A/N: Hey guys, I've been on a roll lately with revising this! I bet you thought I wouldn't post the next chapter for another month, right? I'd appreciate it if everyone read and reviewed -- it really helps when I get comments or (constructive) criticism on how I could do things better. Anyway, here's Chapter 12 P
The Legend of Midna: Call of the Twilight
Chapter 12
Link leapt nimbly across the battlefield, dodging the spheres of rock that Zant had been throwing at him. Raising the Sacred Beast Sword, the Hero of Twilight simply cut through a large rock heading his way and kept running towards the sorcerer. Beams of fire and ice streamed out of the Fused Shadows as Midna assaulted Zant with every ounce of power she could gather. The sorcerer simply laughed as her attacks bounced harmlessly off his body; raising his hand, he sent several shards of ice hurtling towards the princess. Link dashed in front of the incoming icicles and batted them back at the sorcerer with his sword, watching with satisfaction as they crashed against Zant's face. Letting out a howl, Zant raised his hand and sent several balls of fire flying towards the hero. The Sacred Beast Sword flared to life, its black aura absorbing the fireballs in an instant. The Hero of Twilight grinned and batted away two more fireballs before smashing his shield into Zant's face. The sorcerer reeled back, stunned, as Link rolled behind him and aimed an attack at his exposed back. To the hero's surprise, his sword simply bounced off of the dark blue aura that appeared as the blade attempted to bite into Zant's skin. Link rolled away, sheathing his sword and instead bringing out his bow to fire several arrows at his opponent. They fell to the ground harmlessly while Zant laughed and sheathed his weapons, raising one hand. A nimbus of black light surrounded it as the throne room began to grow darker, bits and pieces of shadows gathering behind the sorcerer.
"This doesn't look good," said Midna, and launched a single blast of shadow energy at him. It stopped just in front of Zant and merged with the growing shadows behind him.
"No, it doesn't," agreed Link, and charged at Zant, sword in hand. As soon as he was close the Hero of Twilight leapt into the air. Clasping the handle with both hands, he bore the blade down with all the force he could gather. "Break," growled Link as his sword met the aura that kept Zant safe. Waves of energy emerged from the translucent shield to send Link flying backwards into the far wall.
Stamping his feet on the ground, the Twili swept the darkness around that formed into several ghosts of the past to attack. Link caught a glimpse of Armogohma and Orthos before Midna simply incinerated them with a raging inferno.
"That was weak. What, you couldn't make full copies of them, Zant?" taunted Midna as she casually leaned on Link's shoulder. "Are you all right? That looked like a hard hit just now."
"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied, blinking rapidly in an effort to clear away the colored spots that had appeared in front of his eyes when he'd hit the wall. Growling, Zant raised his arms and called down bolts of lightning, only to watch in disbelief as the white hot strips simply vanished into the Sacred Beast Sword.
"So," said Zant slowly, lowering his arms. "A standoff. I can't hurt you, and you can't hurt me."
"I would not say that," boomed a deep voice.
"Who's there?!" cried Zant, looking around the room nervously. All at once the four Shadow Beasts appeared in the throne room, their bodies glowing with with light.
"You will regret the day you ever sealed us," said Domor, and tossed his head. The light from his body arced to hit Zant, covering the sorcerer's aura. Selena, Ion, and Xenos followed suit, their own light boring into Zant's aura with such force that he began to slide backward. A small crack appeared in the shield. Then another, and another; the aura soon was riddled with cracks but still refused to shatter.
"Now, Hero of Twilight! Raise your sword and strike Zant down!" said Selena. But Link needed no encouragement; he was already running toward his foe, sword gleaming in the light of the Sols that littered the edges of the room. Raising the blade, the Hylian slammed his sword onto the center of the aura. With a sound like the cries of a million dying souls, Zant's shield shattered, leaving him vulnerable.
"You or me first?" inquired Link, glancing at Midna as Zant stamped his feet on the ground in frustration.
"... I'll do it." said Midna quietly. "I hoped dying once would have shown you the light, but..." The Fused Shadows began to glow as beams of shadow lanced into Zant, riddling his robe and body with holes. "I guess not."
