Disclaimer: The Legend of Zelda series do not, repeat, not belong to me. They rightfully belong to Miyamoto. (May he continue to make excellent games for the rest of his days.) What does belong to me are Cleo, Finn, Syrilla and Okam (sorta).
Chapter 20
Veran summoned a ring of fire from her hands and Cleo dodged it, rushing in to strike. Cleo struck repeatedly, pushing her opponent back. Veran leapt away from the edge. Cleo needed to get her close enough to the lava but not too close. She pushed her back again and then used Pele to shoot a stream of lava on the armor. The metal plates melted. In her anger, Veran used her magic to cause a quake and large rocks rained down. Cleo ran out of the way, waiting it out for another chance to strike. She repeated her strategy a few more times until all the armor was gone. Veran was now exposed. The sorceress leapt at her, but Cleo dodged and countered, disarming the electric sword. Cleo got the sword before Veran could and stunned her with it.
"Jack, now's your chance!" The lost spirit made his move an zipped into Scervo.
From within, Veran was now face to face with a man in white robes. "Wha-?! Who are you?!" The man didn't answer, he withdrew a slim blade and charged in. With mach speed swings, he slashed away at her. She screamed in pain and retreated. Dark mist escaped Scervo's body, reforming into herself. "No! That... that's not possible! THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!" Cleo didn't hesitate, she ran at Veran with a scream of rage. Veran teleported away from Cleo's attacks and reformed ten feet away from her. Cleo then stood between her and Scervo to shield him. The Twili witch glared at Cleo with burning hatred. "You little pest! I am going to bring down this entire mountain! You will not leave here alive!"
Veran raised her arms and another quake started, steadily getting more and more violent. Cleo lost her balance and toppled to the ground, looking up to see cracks forming on the walls through which she could see a fiery glow. Any second, the entire crater would blow. This was it... it was all over. Cleo threw her arms over her head and braced herself for the blast.
Then suddenly, unexpectedly, a voice called out. A voice that was louder and more terrifying than the rumbling earthquake... "VERAN... ENOUGH!" The voice was acidly demonic, echoing throughout the rocky chamber.
The quake instantly stopped. Veran looked up in shock and, quite possibly, fear. "M-master!? Master, what is it?"
"LEAVE THE CHILD BE... GIVE HER WHAT SHE CAME FOR!"
"What?! But master-"
"DO NOT QUESTION ME, SORCERESS!" Veran flinched, she looked terrified.
"That-that voice... I know that voice..." Jack whispered in a tone of fear. Cleo looked at him and opened her mouth, but decided not to ask about this now. She also found the voice familiar, she was sure she'd heard it somewhere.
"YOU HAVE FAILED ME VERAN AND I WILL NOT TOLERATE FAILURE! GIVE CLEO HAYSTER THE LAST ESSENCE OF LIGHT AND RETURN TO ME AT ONCE!"
Veran again looked at Cleo. She was undoubtedly reluctant to obey. "This isn't over... I'll have you know." She held her hand up and a black orb ringed with a white light appeared. She cast it over to her and then vanished. The orb floated to Cleo and landed in her hands.
She got the Eclipse Ring. The moon blocks the sun to form a ring of fire and revive the lost with its burning embers so life begins anew!
...No... no! This time portal... I feel darkness from within this time portal!
FOOOOL! THAT IS NO TIME PORTAL, IT IS A GATEWAY TO THE SHADOW WORLD WHERE ALL WHO ENTER WILL BE LOST FOREVER! YOU HAVE BEEN TRICKED!
I-I cannot move!... What is happening?!
YOU ARE BEING PULLED IN! YOU CANNOT ESCAPE! FINALLY, I WILL BE RID OF YOU ONCE AND FOR ALL!
You have not won villain!
WHA-WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!
If I am to be trapped forever, I am taking you with me!
LET GO YOU IDIOT! NO NOOOO!
...
...
...I... I feel... ...strange... ...empty... oh... ... ...
IT SEEMS I HAVE THE LAST LAUGH AFTER ALL! YOU FADE AWAY WHILE I REMAIN IN THIS DARK REALM! AND NOW, THANKS TO YOU, I HAVE DISCOVERED A NEW WORLD TO ENSLAVE! GOODBYE... ...SAMURAI JACK! HAAA HAA HA HA HA HA AH AH AH!
"Jack... Jack!... Jack!"
The lost spirit seemed to be coming around. He had dimmed and fallen to the ground again, but now he was reigniting. "Uh... Cleo... I... remember... everything now... All of my memories have returned..." He suddenly gasped out. "Cleo, that voice! There is something I need to tell you-"
"Jack, I don't mean to interrupt. I know it's something important, but Scervo's still unconscious. We need to get him out of the volcano."
"...You are right... This will have to wait..."
Scervo's hand twitched a bit, then his arm began to move and push against the ground, lifting up his body. He raised his head and his optics lit up. "PffffffffffWha-wha-wha-what the blazes happened?" he wondered out loud after a static hiss.
