Chapter 12: Darkness Takes Over
The man called Ganondorf chuckled darkly after introducing himself. "Ganondorf," Sonic breathed. "Are you the one behind all this?"
"Yes," Ganondorf sneered. "And I must admit, when Ghirahim informed me that the Hero of Time was out of the way, I thought the rest of my plan would be easy picking. But you have proven to be a formidable adversary. I commend you for that, but I'm afraid you've gone as far as you'll go."
"Oh, we'll see about that," Sonic said as he tried to run forward, but he tripped over his feet and fell flat on his face.
"What have you done to him?!" Zelda shouted.
"I've taken away his greatest strength," Ganondorf said. "His supersonic speed is no more."
"How…" Sonic groaned as he struggled to his feet once again, "how is that possible?"
"Dark energy has crystallized in your legs," Ganondorf explained. "Your legs are as stiff as wood, now. You cannot run, and you can barely walk." He chuckled sinisterly. "Now that you're out of the way, nothing will stop me from acquiring the Triforce!"
"And what makes you think I'll give it to you?!" Zelda snarled. "Nothing you do will convince me to hand it over! Nothing, do you hear me?! Absolutely –"
She was cut off when Ghirahim's sword pressed into her back. "Don't be so sure, princess," he sneered. "We have something I think you'll want to see."
"What?" she growled. "What do you have that I value so much?"
"It's not a 'what,'" Ganondorf sneered as someone from Ghirahim's army came forward. "It's a 'who.'" With that, his henchman threw a familiar figure forward, face-planting.
Zelda gasped. "LINK?!"
"You might want to talk to him while you can," Ghirahim sneered, pulling his sword back. "He's only got so long to live, I'm sure."
She rushed forward and rolled him over onto his back, cradling him once again. "Link!" she whispered. "Link, no...please, say something to me. Anything at all! Please!"
"Did I miss something?" Sonic raised an eyebrow.
Link coughed, and his eyes fluttered open. "Zelda," he rasped. "What happened?"
"It's Ganondorf," she said, frightened. "He's trying to take the Triforce from us!"
"Oh, I already took it from him," Ganondorf sneered, revealing his fist which bore two emblem pieces. "All I need now is the Triforce of Wisdom."
They didn't hear him. "Zelda," Link whispered, "I think it's too late."
"No," she shuddered, her voice trembling. "Not like this. Link, we can stop them."
"I...I couldn't...save you…"
"Link, no!" she cried.
"I failed you, Zelda...I'm...sorry…"
"LINK, STOP!" The tears were streaming down her face now.
"I...I lo…"
That was all he got out. With that, his head fell limp and his arm went limp, eyes closed.
"No," Zelda whispered, then she cried out, "NOOOOOOOOOO!"
"Fool," Ganondorf said, relaxing his fist. "Thinking he could stop us in his crippled state. Now, the puzzle is complete." With that, the tears that fell from Zelda's eyes floated up and slowly formed into a familiar shape: a triangular, gold piece glowing with divine power. It slowly made its way to his fist with the other three and joined them, blinding everyone in the room when it did so. He turned to Ghirahim. "Kill the princess," he ordered. "I've seen enough of her for an immortal lifetime. Plus, her lifeforce will restore you to your lively state. Then," he sneered, looking at the crestfallen Sonic, "you may do as you wish to this little rat."
At this, Sonic looked up sharply, clenching his teeth in sudden anger while Ganondorf strode away, his dark cape billowing behind him.
"As you wish, my master," Ghirahim nodded. Then he suddenly flew forward and stabbed Zelda in the back with the tip of his sword. Zelda froze when he did this, and a bright energy began rapidly flowing out of her back along the sword as Ghirahim absorbed it.
"No!" Sonic cried, trying hard to stop him, but his legs wouldn't move. Finally, Ghirahim retracted his sword. Zelda stayed still a moment before she fell to the ground, her eyes slowly closing as she fell. Sonic struggled against the dark energy in his legs, but he managed to drag himself over to her lifeless body. "Zelda?" he whispered, shaking her lightly. "Zelda, please. Come on, wake up." There was no response. Then suddenly, her body, along with Link's began to fade away. Sonic's eyes widened when he realized what was happening. "No," he breathed. "No!" he shouted. "Not like this! Please, no! Zelda! Link! Come back! NO!"
"It's far too late for them," a sinister voice unlike anything Sonic had heard yet roared in wicked laughter. He turned and saw Ghirahim standing there, but he looked different: his skin, once pale as the moon, was now a mix of this paleness and a shadowy armor that covered him. His eyes no longer held any semblance of humanity in them, as they were mere voids that were as pale as his skin. "Now their souls will suffer forever in the shadows of half-death!"
