I would
like to take this time to thank all the people who have reviewed this story so
far -- it keeps me going encourages me to be a little more bold with the plot.
What I have written so far is far more complex than I originally intended, but
as this story progresses I hope to continue capturing your interests. I might be
a little rushed in making new chapters this week since I'm leaving for South
Carolina for the Youth Sports Festival on Saturday, and then practically right
after I'm leaving for a vacation at the beach with my family. I have no idea how
much longer this story will continue, since the idea after idea is pouring out
of my head like a faucet! (:
Chapter
10
"Someone Else's Memories"
A small-framed figured clothed in white silk quietly slipped from her
chambers into the empty dark corridor. Softly closing the door with a muffled
click, she disappeared down the hall with the grace rivaling a feline.
Her golden hair glittered in the cold moonlight as she entered the Courtyard not
even rustling the brittle leaves beneath her feet. Her frosty breath fumed into
the clear air, dissipating as soon as it rose above her head.
The Cold had taken all of the surrounding areas of Hyrule, and was slowly
eating the remaining edges of the once-proud Hyrule Field. The castle was the
only fortress against the Cold, but everyone knew deep down in their hearts that
it would fall to its wrath. The people taking refuge within the castle walls
spent their days in a miserable silence that comes around when one knows
instinctively that the end was near. Even the youngest of the children dared not
to cry and break the heavy gloom that hung over the defeated people of Hyrule.
People that find themselves
within such situations often tend to blame someone for their unhappiness, no
matter whether the person's actions had caused their situation or not. In this
case, the people of Hyrule leveled their unyielding fingers at Princess Zelda,
publicly ranting that their miserableness was caused by her actions. They had
long since ceased whispering their blaming among themselves, with their
impatientness growing dramatically as the Cold drew nearer and nearer to their
fragile stronghold.
Their blaming and anger aimed toward the young Princess of Hyrule
smothered her with such stress that she almost found herself unable to breathe.
It had been more than one night that Impa has found the Royal Heir sobbing
herself to an unrestful sleep. Having taken care of the Princess since she was an infant, Impa was more
protective of Zelda than a mother to their child. Her anger boiled inside her,
threatening to erupt every time she spied a commoner speaking cruelly of the
young Princess. More times than once Impa came to Zelda's defense, and often
fight would break out within the Courtyard, but no matter how many challenged
Impa, the Sheikah always came out triumphant.
Zelda was grateful for Impa's loyalty to her, for many of her close
friends had abandoned her in these times. Ever since Ruto had arrived with the
remaining Zora's, more disputes had broken out about living space.
Discrimination leaked from every wall and room throughout the castle, and the
air was almost always poisoned with cries of anger between the people and the
Zora's. The survivors of Hyrule did not welcome the Zora's the least bit, and no
other hospitality aside from the castle servants was given to them. This angered
the Zora's greatly, and they demanded for equal rights, making the burden upon
Zelda's shoulders more crushing and suffocating than
before.
She had escaped that night to her favorite sanctuary, the Courtyard -- a
sweet smelling place in the middle of the castle where beautiful flowers grew
and filled the air around them with their sweet scent. Zelda was often found
here on summer days, enjoying just having the warm golden sun on her face as
apposed to wandering the cold lonely corridors of Hyrule Castle. The Courtyard
was filled with many memories as well, for this was the place where Zelda had
first met Link.
Oh, Link-kun... Zelda's heart cried out for him, wherever he was.
The fact of his disappearance always tugged at the back of her weary mind,
refusing to leave or ever cease. She worried about him more than anything else,
and her heart had broken from not being able to see him, to touch his face, to
hug him and never let go...
She had finally admitted to herself that she truly did love this
mysterious boy, and her heart was tortured cruelly for not having told him. Her
love for him had no origin, and recently she had realized that she had loved him
the very moment her eyes had laid upon him for the first time. Her love had no
reason, but it seemed natural for it to be invested in him, however strange it
was. She didn't care that he was a peasant, that thought hadn't even crossed her
mind; her love for him made him a prince in her eyes.
Now he was gone, without so
much as a trace. Perhaps he was dead; perhaps he was alive, Zelda could not
tell. As she walked through the dead flowers and trees of the Courtyard, which
were killed with a bitter death of being covering by a smothering frost, tears
threatened to pour from her glistening eyes and fall to the ground below. When
the dam finally broke, the tears spilled over, but were frozen to her rosy
cheeks only halfway to their goal to reach the ground
below.
Zelda whipped the icy tears with a stroke of her white sleeve, and gave a
shiver. The Cold could strike at any day now, but it seemed to take pleasure in
toying with their fears, and taunted them ruthlessly, breaking the survivors
will to continue living. In fact, many of the people living in refuge in the
castle begged for death, for it would be an easy way of escaping the hell their
world had become.
Zelda remembered with a shudder of the man who had committed suicide only
two days ago, plunging a dagger into his beating heart. His will had been
shattered completely by the loss of his two sons and beloved wife, and, unable
to go on, he ended his misery in a swift stroke of a knife. A thread among
millions upon billions of others, woven together to form the patterns of life
and time itself, faded into nothing as yet another defeated soul brought death
upon themselves.