"You were possessed by Veran," Jack answered.
"Blast it a-a-a-a-a-all! Pff pff! That wench messed with me mi-mind! I still can't fully-fully-fully process yet."
"Man, you're out of it!" Cleo said with concern. "C'mon, get your arm around me."
She lifted him up onto his feet. "Than-k ye," he said, his voice deeper for a second.
"Looks like we're even now..." Cleo now knew for sure that it was Scervo who saved her from the fall at the Tempis Mine. She suddenly thought of something. "You know that seed you gave me? I think I know the perfect place for it."
They all traveled back to Midnight Hollow, by the time they arrived, Scervo's circuitry was restored. Cleo then asked the chief to plant the seed in his forest and he showed her a soft patch for her to bury it. "We will take good care of the plant," he promised.
Cleo smiled. She looked at her companion. "Jack, I have this one question I wanted to ask you, but not until I was sure you had all of your memories... Are you a samurai?"
"...Yes... I am. So you have heard of me."
"I knew it! You are Samurai Jack!..." She was excited for only a moment, but then she turned serious. "Which means... that voice-"
"CLEO!" She very nearly jumped from that shout. She instantly knew who it came from but couldn't believe it. She turned around her mouth agape and saw Finn running toward her. "CLEO, THANK GOD!" He practically slammed into her and then lifted her up in a tight hug, spinning her about. "I found you, I found you!"
"Finn! What in the-!" They both fell over, laughing like they'd never laughed before. "I can't believe you're here! How is the Twilight Realm not affecting you?"
"Zelda. She gave me her Triforce of Wisdom." He showed her the mark on his hand. She looked astonished. "C'mon sis, I'm getting you outta here. We need to leave this realm." They both got up and he tried to take her by the hand, but Cleo pulled away.
"Wait, I can't." Finn looked back at her. "You probably don't know what's going on, but Midna-"
"I do know what's going on. Midna brought me up to speed."
"Speed? Is there some kind of race?"
Finn stared at the lost spirit. "Who's this?"
"Finn, this is my partner. You're not gonna believe this, but he's actually Samurai Jack!"
Now he was staring at Cleo in disbelief. "No way!"
"Yes way."
"How the hell did Samurai Jack end up..." He sighed. "Never mind. Listen, Midna told me the mission's cancelled!"
"Wha-why?"
"Because that Okam guy is totally nuts! He kicked her off the throne and is sitting his ass there!"
"It seems your suspicions were right Cleo. Okam is a traitor," said Jack.
"What about Midna? Where is she, Finn?"
"She's in jail!" Cleo felt as though the volcano was erupting again from inside her body. Her anger set off faster and higher than a rocket. Finn was looking uneasy. "Cleo, I know what you're thinking! Please don't! We need a plan."
"The only plan right now is to help Midna!"
"She said don't come!"
"I'm not gonna leave the Twilight Realm or Midna, even if she says so!" Her brother actually flinched at her outburst. "I know what Okam wants, the essences. But I won't have all of them with me, just the Moon Pearl." Cleo brought out seven of the eight essences. "Here Finn, hold these for me. I'm gonna go confront Okam!"
"But I just got you back! Cleo!"
"Don't follow me, keep them safe until I get back! C'mon Jack. We gotta go!"
"Of course! It was nice meeting you Cleo's brother, Finn." Cleo and Jack took off.
Finn was now standing there with an armful of magic relics. "ARE YOU FRICKEN KIDDING ME?! Sonnafa-godblessamerica! She's always running off, doing God knows what!"
"Ya'd better go after her, Sonny Jim." Finn turned toward the pirate. "As a robot, I rely on logic. But there be rare occasions where I must rely on instincts instead. And right now, it's telling me that the company of her spirit mate may not be enough ter help her."
"Waddaya mean?"
"I don't know what it is... But I have a feeling that something very beastly awaits her, methinks. I don't have the strength ter aid her, so it has ter be ye, lad."
"But Cleo told me to keep these safe."
"Then give them ter me so ya can help yer dear sister." Normally Finn wouldn't give something valuable to a pirate, but he knew it was better they were in the hands of a pirate than a madman. He nodded.
Cleo hurried back to the Palace of Twilight as fast as she could. She stopped short in front of an entire army of insects blocking her path in the castle town. She quickly drew the Skribal Sword, getting ready for a fight... but nothing was happening. She looked confused. "They're not attacking."
"I do not think they are ordered to. They may be willing to let us pass..."
She cautiously walked forward and the beetles actually stepped aside, so she went by them without a fight. Cleo found this unnerving. What if... but she couldn't bring herself to think of who might be waiting for her. She felt scared...
After a silent, heart-pounding tread into the palace and into the throne room, she felt a tad relieved to see that the one who was waiting was Okam.
Author's Note: Samurai Jack and the yet-to-be-revealed villain (who I'm sure you've figured out by now if you watched Samurai Jack) do not belong to me. Genndy Tartakovsky is the rightful owner.