Thanks so much to Luine Mercury LWG, MexicAmerichick6 (Even the Yiga Clan ships Zelink! XD), Annika LaPlume (Zelda's more inclined to use logic and reasoning to solve a problem, while Link's first thought is most likely "set it on fire" XD), and Ninxeldwin for reviewing! Glad you guys are enjoying so far!
With that, on with the chapter!
~ Chapter 15 ~
While Sidon and Riju had been assigned to watching over Link, Teba and Yunobo had elected to wait up at the Ancient Tech Lab alongside the trio of Sheikah. Or, rather, Teba was permitted entry to the lab while poor Yunobo was once again resigned to waiting just outside the door once again. Though Teba did admittedly feel a bit bad for the Goron youth, there was really nowhere else that he could comfortably sit.
Which was ultimately why Yunobo was the first to cry out in alarm when Sidon, Riju, and Paya came rushing up the hill, with a suspiciously Link-sized bundle in Sidon's arms and no Hylian princess in sight.
The ever-swift Teba was out the door before the Sheikah even had a chance to react, his keen eyes darting across each of the newcomers' expressions: Riju's grim determination, Sidon's concerned solemnity, and Paya's sheer terror. As he drew closer, a sense of forboding washed over him, and he found his gaze unsettlingly drawn to the blanketed figure.
"What the hell happened?" the Rito asked urgently, his golden eyes narrowing into slits.
"Th-The princess is gone!" Paya blurted out in a panic. "Th-The Yiga came here, impersonated m-me and probably took her away somewhere! W-We can't find her anywhere!"
"And to make matters worse," Sidon quickly cut in before the girl could ramble any further. "Once her powers got out of range, the Malice it...it took control of Link. His eyes turned black, there was Malice dripping down his face…"
"And he tried to kill me," Riju added, lifting her chin to show the bruises already forming on her neck. "Sidon knocked him out, but that's only a temporary solution. We need to find Princess Zelda and get her back to Link's side - and we need to figure out how to contain him until we can accomplish that."
For a few seconds, Teba was rendered speechless. He glanced up at Sidon briefly, then stepped forward and swiped his wing at one side of the blanket, revealing Link's head.
His face was, indeed, covered in Malice.
The magenta and black substance bubbled and hissed on his skin, forming three streaks on each side from his eyes to his jawline. Though Teba understood why none of the others would have wanted or perhaps even been able to touch the vile stuff, his stomach turned at the thought of leaving the Malice there to slowly burn away at the young knight's face.
Heavy footsteps rushed up behind the Rito, then abruptly stopped as Yunobo let out a cry of shock at the sight of Link. "Gah! His face!" he yelped, practically falling over. "We...we need to help him, goro!"
Teba nodded firmly. "First things first," he began gruffly. "Lets get this sludge the hell off of him before it burns straight through his skull. Purah probably knows how to deal with it. Then we can start talking about what to do next."
With that, he spun around and marched back towards the tech lab, with the others in tow. After barking a quick explanation to the Sheikah inside, Teba stepped aside to allow them room to bring Link in and get to work.
"Snap," Purah hissed, wincing as Link was laid down atop her worktable. "That does not look pretty. Let's see...we can't just wipe it off, since that'll just spread the goop around and burn him even more. Water's a no-go as well, since it can just be corrupted and add to the spread."
"So then what are we supposed to do about it?" Teba asked, even as a sinking feeling formed in the pit of his stomach. He had, of course, been present when Purah had outlined the three known ways of getting rid of Malice to the hero and the princess. They had included destroying Malice eyes (and none were present now), Princess Zelda's own sacred power (and the princess was currently missing in action), and…
...oh no.
The Sheikah scientist grimaced, evidently coming to the same conclusion as the Rito warrior. "It...looks like we're going to have to use the Master Sword to burn it away. Which is especially inconvenient, seeing as none of us can hold it steadily, and trying to use its full power on our own would drain our energy 'til we pass out."
"Not to mention the pain it would likely cause Master Link," Impa added, drawing her lips into a tight line. "Purah, is there really nothing else we can do?"
Purah shrugged helplessly. "Outside of getting some tongs and peeling it off of his skin bit by bit, not really. And those would probably eventually be corroded as well if we take too long. The Master Sword is the only thing we have that can actually destroy the Malice, rather than the other way around."
"But you just said that none of us can use it without passing out," Riju pointed out, arms crossed. "And we can't wake Link up, or it'll possess him again and he'll fight us. What are we supposed to do, then? Take turns burning the Malice away until we all end up in a heap on the floor?"
"Well if anyone has any better ideas, feel free to speak up now!" Purah exclaimed, throwing her hands up in frustration. "It's not my fault Malice is practically impossible to work with!"
"With all due respect," Prince Sidon interrupted carefully. "We shouldn't stand around and argue like this for much longer. Link needs our help! My sister's magic will be able to heal him if any of the wounds he suffers turns fatal, but only once. We must get rid of that Malice through any means necessary!"
"The prince is right," Teba agreed with a short nod. "If we're really going with this Master Sword idea, I can go get it from Link's house. And, the way I see it, we don't really have any other choice, unless anyone thinks we can somehow find Princess Zelda within the next five or so minutes."
For a moment, everyone was silent.
Then, the silence was broken by the loud smack of Purah's hand connecting with her forehead. "Hylia above, we're actually doing this," she mumbled.
