Chapter 13: Critical Aftermath
The air was cool, and the night was thick. Dawn was still hours away. The Kokiri gathered in front of Saria's house. Mido walked across the dark and blood-stained grass towards Rela's house to check on those inside. Mimi led Falati from the dim doorway as he approached. Falati moved very slowly and held her head where the skullkid had hit her. "Are you alright?" Mido asked the girls when he got close, and he took a moment to look them over.
"Uh-huh," Mimi replied with a weak nod.
"Yeah…" Falati groaned unconvincingly.
"Mido," Solati said as he emerged limping from the house with one hand holding his abdomen, "did everyone make it?"
"Yeah," said Mido, "we all made it. And we got him too, the king."
"Good… good." And Solati walked off to join with the others; his head slowly turning from left to right as he limped, taking in the scenes of carnage and destruction that marked the village.
Mido bent down and picked up the torch which had stood in front of the entrance. It had gone out and was knocked over during the battle. Before heading back to the others, Mido peered into the dark interior of the house. Inside he saw the bodies of four skullkids. One of them was so badly mutilated that it was hardly recognizable. There were puddles of blood on the floor, and blood smeared the walls as well. Weapons, furniture, and belongings were broken and scattered throughout the room. And it was all still and dark and quiet. And for the first time, Mido felt the chill of the night.
The Children of the Forest gathered together in the clearing in front of Saria's house. With his spear, Lati scouted behind the house and around the immediate area to check for any lingering skullkids. Once the sun came up, he thought, he and Mido, or maybe Timi, would do a thorough search and assessment of the village. Fado and Mifa helped the wounded Lado and Remi find semi-comfortable positions against the outside wall. Lado moved very slowly and tried not to twist or bend; the spearhead remained lodged in his side. Falati sat down nearby the two boys, still holding her head.
"Mimi, are you okay?" Fado asked. "Help me get some water. The girls entered the house, with Fado limping from the pain which radiated from where the dart had struck her, and each fetched a large jug of clean drinking water and some bowls. Except for the tossed about sheets and blankets from the chaotic wakeup, the interior of Saria's house was in the same order that it had been in the day before. Mido returned to the area with the torch from Rela's and lit it from the small fire that still burned in the debris of the collapsed bridge. Mido then stomped out the fire on the ground, and he planted the torch near to the entrance of the house.
Mifa retrieved a small cooking knife from her bag inside, and she began to carefully cut Lado's tunic away from his injury. Then she took a clean cloth and dabbed it in one of the water bowls and began to clean around the wound site.
Lado winced and turned his head towards Remi: "Hey Rem… hey. What do you say we head on over to the ranch and bring back a crate of that Chateau La'lon stuff?" Remi angled his head towards Lado and cracked a smile. His face was pale, and sweat was beading up on his forehead. "Hey, how you doin' Remi, do you need something?" Lado added. The smile on Remi's face faded, and he turned his gaze blankly down towards the grass in front of him; then he took a couple of quick jerking breaths and leaned forward and vomited.
Lado put his hand on Remi's back. Falati scooted away. Mifa looked on with concern. "Remi?" said Mido approaching.
"I don't feel good, boss. And my shoulder hurts." Remi grunted, rubbing his left arm.
"Mimi," said Mido, getting the girl's attention, "bring us some water." Mimi came over with the bowl and offered a drink to Remi. Mido rolled up the short-sleeve and examined Remi's shoulder. In spite of the low light. Mido could easily see that something was wrong. The skin on Remi's shoulder, originating from where the skullkid's dart had imbedded itself, was a deep purple. The discoloration shifted to red around the edges, with pinkish-red streaks extending farther down the arm and up the collarbone.
"Lati! bring the torch over here," Mido called and looked around for the boy. He saw Lati jog out of the darkness around the columns, shift his spear to his left hand, and begin to work the torch out of the ground with his right.
Mido also saw Fado sitting on the grass nearby. She grimaced and rubbed her right leg, and Mifa crouched over her examining the area. Then Mifa stood up. "Falati!" Mido heard Mifa call as she hurried over to where Falati sat by the entrance to Saria's house. "Come over here and take a look at this. Are you okay? Here…" she said as she offered a hand to Falati and helped her to her feet.