Sonic looked at where Zelda and Link were, or used to be: their bodies were gone, now. Only Link's hat and Zelda's necklace remained behind. He picked them up, sadness in his eyes.
"And now," Ghirahim went on, brandishing his sword, "you shall join them."
Sonic's sadness suddenly disappeared, replaced completely by an emotion that seldom became so great as to overwhelm him, but now, he couldn't control it. His anger flamed in his eyes as he picked up his sword, but his legs were still stiffer than wood. "You're a monster," he breathed heavily, anger boiling in his voice.
"Don't try to settle accounts with me, you fool," the Demon Lord sneered, raising his sword. "This is MY world now!" And he swung at Sonic's head.
But before his sword connected, a sudden burst of dark energy knocked him backwards. His back slammed into the wall, and he fell back to the ground on his hands and knees. He looked up, but the sight he saw drew true, genuine fear out of his eyes.
My will to fight the knight.
Sonic stood there, but he was hardly recognizable. His emerald eyes had vanished, replaced only by a void similar to Ghirahim's eyes. His bright blue fur now glowed a frightening violet. A symbol resembling the Triforce glowed crimson on his head, but it was upside down. His quills now sharply angled upwards.
My will to fight the knight!
"If this is your world," he snarled, his echoing voice darker and angrier than usual, "then I DON'T WANT ANY PART IN IT!"
MY WILL TO FIGHT THE KNIGHT!
With that, he flew forward, sword brandished, and slashed at Ghirahim. Ghirahim blocked him with his own sword, throwing him back. Sonic flew into the air, backflipped, and landed on his feet. His legs were working once again. He looked up sharply, sword in hand, and attacked once again.
Will to fight...
In a world inside its right,
And I'm alive...
Ghirahim parried his blow, then stabbed at him. Sonic dodged this, then stabbed at him as well. Ghirahim deflected his blow with such force that Sonic fell onto his back. For a moment, his anger cooled down enough for him to think.
He's much stronger than before he thought. Absorbing Zelda's life force must've made him stronger. He clenched his fist around his sword once again. But I'm stronger, too. "And I WILL win this fight!"
On my own...
In a world that seems unknown,
But I'm alive...
My will to survive!
He slammed his sword onto Ghirahim's. The Demon Lord pushed back at him, but they were locked in a stalemate. "Your princess is dead," he hissed. "What will you do now?"
"I'm gonna take her back!" Sonic shouted back, putting a bit more oomph into his push. Ghirahim fell back, but he quickly recovered and attacked Sonic again.
Face the Knight...
In a world of evil light,
Still I'll survive.
"You're no match for me!" Ghirahim cried as he slashed mercilessly at Sonic. Sonic blocked every blow without breaking a sweat. Angered, Ghirahim continued slashing, but Sonic kept blocking without so much as flinching. "How is this possible?!" he cried in anger.
"You keep slashing diagonally," Sonic taunted him. "You're too predictable. Try shaking things up. I enjoy a good, unpredictable fight."
On her own...
Overthrown yet not alone,
Cuz I'm alive...
Our will to survive!
"Insolent rat!" Ghirahim screamed, attacking with all his might. The force of the blow was stronger than anything Sonic had encountered yet. He blocked the blow, but Ghirahim kept pushing, locking them in yet another stalemate. "When I'm through with you," he snarled, "I will oh-so-gladly...rip that corrupt emblem...FROM YOUR FACE!"
Will to try...
I will meet you eye-to-eye,
And I'll survive.
"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Sonic screamed back. Dark energy surged through his arms, and his strength outmatched Ghirahim's. The Demon Lord flew back again, slamming into the wall.
Dark of night,
Feel the power, feel the might,
Yeah, I'm alive...
"I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU, YOU SPINELESS, PATHETIC RAT!" Ghirahim roared, leaping up and attacking Sonic with everything he had. Sonic struggled to defend himself, but in the midst of their vicious battle, he saw Ghirahim's eyes spiraling wildly.
He's completely lost it! he thought. This is my chance! He continued to block each of Ghirahim's blows until the Demon Lord, mustering all his rage, screamed a blood-curdling scream and attacked Sonic with an attack that could only have been learned in the armory of hell itself. Sonic dodged this, and Ghirahim flew forward. As he stopped himself, he felt something kick him in the back of the head, knocking his face into the ground. Before could leap up, Sonic leapt into the air, somersaulting as he came down, and plunged his sword into Ghirahim's heart.
And I will survive.
I changed the lyrics a little bit. If you look closely, I actually incorporated an element from "Sonic and the Secret Rings."
With this story reaching its climax, I don't intend to post anything else until the story is complete. Otherwise, I'd be leaving you on a serious cliffhanger. Truthfully, I can't wait to finish this up, and that's not because I haven't had fun writing it.
