She raised her head gracefully. The hand with the ocarina rest on her lap while she eyed the guests.
Beneath the sublime gaze, Link felt small and insignificant. Slowly he got down on his knees and lowered his head. Enora stood motionlessly next to him, captivated by the sight.
"Are you who they call the Daughter of the Goddesses?" Link began softly. Enora simply nodded in agreement without making a sound. Her heart was beating up to her throat, in joyful anticipation that Link would finally ask the question she had been waiting for. She wouldn't dare speak up herself.
With a nod, the woman made the instrument disappear. It disintegrated into small silver particles. "Welcome, Link, chosen hero of Hyrule. Rise." Her voice was soft, similar to the sounds of her ocarina. Link obeyed her command.
She turned to Enora. "Be welcome, too, Aderu!"
The girl looked up at her puzzled. "A...Aderu? Is...is this my real name?"
The daughter smiled. "It is. What are you called?" Although her voice was friendly, there was a certain coolness and indifference in her words. Did she really care or had she just asked to ease Enora's tension?
"Enora," the girl responded truthfully. "Ilia gave me this name."
The daughter of the goddesses just nodded understandingly, but did not say anything.
"I'm glad you made it here unharmed," she muttered, still in the same friendly but indifferent voice. She let her gaze wander through the room as if she was expecting someone else, but then continued undeterred: "Hero Link, did you slay the guardian?" She said this in a cautionary tone, like the one used for a naughty child who was confronted by its parents.
He looked up at her and obviously felt uncomfortable. "I... yes, but I thought... because of the golden wolf and..." He interrupted himself when he noticed her gaze was directed to one of the trees above Link, as if someone was whispering to her from there.
Shouldn't he have killed the guardian in the first place? But the golden wolf attacked it.
The woman did not respond.
"I know of a time when there was none in the land braver than the bearer of the Triforce of Courage." Her gaze was directed at his left hand. He immediately hid it behind his back, embarrassed. "Your opponents are strong. In your present condition, you will hardly be able to defeat them."
Link lowered his gaze and didn't reply. Enora looked up at him. Why was that woman blaming him, even though he had done well. This woman was extremely rude to humiliate him like that. Similar thoughts seemed to be running through Link's head as well, as Enora noticed from his rigid, angry stare at the floor.
The woman examined him earnestly. "Without the fairy queen, you would never have made it this far. You were lucky you have met her."
Unsettled, he stood before her, anger written all over his face. Enora was almost waiting for him to loudly defend himself, but he remained silent.
"The fairy queen made sure you could fully focus on your task."
Link clenched his hands into fists. Enora gently touched his forearm. She wanted to comfort him. That woman had no right to talk to him that way.
But she continued undeterred: "After you saved Hyrule, someone important to you left you. With her, your strength and courage also failed you. Or is it rather the will you lost? The will to fight."
Now Link's had enough. Furious, he stepped forward and confronted the woman's gaze, anger resonating in every word he said: "Enough! With due respect, we came here to find answers, not to be lectured."
Enora hugged Link, but gave the woman an equally angry look.
The woman smiled. Was there satisfaction in her eyes. Was she just trying to provoke him? But what for?
"Well then, ask. What is it you wish to know?"
"Please, Daughter of the Goddesses, can you tell me who I am," pleaded Enora, who could finally ask her question and was happy to change the subject.
The daughter turned to Link. "Link, what do you feel when you are around her?"
The young man looked at his companion as his thoughts tried to put the feeling into words.
The woman remained silent and waited patiently while Link pondered. How should he describe it? He felt comfortable next to her. There was this feeling of ease and safety. Of strength and confidence. That mix of positive feelings that he was familiar with. But why was it so familiar?
The scales fell from his eyes.
Why didn't he think of it from the start? It was absurd. It didn't make sense, and yet it fit together so well. Enora's strange behavior when her body lit up in Ordon Village and scared the monsters away; the fact that no one but himself could touch her; that she knew things she couldn't know; that the Shadows that had escaped from the Cave of Ordeals had avoided her; and last but not least, that his most important and powerful weapon was not where it should have been.
