Cia's plan was going better than expected, that was for sure. Wolf Link was fighting much fiercer than last time, especially when Zelda made an advance towards the sorceress. The princess saw no point in trying to talk things out, so she snuck behind Cia and lunged at her with the rapier. Luckily, Cia had noticed the attack at the last moment and barely dodged a lethal blow. However, the weapon left a deep gash on her side, causing her to cry out in pain. Wolf Link, whose sword fight with his counterpart had found its way back towards the sorceress, stopped his battle immediately and darted towards her.
"Wolf, stop!" Sky Link, who had joined the fight against Scarf Link, grabbed his counterpart by the arm. "Where's Young Link? He should've been back by now."
Seeing an opportunity, Scarf Link swung his sword at Sky Link. The Hero of Sky recoiled his heavily bleeding left arm and held it close to his chest.
"Dammit…" he swore under his breath. "It's alright. I still have another good arm. You go protect…" He looked up to find Wolf Link already half-way to the sorceress. "…Cia."
Scarf Link brandished his sword arrogantly. "Looks like it's just you and me now."
"Oh, shut up, would you?" Sky Link readjusted his Hylian shield on his arm. "All I really need is my sword arm. And once Young Link gets back, it'll be two against one again."
A ghost of a smile appeared on Scarf Link's lips. "If you say so."
Sky Link blinked stupidly. "Wait… What did you do with him?"
"Me? I didn't do anything." Scarf Link twirled his sword in his hand impatiently. "Now can we stop talking and get right to it?"
"Fine, but if I win, you tell me what the others did with Young Link," Sky Link bargained.
Scarf Link shrugged a reply. "Fine." Without any warning, he thrusted his sword at Sky Link's chest, which the Hero of Sky narrowly dodged.
Sky Link smirked contently. "Good. I haven't had a real challenge in a while."
Meanwhile, Wolf Link had reached Cia. Volga was already in dragon form chasing Zelda around the area. Wolf Link would've thought it was comical if weren't so furious.
"Cia!" he called worriedly, inspecting her for any unseen injuries. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," she lied. Her wound was beginning to bleed heavily, so she placed her free hand over it to hide the severity. "But I don't think I'll be able to fight too much longer. I'll go back with Young Link once he's finished with recon."
"That's the problem," Wolf Link replied darkly. "He's missing. He hasn't come back yet. I'll go back with you. Sky and Volga can handle themselves. Can you walk?"
"Link, I can walk just-" She was cut off by Wolf Link picking her up and cradling her in his arms. Her face flushed at the action. "L-Link I said I could walk!"
"I know." He smirked at her playfully. Her face became even redder.
It looks like that spell worked, she thought confidently. Now it should be easier to have him do what I say.
"I don't want to go just yet," Cia told him. "Not until Zelda and her version of you. It should be an easy task for the Hero of Twilight, wouldn't you say?"
Now it was Wolf Link who was blushing. "Well, I don't want to leave you, so…"
"I'll be okay," Cia smiled. "Because I know you'll never let anything happen to me."
"O-Oh, well…" Wolf Link gently sat Cia on a boulder, attempting to hide his embarrassment. "I'll make it quick, so don't move, okay?"
"I won't," Cia nodded. Wolf Link ran off to the fight with Scarf Link while Volga continued in his attempts to set Zelda on fire. The princess was currently hitting flames on her robes desperately with her hands when he ran past, but she tackled him before he got out of reach. Cia winced as the both toppled to the ground.
"Guess I'll have to deal with you first," Wolf Link groaned. He reached over with his right arm and hit his shield against Zelda as hard as he could in his current position. Her hands flew from his shoulders to her forehead in pain, giving him an opportunity to throw her off. She rolled off his back and lost hold of her rapier, which Wolf Link grabbed. He leapt to his feet and pointed it at her heart.
"Looks like I win," he declared confidently, accompanied by Cia's half-joking applause. He rubbed the back of his neck, his arrogance waning momentarily. "Well, I didn't do that good…"
"I'll say." Scarf Link slammed into his back roughly, knocking him to the ground once more. He put Wolf Link in a choke-hold to prevent him from getting away. "Zelda, now!"
