Trail of Keys
End
By: (o'.')o
Disclaimer:
Nah….just this once, I'll let them guess. *Watches the door for Luigi to barge in with Iron Knuckles…*
Note from Author:
I've got to ask….if you read this, please please please review it. Say whatever's on your mind…even if your Seifer Almsley and you don't have much of a mind. [ Just kidding Seifer, I love ya…even though Squall and Gilgamesh thoroughly kicked your ass….and I bet Link could too ;) ]
**********
Last Chapter:
Well, needless to say, Link had a really bad time last chapter. Going to the Dodongo's cavern, getting ripped open and nearly killed by two huge beasts, finding no Fire Key for his troubles, being teleported to the middle of nowhere, and nearly dying of infection….Yeah, that qualifies as a bad days. The only good part was his chance meeting with a fair Gerudo girl named Nabooru, who fixed him up quite well…[ after she threatened to kill him. ] They were on the trail of whoever had the Fire Key, and things were looking up. Until they found who it was that had it…that is…….
On with the tale:
**********
The stranger's eyes were his most frightening features. The whites of them were filled with blood, and his eye-color was as black as the midnight. Right now, those eyes were glancing both at Nabooru and Link, who stood completely still.
Link leveled his gaze at the strangers face, who chuckled a bit. As if in response, the stranger unwrapped the cloth that hid has face. Link's eyes grew wide in certain shock. He was staring back at himself.
Well, almost himself. This kids face was so much like Link's it was eerie. However, there were a lot of differences. The strangers nose shorter and flatter, almost to the point of being just a bump with nostrils. His face was a bit more round than Links, and his ears were had more of a point then Links did. Tufts of dirty blonde hair came out from his black tuke. The boy wore a wide grin that bared lots of teeth. He seemed to be enjoying himself.
Note: More visual purpose….think a taller, more Elven looking Kid Buu from DBZ.
"Hero" he said grinning. He turned his head to the girl beside Link. "Gerudo…" he said, almost in a sing-song way.
Link didn't like the way he looked at her. He stepped up to focus the kids attention on himself. "It's Link." he stated.
The other looked at him and slammed his weapon, a short double-bladed staff into the rock he was perched on. He slumped his arm over one knee and regarded Link lazily.
"Knata." He growled. "Knatagahnim" He put an emphasis on the last part of his name. Link wondered if it was a surname or a title. "I am a ghanim , the first of many, the pride of the Master's growing fleet."
"Well what do you know, a guy with career-goals." Link smiled sarcastically. The grin on the dark figures face instantly became an ugly scowl. "What do you want?" Link asked fiercely.
"That is for you to find out…" he said calmly, "when you ask the questions of the Goddesses in person."
Link glanced beside him and studied Nabooru. She was breathing lightly, not taking her eyes away from
the dark stranger. Link wondered if she could feel what he was feeling…the power radiating from this dark figure.
Knata pulled his weapon, a short double-bladed staff, from the boulder he was standing on. "This…" he started in a harsh voice, "This is a Swallow. Gerudo weapon. I picked it a long time ago because of what it can do." He stepped off the boulder and put a hand on his hip, twirling the weapon around nonchalantly.
"It's smaller than a normal staff, so it can be handled like a sword. And with the blades on either end…" he peered at Nabooru, grinning widely. " I can cut twice as many times then with a normal sword. That means with…a few swipes…" he whipped around the Swallow and twirled it to his left hand.
"…I can take off your pretty skin." He finished, licking his chops.
Nabooru took threats easily, but for some reason this one repulsed her to the point of nearly making her sick. Knatagahnim wasn't finished. "And then…maybe with a few swipes, your precious scalp…"
"Stop it." Link growled.
"…and then, your insides…how lovely they must be, all black and bloody…"
"ENOUGH" Link barked. He drew his sword and leveled it at the dark figure. Knata simply grinned and nodded.
Nabooru watched how Link was standing. Seeing his scabbard on his left side, she figure that he was right-handed, and thus, would lead with his right. However, now Link had his left foot forward, and his left hand gripping the handle, his right covering the butt-end. This wasn't a good sign.