"Shutupshutupshutup!" shouted Zant, struggling to his feet. As soon as he'd regained his balance he brought out his twin scimitars to meet the fury of Link's attacks head-on. With each strike to his swords Zant's strength seemed to fail him a little more, until at last Link knocked both blades out of his hands and swept the Sacred Beast Sword up to his throat.
"This isn't over," growled Zant, and twitched a finger.Clouds of darkness swept Zant into the air and within seconds he was completely hidden from view.
"Be careful, Link," warned the princess. "I don't know what he's up to, but I don't like it."
The Hylian nodded, his eyes fixed on the swirling darkness in the center of the throne room.
And suddenly the darkness vanished, replaced by six identical Zants that circled Link in an instant. All six carried the sorcerer's twin scimitars; cackling evilly as they spun around Link, they pointed their swords at his body. He deflected the first few blows with his shield and struck back at each clone only to find that the sword simply passed through all of them. Flinching as their blades slammed against his tunic, Link rolled out from their circle and pulled the transformation crystal from its pouch. Slipping it on, he felt the changes begin; within seconds he was a wolf. Concentrating on the circle of Zants, he blocked out everything else, his feral senses springing to life. As he'd expected, the ring of sorcerers vanished, replaced by the true Zant that stood off to the side, deep in concentration. Baring his fangs, Link leapt at the sorcerer, ignoring the terrible taste in his mouth as he bit into the Twili's shoulder. Zant yelped and beat the wolf back with the blunt side of his scimitar before teleporting a few feet away, leaving several bomb spiders in his place. Growling, Link backed away and slipped off the necklace, returning to his normal form. The Hero of Twilight grimaced as he unsheathed his sword once more - this was going to be a long, ardous battle.
-------
Link backflipped away and brought his sword to bear once more, his muscles screaming in agony as he hefted the blade up. Why won't he die?
"Persistent, aren't you?" hissed Zant, watching the hero sprint towards him, sword in hand. The Twili raised his hands and called down shards of ice that grazed Link's face. Ignoring the wound, he engaged Zant in combat, his sword seeking the vulnerable places in the sorcerer's guard. Despite his inexperience with the ways of the sword, Zant was quick to block Link's attacks, strike after strike being turned aside by the flat side of his blade. The sorcerer lashed out with one foot and kicked Link back, sending the hero skidding along the floor. Using the momentum to flip himself upright, the Hero of Twilight glared at Zant.
"Getting tired, are we?" Zant balanced one scimitar on his finger as Link dredged up strength from his reserves. Link glanced at Midna; she was as tired as he was.
"Link, get him," said Midna tersely as the Fused Shadows spun around her. Tentacles of shadow wrapped around Zant, pinning him to the ground. Link leapt into the air, sword raised, as Zant vainly tried to free himself from the mesh of tentacles that had ensnared him. A cold chill settled over the sorcerer as he looked into Link's eyes. The eyes of a beast, he thought as the blade ran him through, its sacred fire racing through his veins. Zant let out an inhuman scream as black dust rose from his form, dissipating into the air as the sorcerer struggled upright, the Sacred Beast Sword impaled in his stomach. "Go," he wheezed, lifting one arm to point at a small door to the right. "Light Realm... there. Midna... thank you... for stopping me..." He coughed thinly and fell to the ground as Midna crouched by him, staring at the sorcerer with a gaze that held both compassion and hatred.
"Can you... forgive me... for... what I've done...?" whispered the sorcerer, looking up at her with eyes whose lights seemed to dim with every passing second. The princess shook her head.
"No. I will never forgive the monster that you became..." She paused for a moment. "But I will forgive the friend I once had, if he's still around."
Despite the pain, Zant smiled. "He's still here. Midna, I..." The sorcerer closed his eyes for the last time, letting out a long sigh. "Goodbye... and thank you..."
Link simply stood by the princess as she paid her last respects to Zant. "It's time to go," he said after a while, gently placing his hand on her shoulder. Midna stood, placing Zant's locket inside her cloak.
"He'll be remembered by many as a monster... but to me, I'll always remember him... as a friend." She turned and walked over to the door Zant had pointed to. "So this is the door to the Light Realm... let's go."
