorf, eyes burning at them.

"Typical," he sneered, waving a derisive hand as he stepped off the platform. "Link could not capture and kill me himself, so he sends his flunkies to cut off my escape."

"What are you talking about?" Cid snapped, hand on his sword and he stepped forward as well.

"I have no time for this," Ganondorf answered darkly. "Link has resurrected something terrible and I have no desire to be in this world any longer. If you don't want to die, get out of my way!"

It became clear the next instant that this request was cursory. Reddish light lit up around Ganondorf, a fierce wind ruffling his cloak. He raised his fist and there was an explosion of power, forcing all of them to shield their eyes. By the time Link managed to convince himself it was safe to open his eyes, he saw that the chamber was empty.

"He's getting away!" Hero yelled, moving to give chase down the stairs. He was stopped abruptly by Cid's fist against his chest.

"Let's not fight any unnecessary battles; we don't have the strength for that. I'm more worried about whatever might be higher up in this tower. This place gives me a bad feeling."

"I agree." Vincent had seemed relieved after the recovery of his wife, but part of his anxiety was still in his eyes, harder and more disturbing. "This tower is not of this world, and I feel as though it bears great hatred…"

This cheery thought drifted between them until the silence was shattered as something crashed down from the next level. It was revealed to be a coffin-like box, engraved with a symbol Link didn't recognize in the instant before it broke apart. Splinters rained over the platform as a force of darkness exploded, twisting around itself.

For an instant Link caught a glimpse of a tall woman, clad in a strange black dress with a sweeping hat. Before he could get a better look, however, she became darkness again, flooding toward them. Instinctively he drew his sword in defense, but he was still taken off guard by a chilling shadow. When it passed the room was empty again.

Without hesitating even slightly, Cid whirled and kicked at Vincent's legs. The other man floated backward out of range, a broad grin on his face. His eyes were shadowed and when Link looked closer he gasped. It was as if the shadow of the woman he had seen earlier clung around him like a ghost.

"Wonderful," the voice of Vincent chuckled. "I had never expected to draw another breath, much less be given the opportunity to possess an old enemy."

"Leave him!" Din demanded. A wind began to blow her hair about wildly, but the body of her husband just gave a short barking laugh.

"His wife, are you? I'm tempted to kill him in front of you, but it would be a shame to waste this body. No, I will have to think of something better than that."

"Who is this?" Cid asked tersely, slipping next to Din and glancing at her from the corner of his eyes.

"The sorceress Veran," Din whispered back. "Vincent fought her before he met me. I thought she was dead…"

"It seems I was," Veran answered, brushing Vincent's hair away from her face. "Yet it was like sleeping, a passing instant before my return. Do any of you know a man wearing all white? Ah, I see you do. I shall have to thank him once this is over."

"Leave Vincent alone!" Hero cried, charging forward. His blade swished just past Veran as she floated backward again.

"Careful, there. Do you want to kill your friend?"

"As if you have his best interest in mind." Cid drew his sword, advancing. Vincent's eyes widened sharply and the ghost surrounding him hissed. With surprising speed she flew backward, arcing through the chamber and through the hole in the ceiling.

"Link!" Din bolted after him, nearly flying down the carpet to reach the hovering platform. Before the others could follow, Hero made a disgusted noise and walked to lean against one of the statues. Instantly Cid turned on his heel, eyes narrowing. Taking a sharp breath, Link began to shiver as his eyes swept the room.

"Why would you do something like that?" Cid roared. Hero seemed honestly surprised, looking at him.

"Look, I've been running around for too long and I was tired, so I-"

"Fool!"

"Well, excuuuuuse m-"

At that moment the statues attacked, bodies breaking off their pedestals and weapons grating into attack position. Hero's jaw dropped and he backed away, backing into the statues on the opposite side that were moving as well. Link held his sword in front of him and did his best not to flee. After hitting his forehead with his palm, Cid lifted his eyes and took quick stock of the situation.

There were perhaps thirty statues in the room, moving slowly but picking up speed. Given the variety of weapons and the formations they were taking, he had a feeling they wouldn't be easy to handle. Hero was far from the top of his game, which wasn't that high anyway, and Link was unnerved and out of his league. At the same time, Vincent was possessed and Din was already ascending after him on the platform. He cursed under his breath and hefted his sword, still uncertain how to wield it. Choices like these were what made war so terrible…

Dark cloth fluttered in the edge of his vision. He looked and saw Altair standing calmly behind the group, watching him. Cid was not in the mood for this mysterious crap and shot him a dirty glance. Altair might have smiled, but in any case he began to walk past him.

"Focus on this battle," he said softly. "I'll deal with the other situation."

"Good," Cid grunted. "Way to be useful for once."

They had no time for more than this brief exchange, as Altair was already walking toward the advancing wall of statues. Though they immediately struck at him, he yielded to their blows like water, flowing around them as he continued to move forward. As he passed them, the rigid heads turned back toward the other three, standing together in the midst of an encroaching tide of stone.

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Rarely have I been so glad when a chapter came out to the proper length. Ending with Din being captured would have been a bad thing, whereas now I can claim it as an ironic foil. Everyone who wanted to see Light in action should be pleased, but unfortunately he will be stepping out for a while. Next chapter will feature Altair…