Either Link was ambidextrous, or he was preparing to fight Knata at a greater disadvantage.
Nabooru opened her mouth to say something, but in that moment, Knatagahnim leaned forward and vanished.
Before she could even think about where he went, a sharp pain exploded from her midsection. Nabooru buckled over and the handle of the Swallow came up hard on her chin, knocking her to the ground. The world seemed to spin for Nabooru, and she lay on the ground, unable to move.
Link whipped his head around at Knata, and stared at him with steel gray eyes. His posture relaxed, and it seemed like he was being held up by string. Knata grinned further and launched towards him, quickly becoming a blur.
The blade of the Swallow was parried by Link's own sword. Knata spun around and swiped again at Link's head. The elf ducked, but not fast enough. A shallow rent appeared on his cheek, seeping blood.
Link slashed sideways at the dark figure, but caught only air. In a flash, Knata was behind him, leveling a overhand cut at the elf. Link twirled,, gripping his sword with his right hand, and parried the blow.
The force radiated from the center of the clash, blowing leaves and rocks several feet away. Link could feel the stitches on his right arm blast apart, and blood beginning to flow freely from the wound.
Link didn't care.
*******
Someone else did. A few miles away, in the village of Kakkariko village, the blow was felt by the three girls who were traveling with Link before.
Zelda got up to her feet quickly, running to the others. They found her however, and told her about what they felt…that Link was in intense trouble.
The women quickly readied Epona and Destiny, and rode quickly to the general direction of the feeling the had. As they raced, each thought in their own little way, of the pain that they'd feel if it was too late.
*******
Link gripped his sword with his other hand and bit down hard on Knata. Knata pushed back, bracing himself on the ground for more leverage. Link bent his knees and followed suit. The force between the two combatants was enormous. The ground broke and crumbled under their feet as they continued to push against each other.
Finally the force was too much. With a blast of power, the two were flung aside from their own attacks. Link spun around on his feet, skidding to a halt and facing the other. Knatagahnim skid to a halt and calmly half turned towards the other elf, a sadistic grin plastering his face. The elf was good, he'd concede to that, and he wouldn't have it any other way.
Besides…he hadn't even started.
******
Nabooru had been conscious the whole time, but too dazed to even sit up. She now shook her head stubbornly, pushing her long red ponytail out of her eyes. She got up to her knees, checking her mouth to see if she lost any teeth, and glanced up at the two combatants.
Link and Knata were nearly 20 feet from each other, staring themselves down. They both looked like they were barely breathing. Nabooru spotted the bandage on Links arm, partially ripped, and beginning to soak with his blood.
She got up and pulled the bow of the strap on her back. Taking a slim bolt from her pouch on her waist, she pulled it and aimed it at Knata…
Knata leapt forward and vanished again. Nabooru was even more surprised when half a second later, Link launched himself at the enemy, and became a blur, too fast to her eyes.
A loud noise of metal clashing against metal rang through the clearing, the force of the attack nearly blowing Nabooru off of her feet. She looked around desperately, but couldn't see anything. Another clash sounded, and another. She watched the ground as it exploded in two patches a few feet from each other…once…twice…three times, Each with a clashing noise.
Nabooru was knocked back by a hard breeze. The ground exploded next to her, and a large clash rang in her ears. She could see the sparks fly from an impact that took place seconds ago. Nabooru was shocked. She never knew anything alive could move so fast, even for the purpose of battle.
She had always prided herself on being tough, on being one of the best fighters the Gerudo had to offer. Truth be told, she was. Her abilities surpassed most in Hyrule. However, these two…..they made her feel like a helpless little girl. They were so far above her abilities, it was mind-boggling.
Another clash rang and then Nabooru saw the two split from each other. The skidded to a halt and stared each other down. Knata had one slash that ripped open the cloth on his left arm, and she saw some blood there. Link, however, had many small gashes and cuts all throughout his body. He was holding his sword extremely loosely, and his right arm was covered from elbow to fingers in dark blood.