Though it made no sense whatsoever, Zelda blamed herself for the man's
actions. The anger that was being taken out on her had taken its toll on her
tired heart mind, causing her to always blame herself for anything.
Shivering with cold, Zelda kneeled down in the dead, stiff grass, and
craned her neck upward for a glance at the sky. To her surprised it was a clear
night, something that had not been seen since the Cold had begun its wrath upon
their lives and world. She stared, breathless at the stunning starred sky,
twinkling with white, blue, red, purple and light green. For a long moment she
sat there, taking in the gorgeous sight of nature at its
best.
She forgot about the cold that hung heavily in the air around her, and
the shivering ceased, leaving behind a calm that she had not felt for what
seemed like forever. The burden was lifted from her shoulders by a heavenly
hand, leaving her at peace with herself as she continued watching the stars
perform for the people of Hyrule with their twinkling light. All of her problems
and anxieties melted away, lifting her hopes and her crushed spirit to a height
much higher than the last few days had been.
Every concern she had since the day the Cold had struck seemed shrink
further and further away in the distance within her eased consciousness, and for
a moment Zelda finally found herself like Link -- care-free and released from
the bonds of royalty.
She had no idea how long she was there, looking at the sky as if in a
trance, as her breath puffed mist into the chilly night air. The stars were so
beautiful, filling the sky with their tranquility. To her delight, a single
bright shooting star raced through the sky from one horizon to the other,
disappearing as mysteriously as it had appeared.
She closed her eyes, and made a single wish. Such silly actions had never
been done by her, for she thought it was foolish to put your hopes in something
as brief as a shooting star. But she didn't care at this moment, especially that
moment of such peace with herself and emotions. Slowly, her eyes opened to
reveal the beautiful sky still present above her. She sighed aloud, scolding her
petty action of wishing upon a star.
What I fool I am, putting my hopes into such a thing, Zelda
bitterly thought to herself, I needn't any- "Ahh!!"
Zelda was thrown to the side from a sudden violent lurch from the ground
below her. She failed her arms and legs to pull herself up again, but her gown
was too entangled in a scraggly bush to allow her to do so.
The ground lurched again, causing her to become more entangled in the
bush. With a tug and a loud "Riip!" she became free and fled from the Courtyard.
Once inside the castle, the ground leaped again, and continued its fierce
rumbling, never ceasing.
Zelda ran as best she could down the crumbling halls of the Hyrule
Castle, often stumbling and falling. She could hear the terrified cries and
scream of the people outside and within the castle as debris rained down upon
them, crushing many and injuring others.
"Impa! Malon! Ruto!" she cried desperately.
"Otousan!!"
Her cries and yells were swallowed by the ripping noise the earth was
creating as it pulled the stone castle walls apart. The falling rock and stone
from the ceilings and walls blocked off the only passages to the outside slowing
Zelda's escape from the castle. Her instincts screamed to be outside, for
staying inside the castle would certainly be her doom. Debris fell from the
ceiling, coming dangerously close to crushing the Princess with their heavy
weight. Again she called out for her father and friends, her cries barely
echoing off the shattering walls.
"Impa!! Malon! Ruto!! Otou- AHH!!" Zelda clutched her head in her hands
and collapsed to her knees as the world fell down around her. It felt as if a
knife had sliced into her mind and had twisted over and over again, the shear
pain nearly knocked her unconscious. Suddenly, the visions came at full
force...
FLASH!!
Ganondorf towered above a fallen figure, laughing cruelly as the man
cough blood off to the side. Struggling and fighting the pain from his many
wounds, the young man pulled himself and raised his sword against the King of
Evil with a look of defiance in his eyes so pure that Ganondorf slightly
hesitated his next attack.
FLASH!!
Hyrule Lake stretched before Zelda, with the morning sun shining off its
glassy surface. A blond-haired young man stood before her with his back turned,
staring at the beautiful clear lake. She felt she had known him for
ages...
FLASH!!
A circle of flames!! A huge beast roared, waving two sharp swords half
its immense height. Its bulky muscles rippling through its skin as is swung one
sword in a single arc towards a lone warrior, who stood bravely before him with
a Hylian Shield in one hand and a sword in the other.
FLASH!!
A green forest, with sun shining through its numerous trees! She stood in
a single clearing alone. She watched as a figure ran into the clearing through
an entrance on one side.
FLASH!!
Molten red lava bubbled beneath them, yes, them, for the same man stood a
little distance in front of her with an blue ocarina to his lips. His eyes were
closed as he played a tune with her. His blond hair hung in his face slightly;
his skin smooth skin glistened with sweat from the heat that radiated around
them...
FLASH!!
She was held inside a crystal, completely helpless. Outside two people
battled fiercely with clanging swords and burning magic spells. Explosions and
cries of pain echoed through her prison, sending chills down her spine.
FLASH!!
The world tumbled down around her as she fell to the ground, screaming
and holding her hands between her hands as memories of events she never lived
poured into her mind. Not to far away, Impa saw the Princess in peril and raced to save her, dodging
falling pillars and beams from the crumbling castle, trying to reach her without
concern for her own safety...
Outside, witnesses watched as the castle fell from its proud foundations,
and tumbled to the ground, raising a dust cloud that didn't settle until the
late hours of the morning.
~End of
Chapter 10