The princess stumbled to her feet, dizzy from getting hit in the head, and materialized a bow in her hand. She created a Light Arrow to accompany it and nocked it in place. She aimed it at a small area on Wolf Link's back that his counterpart wasn't laying on.
"Don't worry," she said as she pulled back on the arrow. "It won't kill you. It'll just knock you out long enough for us to capture you."
"What kind of a duo are you?" Wolf Link huffed, acting like he wasn't in danger. He did his best to turn his head towards Scarf Link. "You refer to your princess – your superior – as if you were on her level. And you…" He looked back at Zelda, who was now ready to let her arrow fly. "You dress like… like that! Don't you have any shame?"
"It's for battle!" she argued hotly.
"It doesn't look very comfortable to move in," Wolf Link continued as Scarf Link succeeded in pinning his hands behind his back. "And you don't have any chainmail or armor or anything."
"Link!" Cia cried. His attention immediately turned to her. She jabbed a finger at a body Volga was leaning over a few feet away. "Sky's hurt."
"As long as you're safe, none of that matters," Wolf Link replied sternly.
"Don't act like you've already won," Scarf Link snapped. "Zelda, just do it already! He won't die from it."
"Yeah, I know..." The princess hesitantly let her fingers slip from their hold, allowing the arrow to fly through the air towards its target. Wolf Link let out a sharp cry as it hit his shoulder blade. Based on the sound he heard, the tip must've cracked the bone, or at least done some other serious damage.
"Th-This is nothing," Wolf Link snapped, doing his best to not show the agony. "I once had an arrow shatter my knee cap. S-So…"
"Don't act so high and might and mighty," Scarf Link smirked. "You don't stand a chance. That magic will start working soon and-"
He was interrupted by a blast of dark magic that knocked him off Wolf Link's back. Cia rushed over as fast as she could with her wound and knelt down at his side. "Volga!" she shouted. "Get Sky over here! Now!"
Zelda was placing another arrow in the bow hastily, but she wasn't fast enough. Once Volga dove for the duo with a limp and bloody Sky link in his arms, Cia cast the spell to warp them back to the temple, but not before a little girl leapt into the group to be with her royal guard.
XX
"He's not waking up."
"Try dumping a bucket of water on his head."
"Lana, we can't waste any more water! We're in a mountain with no water source."
"But can't Ruto make water…?"
"…Oh, right."
Young Link faintly heard a variety of voices arguing about how to wake him up. He was too out of it to do it himself, much less process what was going on. However, he was jolted into full consciousness by a large wave of water hitting him in the face.
"What the hell?!" He went into a coughing fit as everyone in the room took a step back. "You couldn't wait a few friggin' minutes? You stupid assholes!"
"I suspect a 98% chance Link's duplicate is annoyed," a robotic voice, belonging to a floating blue girl with creepy blank eyes, said.
"Gee," an imp levitating next to her, replied sarcastically. "Thanks, Fi. We could've never figured that out on our own."
The only one Young Link could recognize in the room was Lana, who was currently hovering over him. "Are you alright?"
"Screw you," he spat. "You should be worrying about yourselves. Once Cia and my other selves come for me, we'll kick your ass."
"Oh, come on," the imp scoffed. "What could you do? You're just a-"
Young Link cut her off with a harsh glare. "Don't. Even. Say it."
"Trust me, Link can handle himself," a hauntingly-familiar voice defended. "He saved me from Lord Jabu-Jabu when he was even smaller than he is now."
Is that? Young Link thought nervously. N-No… It can't be. That's impossible.
"Isn't that right, future husband?" Ruto asked bubbly, hoping into view.
Young Link let out a shriek of genuine fear, kicking around wildly in the chair his hands were tied to. "Get away from me!" he shouted. "I don't want to marry a fish! How is doing 'it' even supposed to work with us?!"
"Um, he's a little more…" Ruto paused, thinking for the correct word. "…vulgar than I remember."
"Piss off," Young Link snapped at her. "Do whatever you want to me. Torture me, trap me in a room with Ruto, even run me through with my own sword, I will never tell you anything."