Nabooru knew he'd bleed to death no matter how strong he was. She leveled her bow and aimed at Knatagahnim again…and again the two fighters vanished before their eyes, to resume their high-speed combat. Nabooru let out a frustrated cry. How could she help him if she didn't have enough power to even read their motions!!
The Gerudo took a long calming breath, and studied the battle ground carefully. She watched the ground as it broke under their feet, the leaves as they were blown away by the force of their attacks. Slowly, things became slower, became easier to read. A blur here and there signified the combatants. Nabooru continued to concentrate. The blurs slowed down, taking shape.
She could see them, moving almost surreally. Link slashed down once at Knata, who parried and whirled around, aiming at Link's head. The green-tuniced elf bent down, dodging the blow, and sheathing his sword quickly. Knata came at him in the same motion, and in a blur Link flashed the sword out of his scabbard, the attack screaming at Knata's face.
Knata blocked with the handle of the Swallow, forcing rocks and leaves to burst with the force. The dark figure reared back brought the handle down on the boys head. Link hit the ground and leapt to his feet, rushing again at Knatagahnim. He sheathed his sword again, and jutted the handle out from his scabbard, nailing the dark figure in the midsection. Knata skidded back and twirled his Swallow, cutting two shallow tears in Link's skin. Again the two broke from each other and stared themselves down.
Nabooru could see the damage Link was causing to his arm every time he attacked, especially with the sword technique battou-jitsu* . Though it was clear he was doing more damage to himself than to Knatagahnim, the look in Link's eyes suggested he wouldn't stop until one of them was dead. She leveled her bow again, taking aim…
*Battou-jitsu is the art of whipping your sword out of your sheath so quickly, it creates a force capable of tearing through an enemy. It is a technique based on speed. I learned this from Rurouni Kenshin. Watsuki Sensei Rules.! (v^-^)
And suddenly Knata was on her, having moved to quickly for her to react. She watched as he came down on her with his Swallow leveled. She knew he was fast enough to do many things. Knock her out, Gut her, Run her through.
Maybe even skin her alive, like he had threatened.
Nabooru closed her eyes shut and readied herself for whatever was to come. The Swallow rushed down on her…
Suddenly a surge of power came through her body. Nabooru opened her eyes and saw the wave of blue power pass her and slam hard into Knata, flinging him back into the thick of the battlefield.
The dark figure rolled to the ground, and Link took the opportunity. He slashed at him, bringing the sword up from a low position to take of the others head. Knata twirled the Swallow around with his left hand, parrying the attack and slashing at Link's head. Link dodged, but just barely, a small gash appearing across his nose.
Knata spun to his feet and leapt back, looking for the source of the power that had trounced him. Standing beside Nabooru now was a beautiful blonde girl in white clothing, a blue sphere emanating from her body. Beside her was a buxom red-head and a pretty green clothed waif. Knata didn't know about the other two, but he knew about the girl with the power.
"Zelda….." he snarled, licking his chops again. He took a step forward, and Link was on him in a flash. He blocked his attack and ran to the left, becoming a blur. Link ran beside him and winked out of vision.
Now Zelda, Malon and Saria were shaking their heads. "It's….It's not possible." Malon said quietly.
"He can't keep this up! His body wont take the strain for much longer!" Nabooru shouted. She looked beside her and caught Zelda smiling faintly at her. "Sister…" she began.
Zelda smiled. "Sister…"
"What can I do?" Nabooru lamented. She looked pleadingly at Zelda with her large partially slanted eyes. Zelda peered down a the bow she held.
"What you can." She answered.
Nabooru looked down at her bow, then leveled it at the battle field. Again she concentrated, and again Link and Knata came into view.
Link slammed hard into Knata with his blade. Knata blocked, sparks flew.
Everything seemed to slow down…then fluctuate in her vision. She shut her brown-red eyes and opened them again. The world was black and void. Only Link and Knata were there, and they had slowed to a dead crawl.
Link re-sheathed his sword, his arm a bloody mess. He bent his knees and prepared for the last strike.
Nabooru closed and reopened her eyes again. Now Link was gone. There was only Knatagahnim.