"The master sword," Link whispered. It sounded even sillier voiced than in his mind.
"What?... ...is...is that true?" Holding her breath, the girl looked up at the mysterious woman. She nodded with a smile.
"But...how? Why am I..." She looked down on herself. "...this?"
"Because terrible things are happening in Hyrule. The master sword is a powerful weapon, the only one that can ward off the dark powers. It is this very dark power that has found a way to destroy you. The spell protecting you reacted with the dark power and transformed you to protect you."
Link spoke up again, his eyes still resting on Enora. "But what is this evil power and how can I defeat it without the master sword?"
"You can't," the woman replied brusquely and the coolness in her voice was even more evident.
"What...", contradicted the Ordonian, but was interrupted by her.
"You couldn't have drawn the sword anyway! Your mind is clouded by doubts. It is the courage of the bearer that makes the strength of a sword, but for that the bearer has to trust his own abilities. You don't do that anymore! You have lost your incentive. Your power disappeared together with Princess Midna, and you..."
"Midna? Who...," he mumbled and stopped listening to her. The name stirred something in his memory. But he couldn't figure out what. It was all hidden behind an obscure veil.
The daughter sighed before she continued in a much calmer voice: "Link, don't worry about it, face your new task. There's no point in dwelling on the past."
She spun around and her eyes scurried through the room. She was visibly worried.
"Let's leave," she finally said. It sounded more like an order than a suggestion.
With elegance, she stepped down the rock she had been sitting on.
With a small white flame that was burning in her hand, she illuminated the path as they left the vegetated room.
Outside lay the lifeless body of Durethel. Not a single drop of blood hung from the rotten flesh that had been peeled from his bones.
The woman got down on her knees just beside him and touched a shred of the leathery skin where sharp claws had torn into the tissue.
Quietly she whispered something to the dead body, but Link did not understand.
Her thoughts seemed to drift away for a moment, her gaze staring through the body into nothingness. Then she rose and led the group through the tunnel back outside.
Although she was not wearing shoes, the cold, rough ground did not bother her.
Her steps were hurried, almost hasty.
Why she was in such a hurry all of a sudden was beyond Link's understanding. All he knew was that it worried him, too. Even though his mind was lingering somewhere else. "Midna," he repeated thoughtfully. Why couldn't he grasp the memories? They were there, somewhere deep in his consciousness. Something flared up inside him, but he didn't know what it was, nor what it meant.
They climbed up through the pit towards the surface.
Already alerted by Enora's restless movements behind him, he climbed over the edge of the rift as quietly as possible. The two ladies followed him in some distance.
"I knew it", a dark voice sounded as the Daughter of the Goddesses climbed over the edge onto the plain.
She lifted her head and found herself in the presence of a sturdily built man. His skin hardly stood out against the darkness of the night. Only the red hair, glowing in the light of a torch, betrayed that he was not just a mere shadow.
Behind him stood another man at least twice as tall as the first. The body was covered with individual elements of armor, tied together with a rope. There was probably no suitable armor in his size available. His tail twitched angrily behind him. His face looked like that of an animal, but he walked on two legs, yet supported himself on the ground with one of his long, heavily muscled arms. His free hand was firmly wrapped around Link, who struggled to free himself from the grip. Muscles and blood vessels were visible under the giant's dark, brown fluff-covered skin. Judging by his physique, no human had a chance of competing with him. Link was trapped.
"Long time no see, Link," sneered the red-headed giant.
The young Ordonian paused in his attempts to free himself and stood there thunderstruck as he realized who he was facing. "Ga...Ganondorf?! But how..."
There was no way he could be mistaken. It was Ganondorf, the Gerudo king who had infiltrated Hyrule until Link ended his reign of terror.
Scenes from his memories flashed through Link's mind. He had stabbed the master sword through Ganondorf's chest. Crimson blood slowly crept out from under the lifeless body. The corpse was dissected and burned by morticians; the ashes scattered to the four winds. There was no way he could have survived. How...?
