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Chapter 24: Breakthrough
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"Would you like me to buy that mirror for you one day?" Kenny asked, glancing over his shoulder, "After all this is over, you know?"
I furrowed my eyebrows, confused as to why he was trying to change the subject. "What for?" I said, looking down at my bloodstained hand; the residue of the flower speckled over my palm and fingers- blues and reds and greens.
He shrugged, "It's a magical mirror, something that the Gerudo woman told me would really help us one day."
I laughed, "Oh, come on. You aren't going to believe that, are you?"
He smiled, "Well, not exactly in those words." He swirled around to face me, and I jumped away, falling against the Town Square water fountain. My back hit the water before my head plummeted in as well, soaking me from waist up, letting my legs dangle over the stone.
I sat up, spitting water out of my mouth. "Why did you do that?" I screeched, forgetting we had the entire town to ourselves so that my voice actually echoed.
He chuckled, "Sorry," and reached out a hand.
I ignored it, and pulled myself out, dripping wet with water. "I swear, Kenny…"
"What?" he dared to question, glimpsing behind him, toward the castle. "I'm not sure what they're waiting for. I know they know we're here…"
"That's wonderful…" I muttered, squeezing out the water from my braid.
"Or they're too busy with something else." I looked up at him inquisitively, wondering what he meant.
"What could that be?"
He looked toward me, "My parents."
"But," he turned around, and I trailed after him, "You said your parents are dead."
"They are," he stated with disdain, "But God only knows what they could be doing."
"How did it happen, Kenny?" I pressed, trying to get a good look at his face, knowing that by the time my hand healed, it would be too late to care.
He shook his head, stuffing his hands in his coat pocket; "You don't need to know."
"Yes, I do," I countered, "I have to know what they can do, so I-… so I don't make the same mistake."
He glared for a moment, and then turned away completely. I didn't bother trying to face him again. "They weren't stupid, Jade. They didn't make a mistake. My parents knew what they were doing, heading to the castle."
"Then why…?"
"Because they would rather die fighting than surrender and live in exile." He interjected.
I sighed; "I'm so sorry…"
He laughed humorlessly, "Don't be, Jade. I should be, actually."
"For what?"
He cocked his head, and I stepped forward slightly, leaning to see his smirk. "I don't know, but I feel like I should be apologizing for something."
"Well, save it." I said, rolling my eyes, "You'll need it later."
"Shouldn't we head to the castle, now?" he asked, craning his head to look at me.
My heart thudded in my chest, my limbs readying to go against my will. I took the crushed crown, fingering a thorn still intact. "I'm ready," I replied, placing the pinprick thorn against the scar on the back of my palm. Black ooze welled from the cut, down to my forearm.
"Smart idea," Kenny muttered before hopping the fence that blocked the trail to the castle.
My arm went limp and I bit my lip, trying to keep a whimper from escaping. "Mhmm…"
"Come on," he called, keeping his voice low, as he waved for me to follow.
I glared at the fence, knowing this would be really…really…painful. "You expect me to climb this?"
He watched me, perplexed. "Well, of course, it's only five feet."
I huffed, "Yeah, but I can't."
He sighed, murmuring something that sounded like "wimp".
I stomped my foot, "My arms are a little limp here."
"Just give it a shot," he said, walking up to the iron gate to grasp the bars steadily, "I'll hold the gate so it won't move for ya."
I sneered, "Arsehole."
He winked, eyes gleaming, parting his peach lips- ready to speak. Instead, another voice broke through- one so cold, so familiar, that it didn't matter if the gate was five feet or ten. I rushed over on the other side, muscles aching, only to topple over something incredibly warm.
"Interesting," the voice said, as I fought away from Kenny, who was too stunned to be much help anyway.
From the other side of the gate, in the market, I could make out a tall figure; hair that shone like silver in the sun, eyes as red as blood.
"You!" I scrambled toward the gate, eyes unblinking still, "What are you doing here?"
Impa laughed, stepping up to the iron gate, "You two are as close to being the most impeccable klutzes I have ever seen."
I turned to Kenny, bewildered, "What does that mean?"
He shrugged, "Means we're klutzes."
"Oh," I nodded in understanding before turning to glare at Impa, "Other than telling us what we already know, what else did you come here for?"
She smirked, folding her arms across her armor-laden chest, "To take you two to the castle. You two are expected."
Kenny stood up, eyes penetrating, "You weren't the one who killed my parents; I would like the one who dealt with the rest of my family to deal with me, so we'll stay here until that person comes."
Impa hopped over the fence with ease, gliding to the ground with hardly a sound, stopping only inches away from me. "You will come, you have no choice, you see."
I turned to Kenny, gripping the bars tightly, trying to refrain from reaching over to Impa- who had undoubtedly recovered from her injuries. "I don't like this."
"You want to cure your dear Kado, don't you?" Impa drawled.
I stared at her, scrutinizing her demeanor as she watched me patiently, placidly. "I do," I muttered finally, "What can you do?"
"I have a proposition for you," she said, pale lips spreading into a grin, "Do you accept?"
"Jade," Kenny warned, stepping toward me, "Don't do this."
I ignored him, looking up at Impa, seeing her red orbs dancing in the light, "What's the deal?"
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Wrists and ankles shackled, the most I could move would be a foot at a time. With the proposition came imprisonment, and with imprisonment came manacles as heavy as a large block of stone.