Knata twirled around his Swallow and shifted it to his left. He placed it behind him, readying himself for the last parry.
She closed her eyes, and reopened them. Knata was there, he was as big as a house. She could almost see his heart beating in his chest.
Link's arm flew to his scabbard.
Knata launched forward.
Nabooru fired.
The bolt struck Knata in the chest, and buried itself into him. Knata was knocked back with the force, and something red popped out from his cloths. Nabooru thought it would be blood, but she wasn't sure.
Knata looked at the arrow buried deeply in his chest, then up at Link. Link was as shocked as he was. The color was returning to his eyes.
The dark figure backed away a couple of steps, then lost his balance and fell to the ground.
Malon and Saria cheered and ran towards Link, and as they did, something registered in his eyes, and he also fell to the ground. He was bleeding profusely.
The girls quickly got to his side. When they touched him, he was as cold as ice. Malon knelt by his mouth to see if he was breathing. He was, but only just. "Don't worry." She whispered. "You're going to be fine. Link…you're not gonna die."
Saria looked down at him, his body was littered with small bleeding cuts, and his arm was unrecognizable. Esea looked at the way Saria began to tremble. "Stop worrying!" she said. "He's an idiot, but I'll help him anyway." With that, Esea flew over to Link's right arm and began to glow brightly.
Nabooru put a hand on him, then glanced in the direction of Knata for morbid curiosity. She gasped aloud, and the other girls turned to her, and then what she was looking at.
Knatagahnim was gone. All that was left of him was the bloody arrow that was stuck 5 inches in his chest.
*******
It was hours after the battle, and they were all back in Kakkariko. The horses who had nearly killed themselves to get to the scene were now resting comfortably.
Link lay in a single room, covered to his neck in blankets. It was touch-and-go for a long time with him. He had stopped breathing many times, but now seemed to be stable. Princess Zelda sat at his side, waving her hands above his body, singing softly. All the while, a soft blue glow radiated from her and seeped into Link's body.
Zelda was exhausted, and she should, with the amount of power she was spending in this healing process. She should be thankful though…if it wasn't for Esea's quick healing on the battlefield, Zelda wouldn't have to be healing anyone, he'd be long dead. She sighed inwardly, wondering at the still elf she was treating.
Link….she knew he was blessed with the Triforce of Courage, but what she had seen that afternoon surpassed what she thought that blessing would give him. The way he was able to move so quickly, endure so much strain on his body, so much viciousness from his attacker, and not feel any pain from the horrific wound on his arm was beyond her.
She had seen his eyes when he was battling, a cold gray color. She remembered when he looked like that before, when they had seen the Sage, and Link had gotten murderously angry. She figured that had something to do with it….but what…
The door opened, and Nabooru walked into the room. Zelda got up and immediately flung her arms around her. "Sister!" she laughed.
Nabooru returned the embrace. "It's been too long, Zelda." She laughed softly. "Too long…."
********
It had been 6 years ago. Farmers in the borderland of Hyrule were having a good crop and prospering. In response, they began to expand and expand, and they began to encroach on Gerudo territory. The Gerudo's complained, but the Hylians went all the way to the King to fight for their 'rights'.
That is when the Royal Family paid a personal visit to the Gerudo Hierarchy. Zelda was 8 years old at the time, and was adamant that it would be the worse time of her life. ( Zelda was quite the little brat back then. )
When they reached the Gerudo Fortress, they were greeted by the Leader, Andala, and her little charges. One that stood out in Zelda's head was a 8 year old girl named Nabooru. She looked at Zelda like she was a piece of dirt, and Zelda wanted to order her to do a million push-ups right now. She should have been able to order anyone around…she was the Princess dammit.
Andala then ordered Nabooru to entertain Zelda, while she and the King discussed the farm matter. Nabooru thought the princess would benefit from seeing their fine stables. Zelda didn't like it, and made a fuss. Something spooked the horses, and they broke loose.
Nabooru had saved the princess that day, throwing her arms around her and pushing her to the ground. Luckily the horses sharp hooves avoided the two small girls. Zelda was speechless. Andala was furious. She punished Nabooru severely for putting the Princess's life in danger, beating her backside until the little girl was red in the face with tears and screaming. That was the way Gerudo disciplined their children. Zelda didn't see it, but she heard.