"We didn't capture you to hurt you," Lana told him gently. "We want to keep you safe from Cia."
"Cia?" Young Link repeated. "What did she ever do to me? She keeps me company, protects me, and gives me hope for the future. And from my travels, my future then looked pretty shitty."
"Let's just throw him in the cells that came with the base," the imp suggested. "It'll keep him out of our way."
"Perhaps, but I am certain he will remain hostile," Fi added. "My readings suggest we attempt to talk some sense into him with a 56% chance of success."
"That's a pretty low chance," a deep, booming voice sighed. "Poor little guy. He doesn't even know what he's doing."
Young Link gasped in delight at a familiar, as well as likable, face he hadn't noticed. "Darunia! You're here too? That's great! Quick, help me out of this thing."
Darunia shook his head. "Sorry, Brother, but we're on opposite sides this time. We're not letting you go until you realize your mistakes."
"Dammit," Young Link cursed. "I knew it. Zelda's brainwashed all of you. Don't you get it? She wants the Triforce for her own sick greed, and then you'll all pay the price in the end. Cia's the one trying to stop it!"
"This isn't worth it," the imp huffed. "If we put him in the dungeon, he'll be out of our way. Then it'll be easier to capture the others."
"Don't you dare lay a hand on my grandson!" Young Link threatened seriously. "If you touch him, or even my Sky self, I'll make sure you all regret it."
"He's serious about this," Lana groaned, rubbing her temples. "Okay. We'll put him in one of the cells for now. But just long enough for us to come up with a plan."
The imp did a victorious fist-pump. Darunia picked up Young Link, chair and all, and began to carry him down stairs in the corner of the room.
"You can't do this to me!" he yelled dramatically. "I have rights! You can't cage me up like an animal. I'm not my grandson! I'm not part wolf!"
Satisfied with the group's confused expressions, he continued to shout his protests all the way down.
Cia and her group collapsed on the tile floor, exhausted. "Link," she whispered, gingerly shaking his good shoulder. "Link, can you hear me?" All she earned was a faint moan.
"I'll take them to the beds," Volga offered, slinging them both over his shoulders unceremoniously.
"I hope they'll both be okay," a young voice sighed. "That dragon man is being so rough with them. Just like a stag beetle."
"Yes, I suppo-" Cia furrowed her eyebrows in realization and turned to see a little girl kneeling next to her.
"Hello!" she grinned sweetly. "You have an audience with Agitha, Princess of the Bug Kingdom. Now if you'll excuse Agitha, she must go check on her royal guard." She stood up, brushed off her dress, and hurried off in the direction of Volga.
Cia made no attempts to stop her, not deeming her a threat and being too shocked by her actions to question them. She began to go off towards everyone else as well, but her thoughts about Young Link stopped her. She knew she genuinely cared for him, for every one of the Links, but she hadn't been able to save him. She sagged her shoulders and dragged her feet along the hall, secretly saying a rare prayer for his safety.
*Woot! The plot's finally moving along! :3 I'm not good at writing fight scenes, but I hope you enjoyed anyway. And you all voted for Hylia's Hero to be in the story! Perhaps he'll make an appearance next chapter…? It depends on how everything goes. But for those of you who haven't, I suggest reading the SS manga from Hyrule Historia to get a little more context on his character. You can find it on MangaFox or MangaTown or something like that. You'll come across it eventually.
Hope you all like the story so far! I'm too tired to put anything creative here. ;_; Um…I love you~! :3
P.S. I saw Inside Out two days ago! SEE IT! FOR THE LOVE OF THE GODDESSES, GO! RUN! FLY TO YOUR NEAREST THEATER AND SEE THE BEAUTY PIXAR HAS GIVEN US!
Young Link: We'd better end this before she starts hating on Frozen again.
WHY DID HANS HAVE TO BE EVIL!? IT ADDED, LIKE, NOTHING TO THE PLOT!
Sky Link: Oh, Goddesses, it's happening! D:
HOW IS ELSA SUPPOSED TO GET FOOD IN THAT SUPID ICE CASTLE OF HERS?!
Wolf Link: End it! End it now! 0_0'
K bye.*