She then clapped her hands together and raised her voice. "Okay! Obviously we're going to have to look for Zelda as soon as we can, but I'm pretty sure she'll kill us if we let Linky's face melt off in the meantime, so we do this first! Besides, they couldn't have taken her far, and she's a big, strong girl with goddess powers, so I'm sure she can take care of herself for the time being. Now...Teba will fly down and grab the sword, then bring it back up here. It should start glowing in the Malice's presence, and then I guess we'll take turns very carefully holding it up to the stuff to destroy it. Absolutely do not drop it on Linky's head! Understood!?"
"Of course!" Sidon exclaimed with an alarmed expression. "We would never be that careless when it comes to Link's safety!"
Teba couldn't help but scoff. "Normally, sure. But good luck with that when you're falling on your face after that sword steals all of your energy. If anything, when we do this, we should have someone else standing by to make sure whoever's at risk of passing out doesn't end up taking Link's head off with the sword."
"Well, ideally whoever's currently using it will tap out before that happens," Purah replied with a shrug. "Best to at least try to come out of this with all of us still conscious. But you're right, just in case, we'll have someone be the designated spotter. In fact, why don't you do that yourself, Teba? I'd argue that you've probably got the fastest reflexes here."
The white-feathered Rito shrugged. "Fine by me. Anyway...I'll be back with the sword soon. Try not to let the whole place burn to the ground while I'm gone."
Though Purah rolled her eyes at the notion, Teba hadn't entirely meant it as a joke. The Hylian Champion retained a somewhat concerning penchant for setting things on fire even when he wasn't possessed by evil, destructive sludge. Teba shuddered at the thought of the amount of havoc the boy could wreak while what little self-restraint he had was replaced by Malice.
Especially if he woke up now and managed to escape as far as the blue-flamed furnace outside.
The Rito shook his head to clear it and left the lab. He edged past Yunobo, who had planted himself right beside the door in order to listen in on what was happening inside, and headed to the side of the hilltop overlooking the village. Without wasting a moment more, Teba spread his wings and leaped into the open air.
It didn't take long to glide from the tech lab to Link's house, nor was it difficult to go inside and find the Master Sword hidden beneath the young knight's bed. When Teba lifted the blade in its scabbard, it felt heavy and unwieldy in his wings, but at the very least, it didn't attempt to drain the life out of him in revenge for touching it. That, Link had once explained to him, was exclusive to pulling the sword from its pedestal and attempting to use its power in combat.
Apparently, Champion Revali had attempted to wield the sword on multiple occasions, only to crumple to the ground, fast asleep. The mischievous glint in Link's eye as he'd recounted that particular tale told Teba that the young hero had no doubt had a hand in convincing the Rito Champion to give it a try in the first place.
Teba snorted in amusement as he stepped toward the window. As stoic and reserved as the Hylian sometimes tried to act, there was truly no hiding the fact that at his core, he was still an impulsive, perhaps even wild, young man.
Currently, however, it was all being suppressed by the Malice coursing through his body. As such, Teba knew that he needed to hurry.
The Rito warrior leapt from the window, tossing the sheathed Master Sword into his talons as he spread his wings once more. He found himself wishing, not for the first time, that he was capable of creating his own updraft as Master Revali once had, if only to make the flight back to the lab that much faster. As it stood, however, he was forced to resign himself to relying on nothing more than his wings and the minimal wind to carry him back up the hill the long way.
If nothing else, Teba was still a swift flier. Before long, he made it back to the tech lab, landing and nudging past Yunobo once more as he entered the building.
"I've got it," he announced, lifting his wings to show off the sword. A bright, silver light began to emanate from within the scabbard, likely as a result of its new proximity to Malice. The Rito suddenly felt lightheaded, and he quickly put the blade down, propping it up against the table Link had been laid upon. "Damn...that thing's strong."
"Oh, good!" Purah exclaimed, bounding over to Teba's side. "Thank you, Teba. Now!" She snapped her fingers. "Who's gonna be the first person to try out this absolutely ridiculous plan?"
For a long moment, no one spoke.
"Don't look at me," Teba scoffed. "I'm just the spotter."
After a few more seconds of silence, Sidon opened his mouth to speak, presumably to volunteer himself, but to everyone's surprise, Paya beat him to it.
"I-I'll do it!" she called out, stepping forward. Despite her visibly shaking hands, she held her head up high. "It's my fault the princess isn't here to help Master Link...i-if I hadn't let that Yiga sneak up on me…" She shook her head firmly, erasing that particular train of thought. "Helping get rid of this Malice is the least I can do for him right now!"
"Be careful, Paya," Impa warned, eyeing her granddaughter uncertainly. "As Teba said, the Master Sword's full power is extremely strong. Simply holding it will not kill you, but it will drain quite a bit of energy. Are you prepared for that?"
"Yes," Paya confirmed, trying to keep her soft voice even. "I'll be careful, Grandmother...i-if it gets to be too much, I'll put it down."
"Preferably on the ground, and not on Link's head," Purah reminded her.
"O-Of course!"
Teba stepped aside to allow the girl to move towards the sword, but he made sure to linger close by. Paya bent to unsheathe the glowing blade, wincing as she braced herself for its power. She stumbled a bit when she took hold of the hilt, but steeled herself and lifted the sword.
"O-Okay…" she murmured. "Here we go…"
The rest of the group watched with bated breath as the young Sheikah girl carefully positioned the flat of the sword over Link's face. Even the usually unflappable Teba found himself wincing as she lowered the metal to gently brush against the malice coating the knight's cheekbones. The Rito stood with his muscles tensed, ready to dart forward if needed, praying to whatever deity might be watching that their absurd, desperate plan would work.