Nabooru walked stiffly around the edge of the Fortress, whimpering to herself. Zelda had followed her and now confronted her. She healed Nabooru there, and the pain left her body. That healing, the spiritual joining that took place for the healing process to happen, was the beginning of their sisterhood.
The stay lasted a few days. The King agreed to tell the farmers to recede from Gerudo land. Andala knew that he'd take a hit in popularity with the decision, but it was the right thing to do. The Hylian King now had the hard-to-earn respect of the Gerudo.
Before she left, Zelda completed a blood pact with Nabooru. The girls slit their palms, and mixed in their own blood in the tradition of the Gerudo. Now and forever, they would be sisters, in heart, and in blood.
********
Nabooru broke the embrace now and looked at the slightly shorter girl. "My.." she breathed. "You're gorgeous. The Goddesses have been very kind."
Zelda blushed, a rarity in public. "That's fine, but you're not bad either. I'm sure the Elven boys are all over you."
Nabooru scoffed. "Like I'd let them near me. I find them too spindly if you ask me." She glanced over at the boy in the bed. "Except for him. He's something else…"
Zelda turned towards Link, then back at the Gerudo. "He's been blessed by the Triforce of Courage."
Nabooru smiled at her. "So?" she stated. "That doesn't explain what I saw today. Has anybody seen him train? Has anybody met his trainer?"
Zelda frowned. "He's kept us in the dark about that. I've asked Malon…she doesn't know. She said that sometimes Link would just wake up, and go to try some new technique. Malon said that when they were growing up, sometimes he'd get stronger overnight."
"Malon said that?" a voice groaned weakly. "She's even more intuitive than I imagined." The girls turned quickly and saw Link leaning up in his bed, a strained smile on his face.
"Link!" Zelda exclaimed. She went to his side and pushed him back on to his bed. " How are you feeling?"
Link smiled again. "In a word?" he started. "…..ow."
*********
The next day he was feeling a lot better. Around 60% he'd say. Zelda had gone all out trying to heal him, but he was still bed-ridden. Malon came in the morning to visit. She asked about is health.
Link shook his head. "Do you know why I zonked out there?" he asked her. "It wasn't because I lost too much blood , or because I took too many hits." He sighed. "It's because I was out of my mind in pain. When that…ghanim … got shot, everything flooded back into me, and it just blasted my mind shut. Before that, I felt nothing, not a damn thing.….."
Malon gazed down and brushed the hair back from his face. "Link…why is that?"
Link sighed again. "Just something I picked up." Malon was about to ask what that meant, when the boy looked out the window, looking extremely depressed. "Anyway, it was all for nothing, I couldn't find the Fire Key. I got myself beat up for nothing."
Malon smiled. "Not necessarily." She stated. From the pocket in her pant, she pulled out a red orb. It's light immediately permeated the room. Link stared at it in awe.
"Where…."
"Nabooru found it a few inches from where that…guy…was shot. She thought she saw something fall out from his robes."
The pained elf grinned and accepted the Orb. It flared once in his hand, then died to a small flicker of red light.
"Who was that guy anyway?" Malon asked.
Link shrugged, regretting it immediately when a wave of pain overtook him. "Ah…who knows? He said he was a ghanim …and whatever that is, there are more of them out there. He's the first, so hopefully he's their most powerful" He looked at Malon in the eye. "I wasn't a match for him….not even close."
"So…what are we going to do?"
"What else?" Link regarded the Fire Key carefully. "We get the Master Sword, then we kill him."
With that, he placed the orb on the counter to his bedside. "Or die trying." He finished the thought solemnly.
THE END of TRIAL OF KEYS. NEXT VOLUME: EVIL'S BANE.
Next: Revelations about Link, including his anger spells, and where he learned to battle. Plus…The Master Sword, and the hunt for the ghanims. It all begins in the next volume of this saga, Evil's Bane!. Hope you enjoyed it. See ya. (o'.')o