"I told you this was stupid," Kenny hissed, glaring at me, as he shifted his near immobile hands, "You can't trust any of them. What did I tell you?"
I pushed him by the shoulder, making him stumble away from me (I didn't have time for his stupid orders). The soldier holding the chains in turn shoved me forward. I growled, "Don't touch me, jerk."
Kenny laughed, "Your energy is running out, isn't it?"
I glanced at the scar, ashen and discolored where I had used the thorn to break my skin. "I did it so I didn't have to strangle you, but I'm beginning to think it was a bad idea." He looked away, the smirk never leaving his lips. I shook my head, remembering that I was done trying to figure him out.
The corridors in the castle were bright, the windows allowing the vivid sunrays to crash in mercilessly. I narrowed my eyes as we passed them, one by one. Impa craned her neck to glance at us from over her shoulder. She grinned, "Enjoying the light?"
I sneered, "Apparently, it's harder when my eyes already adjusted to the dark- what do you think?"
She waved her hand dismissively, fighting the urge to laugh.
We approached a great door carved out of oak wood, engraved with the Triforce. Runes that matched the ancient Hylian alphabet rimmed the door, made out of soft ivory and laced in gold. The soldiers standing on guard pushed the door open, creating a soft but aberrant breeze.
"We're here, Princess," Impa called, stepping inside without a moment's hesitation.
"Wonderful," I muttered to Kenny, "She scares the crap out of me."
He glimpsed at me through the corner of his eyes, "I hope you don't mean that." The soldiers propelled us forward before I could ask what he meant, and by then we had already entered the throne room.
Royal blue ran the entire length of the throne room, reaching up to the marble steps that bathed in the sunlight. Marble statues rested near the thrones that looked as though made of gold and jewels. Beside every soldier that stood guard- even the ones that stood by the door- there stood a statue, hollow eyes, tail of a fish, head of an eagle, and a body of a lion.
"The Griffin?" I voiced to no one in particular, "With the tail of a fish…that's new…"
Kenny cackled quietly, "The goddesses' protector, so to speak…"
"Protector of Earth, Water, and Wind," Zelda's voice boomed down the hall, and I drew back reflexively when I noticed how close we were to her.
Kenny went rigid beside me, and I stood there, staring up at her placid demeanor, the way she stood there, holding a sword drenched in dry blood.
"You know your history well," she drawled, cocking her head to one side, letting her hair fall loose over her shoulder, "I didn't expect for the Blakes to do so splendid with at least one of their sons."
The Sheikah's eyes narrowed, "You killed them, didn't you?"
She smiled, her rosy lips spreading into a malicious grin, "Smart, too."
"Stop talking to him like he's a child," I snapped, wanting to step forward. The chains held me in place, and Zelda looked pleased.
"And stop speaking to me as if you were higher in status," she scoffed, raising the sword so that it glinted in the light, nearly blinding me.
"You-…"
"Jade…" Kenny said, stopping me from jumping the soldiers to tackle the princess. He turned to the blonde, face grave. "You killed them, and…"
"And it wasn't the easiest," she flipped her hair, crystalline blue eyes wide with fake remorse.
"Liar," he seethed, stepping forward. The soldier holding the chain pulled him back. Kenny grunted, stepping backward slightly, "You killed Ryuichi, too, didn't you?" She watched him silently, as Impa stepped in front of me, blocking my view of everyone else. There was a dagger in her hand, the blade curved like that of a shark's tooth. She raised it, placing the tip up to my chin.
"What are you doing?" I asked, feeling the coldness slowly seep back into my wounds, a tightening feeling growing along my skin.
"The proposition, remember?" she replied, and then turned to the soldier, "Take off the manacles."
"Jade," Kenny began, as the soldiers pulled him away, "Whatever they say, don't- just…"
"Silence, boy," Impa snapped, and the shackles fell off my wrists and my ankles.
He glared daggers at her before turning back to me, "Listen to me, don't…"
"Jade," Zelda countered, "Turn to me."
"…fight. You'll get killed." He said the same time as she spoke.
"Take this sword," Impa grabbed my arm. Her hand turned ashen, blue veins snaking up her arm. She let go, as if I had just burned her. A sword appeared in her other hand, solidifying like water turning to ice. The blade sparkled, as translucent as glass and as sharp as a lion's tooth- maybe it's claw, too. It looked dangerous either way. She held the hilt out to me, its silver hilt dotted with specks of crystal and ivory.
"What do I…?" I didn't want to finish it- after Kenny sent me a horrific look that only meant one thing: "Don't do it."
But it was too late. Way too late…
I took the hilt, slowly, thinking it could bite. It was heavy in my hand, almost like my arm- complete deadweight. No memories of being able to fight with a sword flooded back; only faces mirrored my own: horror, remorse, defeat. There was nothing good about using a sword, but I wasn't better off without it.
And then for the first time, I realized Impa had stepped out of the way, and Kenny had disappeared from my view. Zelda stood face to face with me, standing against the backdrop of sparkling marble and blinding light, her hair shimmering, and her skin glowing. But one thing that never changed, were her eyes. They smoldered still, unlike any other, until a flash of red crossed her dark orbs, breaking through the blue so quickly I feared I had imagined it. My pulse quickened, my skin tingled, and my eyes felt sore.
Their weren't two Sheikahs in this room, there were three.
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Well, here's another chapter up and we're getting closer to the end of the story. Hope you all enjoyed. And thank you all for the awesome reviews, so stay posted for the next chapter:)