The Hero of Twilight nodded. Without a glance back at Zant's lifeless corpse they opened the door and stepped through into the Arbiter's Grounds. Link let out a cry of pain and collapsed on the ground as the darkness that had swept across Hyrule pressed down upon him, attempting to devour his body and soul. Midna gasped for breath as she dropped to one knee; as one born of twilight, the darkness did not affect her as much as it did Link, who was born of the light. Taking him by the arm, the princess began to silently line up the spell for warping. She hesitated for a moment, unsure of where to go, when the image of a spring by Ordon swept into her mind. Good enough. Releasing the magic, Midna felt the familiar dissolving sensation begin as both she and Link turned into black particles that vanished into the portal hanging above the chamber.
--------------
"What... was that...?" panted Link as they appeared at Ordona's spring, holding onto Midna when his legs threatened to give way.
"That was darkness, Link; pure darkness! How are we going to get to the castle if it's covering the land?" She looked around the spring for a moment. "Why hasn't this place fallen into darkness, anyway?" Catching Link's stare, she added, "Not that I'm angry it hasn't, it's just... don't you find it odd that this is the only place without -" Midna waved one hand at the veil of blackness that lay just outside of the Ordona and Faron provinces - "that?"
"An astute observation, Twilight Princess." The spring began to glow as an orb of light emerged from the water. Ordona faded into view. "This place is protected by the power of the sols imbued in the Master Sword; I merely amplify it to protect this area from the darkness that threatens to engulf it." The light spirit turned to Link. "Welcome back, Hero of Twilight; as the Goddesses would have it, we have need of your power once more."
The Hylian nodded; he'd expected as much. "What must I do?"
"Draw the blade of evil's bane; with it, you may drive back the curtain of darkness that surrounds Hyrule. Only then may you reach the castle where Majora has decided to reign."
Midna cocked her head to one side. "But if Link draws the Master Sword, then won't that mean this place will..."
Ordona began to shine brighter. "No; both Faron and I have absorbed enough light to hold off the shadows... for a while. In that time you must defeat Majora... or this last sanctuary of light will succumb to darkness." Then, in a single jarring flash of light, Ordona vanished. Link looked at the empty spring for a moment before turning to Midna.
"Ordon's just a few steps away... you don't mind if we rest for a bit, do you?"
The princess shook her head. "Of course not. You're in no condition to draw the Master Sword, anyway." She was right, of course; drawing the Master Sword required a perfect balance of heart, body, and soul, something that his tired body lacked at the moment.
Link nodded absently as he stared down the path that led to the village, his eyes filled with longing. Midna rolled her eyes and pushed him forwards. "Go already, wolf boy," she said, amused, as she followed him down the road into Ordon.
-----------
Hours later, Link and Midna sat by the small pond in the village, looking out at the water. Their arrival had been anything but quiet - Talo had seen them coming in. If anyone else had seen them, it would have taken several seconds before his or her shouts could be heard across the village. However, during the time Talo had spent as lookout of Kakikiro Village, the boy had honed his voice to the point where a single shout could echo across several hundred yards.
"HEY! EVERYBODY! IT'S LINK! HE'S BACK!"
Ilia had just finished making her bed when Talo's shout echoed across the village. "What?!" The girl ran out the open door, heading straight for the small crowd that had gathered near Link's house. She hurriedly made her way through the mass of villagers only to stop and gaze in both relief and shock. Link stood in front of her, clothed in a black tunic and smiling as he'd always smiled before his journey. And next to him stood a tall woman whose orange locks fell down to her chest, pale blue skin - blueish-whitish, really - shimmering in the sunlight.She's... beautiful... thought Ilia.
"Wow! Hey, Link, is she your friend?" asked Talo excitedly.
"Yeah! Where'd you meet her?" Beth chimed in. Rusl stepped in from of the children, motioning for them to be quiet. The swordsman turned to face Link, looking him over closely.
"You must be tired," he said at last. "Get some rest, Link; I'm sure the children have plenty of questions they want to ask you, but they'll have to wait until tomorrow." He glanced at Midna. "If your friend needs a place to stay, then -"
"She can stay at my house!" exclaimed Talo. Beth smacked him on the back of the head.
"She's a girl, idiot! She can stay with me if she wants to," said Beth.
Midna shook her head, amused. "That's nice of you, but... we'll be staying at Link's house."