Lati arrived with the torch. And in the flickering yellow and orange light, Mido looked closely at the discoloration of the arm. "What happened here, Remi?" Mido asked.
"Ugh, I think one of the skullkids got me with their blowgun things," Remi said with a grunt.
On the deltoid, from where the purple and red was spreading, Mido spotted the snapped-off shaft of the dart. With Lati holding the torch and looking on with apparent concern, Mido carefully pinched the shaft between his fingers and pulled it out of the arm. Remi barely noticed the sting, and he continued to look down.
"Mido!" Mifa called and waved him over to where Fado sat.
"Keep an eye on him," Mido said to Lati, who nodded in acknowledgement. "And you hang in there too, Lado." And he put a hand on Lado's shoulder.
"Yeah… sure," Lado said with a wince as Mido ran off to the girls.
"What is it?" Mido asked Mifa as he looked down at Fado.
"One of the skullkids got Fado with his blowgun. And we think…" Mifa began to reply before cutting herself off. She too was looking down at Fado, and at Falati who was kneeling down beside Fado inspecting her injury.
Falati looked up at Mido and Mifa and got to her feet. "We think she's been poisoned," she said in a low voice. Mido did not respond, but looked quickly back down at Fado, who now had her face in her hands. "The skullkids know the Lost Woods," Falati went on, "and what grows in there. I think they made the poison from the mushrooms; probably the green ones."
Mido's head went dizzy as he looked from Fado back towards Remi and the other Kokiri, and his legs began to feel weak beneath him. "How do you know?" he asked.
"I don't really. But a long time ago when I was in the woods, a skullkid told me not to touch the green mushrooms, or it would be the last thing I ever do. And Fado talked to…"
"The creepy guy who was in the woods not too long ago," Fado interrupted, her voice wavering. "He said he was looking for rare plants and odd mushrooms. But not the green ones he said – they're toxic. I chased him away…" Fado choked and stopped talking and turned away from the group. She leaned off to the side, put her hands on the ground, and was sick. Mifa cautiously crouched down and gently rubbed her back.
"Oh no, no," Mido said stepping back and looking quickly around; not knowing what he was looking for. "Remi is sick too, like Fado. What do we do? Falati?!"
"I don't know," Falati responded nervously, sounding like she might cry. We need some kind of potion or antidote. But I don't know."
Mido turned towards the rest of the village. "Did anybody else get hit by a blowgun dart?" he frantically called out. Everyone looked at him, some shook their heads, but no one responded with words. Mido looked to the night sky and at the ground – Potion, potion… antidote… he thought to himself. He looked up and spun around to Falati: "There's a potion shop in the village near Castle Town. I talked to the old lady who owns it at the ranch."
"That's right! Kakariko Village, that's where it is. I heard people at the ranch talking about it," Falati said. "But it's really far, and…" she lowered her voice to a whisper, "I don't think they'll make it through the day."
Mido stared seriously at Falati. She wore an anxious and worried look, the corner of her forehead was bruised and slightly bloody from where the skullkid had hit her, her orange hair was a mess, her eyes were bright and blue and beautiful, like the rest of the Kokiri's, like Fado's.
"I'm going. I'm going now," Mido said as he began to back away. "I'm going right now." He turned to the others by Saria's house and called out: "I'm going to Kakariko Village to get medicine for Fado and Remi." Then to Falati, "Take care of them until I get back." She nodded in reply.
The village was silent for a moment. "Do you want me to come with you, Mido? It's dangerous," Lati said.
"No," said Mido as he headed for the tunnel, "stay here and help the others – protect the village. You're in charge, Lati." His eyes crossed those of Rela's and Domi's as he passed, and of Remi's, who still sat uncomfortably against the wall of Saria's house. Everyone watched him go as he faded into the shadows of the night. He hurdled the bodies of fallen skullkids who lay by the columns. And he passed the body of one more who had been taken by a well-aimed arrow and lay on his back by the entrance of his house. The curtain door had been torn open, and some of his possessions lay broken and scattered on the ground outside. One final glance back before he stepped into the complete darkness of the tunnel to the bridge and the outside world. The village stood cold and still in the pale moonlight, with only the distant flicker of the single torch to prove that there was still some life left in it. Then he ran through the passage to begin his critical mission.