"I see you remember. I'm honestly glad you do."
The Gerudo king's gaze wandered to Enora and then to the other woman.
"Seymara, if I am not mistaken."
The daughter returned his cold look unfazed, but Link could almost feel the anger boiling inside her. "Ganondorf," she squeezed out between clenched teeth. "Release Link! It is not yet time for you two to fight."
Ganondorf laughed coldly. "Now is the perfect time! You've handed yourselves to me on a silver platter." He threw a triumphant glance at Link.
"The Hero of Hyrule is in my hands. At last! I can do what I want with him."
Ganondorf grabbed Link's chin and forced him to look into his eyes. "Don't worry, I won't kill you right away. Not after what you did to me. I will make you suffer first. Your screams shall be my lullaby. I'm looking forward to see the life drain from your rebellious eyes. If I don't have them gouged out by then, that is. Perhaps you'll even give me the pleasure of begging me a little for salvation?" He said the last threat in a lascivious voice and gave Link a sadistic smile. The Hylian had grown paler with every uttered word and was looking up at the Gerudo King with eerily widened eyes.
Ganondorf laughed out loud, while he patted Link's head not quite as gently, making Link flinch.
"Go on indulging in your daydreams. It's as far as this will get," Seymara replied provocatively. "I won't let you have Link so easily! You have no idea who you are dealing with!"
"Oh, I know very well who you are and what power you have. I am not afraid of you. You cannot harm me." Dauntingly he towered over the woman. She didn't show any sign of intimidation, just shoved Enora a little further behind her back, out of Ganondorf's field of vision. Luckily he didn't notice.
"It's not my fate to kill you. Though, if you leave me no choice, I will not shy away." She raised a hand and thin magical threads appeared around her arm. Enora took a step back.
Ganondorf just laughed. "You're threatening me? Try one more time and Link will suffer." He gave the giant a sign and the latter squeezed Link's body tighter. Link groaned painfully.
"Let me offer you a proposal: I'm not interested in you or that girl. I only want him. Leave and you won't be harmed - for now." Ganondorf's spiteful look scurried briefly to Link. Enora saw sheer panic in the Hylian's eyes and her gaze flitted to the woman. Surely the Goddesses' daughter wouldn't...
Seymara smiled confidently. "Do you really think you can blackmail me?"
She took a step towards the Gerudo king. Just at this moment something small and black whizzed through the air, rushed past Link's ear and got stuck in the giant's shoulder.
He released the Ordonian in shock, who immediately slipped from the grip and moved out of reach.
"Nice talking to you," Seymara replied sharply. She let her ocarina appear and hastily played a short melody. Enora, Link and herself disappeared in a glistening light.
"Damn it," Ganondorf sputtered as he gave the giant an angry look. The giant pulled a small black dagger out of his shoulder.
(Only read the following if you've finished reading the chapter! ;) )
And here she is, in all her glory. Seymara! Even though she only really appears in the last chapter in person, she made it onto the cover. Isn't that great? XD
We also finally get a glance at who the main antagonist will be. I kinda gave hints every now and then that the shadows were indeed up to something and here's the result of this something. Who expected him to appear? :D
This is the last chapter of the first part of the story and it was the first chapter that I had to heavily rewrite. It basically plays out the same as it did before but I rewrote some parts to improve the flow a little.
I also took the time to elaborate a little bit on the final scene. Hehe ;)
I'm so excited to finally show you the new cover for the second part. I'm going to upload it next week on my dA and will hopefully think about linking it here in the comment. So keep your eyes open (or remind me if I forgot!)
This might be a good time to give a warning, just in case you ignored it in my comment under the first chapter: This is probably a good point to stop reading this story if you can't handle some blood and gore. It's going to be dark rather quickly from here on. What you've seen so far was mild compared to what's to come. You be warned. ^^
I hope everyone has a good time! =3