Mayor Bo cleared his throat. "All right, everyone; let's let Link and his friend get some rest." Slowly the crowd dissipated until at last only Ilia was left.
"Welcome home, Link," she said, and hugged him, hanging onto the hero for all he was worth.
"Home?" Link blinked. He hadn't been away from Ordon for more than a week, yet the very idea of calling his birthplace 'home' already seemed foreign to him. Something in his voice caught the girl's attention, for she pulled away to scrutinize him closely. Link sighed. "Ilia, we need to talk," he said, and glanced at Midna for support. She shrugged and gave him a look that said 'you're own your own this time.'
"Excuse us, miss; if you wait here Link will be back in a second," said Ilia, and snagged Link's arm, dragging him off in the direction of Ordona's spring.
"Okay, what's going on, Link? Who is she? Where have you been? Why did you sound so odd when you said 'home'? Why -"
"One question at a time, Il," said Link quickly, motioning with his hands for her to stop.
"Answers, Link."
Link had never heard her sound so determined to know the truth, not even when she'd lost her memory. "It's... complicated, Il," he said tiredly. "There's something you should know," he continued, and took a deep breath. "This is probably the last time I'll ever return to Ordon."
The girl could feel her heart breaking as each word escaped from his lips. "What?! Why?!" she cried, fighting back the tears that so desperately wanted to run free.
He sighed again. "It has to do with the woman you met back there. Midna is... and I..." he trailed off, seeing her expression change at the mention of Midna's name from one of sadness to complete heartbreak.
"That's right... you love Midna. So... you're going to live... in the Twilight Realm?"
Link stared at her in shock. "How do you know about that?!"
"I overheard your conversation with Zelda," she said, and let her tears flow free. Her friend wrapped his arms around her in a comforting embrace as she sobbed into his tunic.
"I'm sorry, Ilia... that wasn't the way I wanted you to find out..." he murmured, voice soft.
"You didn't want me finding out at all, Link! And how could you think I wouldn't understand, you... you... idiot?!" said Ilia, half-shouting, half-sobbing through her tears.
"I'm sorry," he said again, and simply held his friend close to him for all she was worth. Slowly the tears subsided and Ilia detached herself from Link.
"I love you," she said finally, and kissed him. Her lip quivered as she broke away but held firm when she turned to go. A few yards down the path she stopped. "Link, I need to know... if your adventure had never happened... would you have loved me?" She did not turn around, waiting for his response.
"I don't know," he replied, watching helplessly as she walked away without another word.
"Hey, Link?" Midna's voice brought him out of his thoughts. She'd rested her head on his shoulder, the two of them watching the way the last rays of the sun reflected off the water, a fusion of yellows, pinks, oranges, and reds that formed a beautiful, ever-changing mosaic of colors.
"Yeah?" The Hylian picked up a stone and threw it, watching as it skipped across the surface before finally sinking to the pond's bottom.
"... Nothing."
Link folded his arms across his chest. "Now who's the one not talking about their feelings?"
The princess scowled and looked off to one side. "You remember too much," she complained.
"...I'll take that as a compliment. What's bothering you?"
Midna sighed. "It's stupid, really... you don't want to hear it."
"Midna, nothing you have to say is stupid," he replied, brushing a few loose strands of her hair out of her face.
"... Fine. Do you think she'll be all right?"
He exhaled, thinking over his conversation with Ilia. "I think so. She'll be okay, given some time..."
They returned to watching the water for a few minutes until Link let out a yawn. "Someone needs a nap," teased Midna.
"Oh, quiet you," he said affectionately, getting up. Pulling Midna to her feet, they walked hand in hand back to Link's house.
-------
Majora cracked one whip as he paced the length of the throne room. Zant's death had sent his power running back to him in droves. He had no doubt that the Hero of Twilight was coming after him next - it was only a matter of time before he arrived. The only way that he could have beaten my servant... is with that sword. The sorcerer's blood turned to ice at the very thought of the sacred blade that had sealed him into the mask. A slow smile spread itself across his face. Very well, hero... come meet your doom at my hands. Sword or no sword, I will never be sealed again!
A/N: Ugh... I hate how I keep writing Ilia... she's so OOC it's not even funny anymore.