This chapter is dedicated to my best friend Melody, who's had a very hard week. Toe Surgery, and a death in the family. I'm very sorry Mel, I know this chapter doesn't mean a lot, and it's short. But know that you're always in my thoughts. I love you!
Chapter 8: Remnant
Midna leaned on the dark, slightly solid shroud of twilight. Her body shimmered and wavered along with the semi-transparent barrier. Her face was unreadable as she stared blankly into space. Link lay next to her, resting up before running into the dark world. His ears drooped sadly as he pondered the fate of his village. His front ankle was chaffed from the iron cuff that still clanked loudly from his paw. A small piece of chain was still attached to it, a memory of his small time in that dirty cell. He looked up at Midna and whimpered mournfully. He lifted his paw pathetically and let it dangle, his ears drooping even lower. Midna glanced down and an evil smile spread across her face. "What, you want me to take that pretty bracelet off? In my country such a fine piece of jewelry would have been treasured." she mocked.
Link put his paw down and rested his chin on it. Why had Midna suddenly turned so harsh since her encounter with the Light Spirit? Was it something that he said, was it the tone in which he addressed her? He shook the thoughts out of his head and closed his eyes.
Midna's smile fell from her face as she looked down at the tortured beast at her feet. She felt sorry for him, everything he ever though, ever valued, had been thrown down the drain in recent events. She sighed and pushed herself off of the shroud and walked around to face Link from the front. "The Faron woods that you know so well are covered in Twilight now." she stated with no emotion. "You might not be able to make your way back into the world of light if you go back in there."
Link raised his head, stopped to think, and then lumbered painfully to his paws. He turned his snout towards the twilight, and then back to Midna.
Midna smiled a genuine smile and drifted into the shroud of twilight. Her body dissolved as she hit it, and the entire barrier seemed to ripple like water. The arcane, golden runes that ran along the surface of the shimmering boundary seemed to disappear for a few seconds. An orange hand extended itself towards Link and swept him up quickly. Link took a bracing breath and was plunged into the icy darkness of the twilight realm.
The darkness was not as gloomy as he first remembered it being as his eyes opened. He got his sensed back very quickly compared to the first time he had been thrust into the darkness. The atmosphere seemed to have more light than usual, a purple, and somewhat beautiful light. Strange flecks of darkness were the only things that reminded him that this was not a natural twilight. Any light that filtered through the dark canopy of trees was bright and hazy. It contrasted magnificently with the purple shadows on the ground and the black forms of trees as they sheltered their forest. He soon noticed that he had no shadow; he looked around for his mysterious companion. He felt a pair of legs tighten across his back and he raised his head slightly to see his companion, riding him like a horse. She was awkwardly holding the sword and trying to figure out what the shield was meant to do. She placed it on her head so it covered her face. "So…These are the weapons you use in your world?" Midna swung the sword dangerously close to Link's ears.
He ducked and growled defensively.
"Do you really think these playthings can kill a Twili being?" she asked.
Link felt like mentioning that it was her idea to steal a sword and a shield, but he only sighed deeply.
She lifted the shield off of her head. "That is the most useless thing I have ever seen. It doesn't even have eye holes!" she threw the shield lightly; it landed with a painful sound on Link's upturned face. "I won't use these, but I'll keep them until you can use them again." she snapped her fingers, and both object dissolved into the twilight. She looked down at her companion. She sighed and leaned down, supporting her chin on the top of his head. "Alright, a promise is a promise…I trust your abilities enough to help. If I help you restore this 'wonderful light' and you turn back into a human, then you'll have to return the favor. I can't tell you the details now, but don't worry it will be easy. We can probably do your return favor on the way!" she said slyly.
A tinkling noise interrupted Midna suddenly. It seemed like a song of sadness and a plea for help in one, glorious tune. Midna's eyes sparkled with greed as she turned toward the path that led to the spirit spring of Faron. "Listen, do you hear that? It sounds like a plea for help… From who, I wonder?" she said with a malicious laugh.
Link ignored Midna's farce of jollity and started running towards the lovely song.
Black mist seemed to enshroud them as they carried on towards the sound. Midna looked around and bit her lower lip in thought. "More of those Twili monsters…You can handle them, right?" she said as she started to meld into Link's shadow.
Link glared at the shadow which was slowly blending into the black mist, he didn't really seem to have a choice on whether he could "handle it." Midna always seemed to disappear when he could really use her help. He growled slightly as he saw three identical, black creatures form out of the mist. They drifted around lightly as they surrounded Link. Link jumped on the nearest one and tore into its flesh, ignoring his repulsion. The other two creatures ran quickly up to their fallen comrade and threw Link to the ground. The creature lay on the ground; stunned by the viciousness of the attack. Link hurriedly jumped on the next one and repeated the process. He turned to the last one, it scurried out of Link's reach and seemed to brace itself to the ground. It raised its head and let out an ear-shattering scream. Link heard a sound behind him and turned around, the beasts were rising to their feet; awakened by the scream. Link circled around quickly in panic at the realization that if one was left alive, the others would always come back. Suddenly, an orange beam of light shot out from Link's shadow and trapped the creatures.
"Hurry, Link, attack them now!" Midna's voice shouted.
Link followed her orders without question, and they all fell down, never to rise.
"They need to be held in place in order for you to attack them quickly enough." Midna stated as she crawled out of his shadow. "I'll do that whenever you need too, hopefully you won't need that skill often." she said as she glided gracefully over towards the spirit spring.
Unlike the spirit spring of Ordona, the spirit spring of Faron seemed to be dead. There was no light within it; the water was stagnant and stunk of the foul smell of death. Link inched his way closer towards the spring and sniffed its water apprehensively. He dipped his paw into the weird colored liquid experimentally. For a moment, the spring flickered into life, and the full beauty of the spring flashed before his eyes. It instantly dimmed, leaving only a small remnant of the life it once had. A single drop of liquid gold seemed to bounce out of the water with effort. It glowed dully, as if it were tainted. The mournful tune the spring had been singing faded away, leaving an eerie, death-like silence. "Please…be careful…" a painfully weak voice pleaded from the golden drop. "These…woods have…changed." it stated haltingly, as if every syllable was an effort almost too great to bear. "The dark clouds of dusk cover this land… This drape of shadows: Twilight. In this world those who live in light…become as mere spirits… It is a place…where the dark ones and evil creatures live."
Midna lowered her eyes to the dark water. Her farce of cheerful helpfulness evaporated as she looked at the death and destruction her people had caused.
"I…am the spirit of light…" the voice droned on. "Blue-eyed beast, look for my light… Retrieve the light stolen by the dark beasts…." it commanded, its voice growing fainter. "Keep the remnant tears in this…"
A beautifully crafted, curving, and flexible rod of metal seemed to grow out of the water. It spun slowly. It seemed to bulge in certain places and become translucent. When it stopped revolving and floated gracefully over to Link, it looked like blown glass.
"A remnant vessel…" Midna murmured quietly. "We must fill it before we can return the life back into this world."