CHAPTER 5
The Epic Battle
After returning to the surface of the world of Holodrum, Paul whipped out a long, narrow flute and began to play. In a matter of no time, a red lizard-like animal approached.
"What's up, Pauly?" said Dimitri, "Ya need a lift?"
"About four lifts, buddy." Paul told her.
"Okie dokie, hop on."
Atop Dimitri's back, they charged off to the Samasa Desert, where the gate back to the Dimensional Temple was.
Once through the portal, they walked carefully up the glass steps and down the glass pathway to the temple.
They were stopped at the door by Jeremy, a very welcome sight indeed.
"Welcome back." he said, in what Mark thought was a cold manner. "Did you complete your task?"
"No," Mark said, "They key was taken from us."
Jeremy's eyes seemed to light up at this. "Really? Hmm… Ah, here's my messenger!" he said as they heard the sound of wings on the air.
Mark almost did a double take as Vire settled down to hover next to Jeremy.
"Did you get it?" Jeremy asked.
"Yes, my master." Vire snarled, and it spat out the glowing Key of Evil.
"Yessss!" Jeremy cried. "Finally, the dark powers can rise again!"
"Jeremy, what the hell are you talking about?" Paul cried in alarm.
"Oh, my name isn't Jeremy." the man hissed in a snake-like voice. "This is merely a mask… for centuries I've waited to be able to revive Veran… but do you know who I am?" The silence gave a definite negative answer.
"I AM ONOX, KING OF DARKNESS!" As he said this, his body began to lose form and become fog, and in that fog, his eyes started to glow bright red. Then the fog swirled and took a new form, and in a blast of lightning, the King of Darkness himself stood before them, his mace in his hand and his golden armor shining in the moonlight.
"Holy fuck!" Mark cried. "No way!"
"Yes way!" Onox boomed with a grin. "My wife and I were imprisoned in the Tower of Hell for so many centuries… the only thing that could free us…" he took the Key and held it like a child, "Was this key. And now, it is time to unlock the tower!"
"W-w-where is this tower?" Marin stammered.
With an evil glitter in his eye, Onox gestured upward. Mark looked up and saw that above the Temple rose a gigantic tower, straight into the sky.
"No…" Nayru whispered, "That's not the Towr of Hell! You LIE!"
With a gesture of dismissal, Onox aprubtly turned and flung his mace into the stone wall, where an odd, triangular drawing was sketched. The rocks broke away to reveal a massive keyhole. As the group watched in terror, Onox inserted the key into the hole and gave it a sharp turn.
Flames and wind immediately flew everywhere as the ground began to shake and the glass floor beneath them shattered.
Holding onto Nayru, Mark screamed as they fell four hundred feet into Hylia Ocean. The skies above Hyrule were now dark and stormy, with lightning and thunder resounding every few seconds.
The ocean was freezing, and as they had already gone through great trauma, this would surely be the end of them. And then, just when Mark felt his lungs begin to fill, he heard a chirping noise behind him, and then a dolphin picked him up from underneath and began ferrying him across the lake.
"Grab a dolphin everyone!" he shouted. Soon, all four of them were deposited safely on the shore.
A lightning bolt struck the ground, and Onox reappeared in front of them.
"Many thanks for allowing me to get the key!" he rumbled. "Now allow me to present my wife, Veran, Queen of Darkness!"
Another lightning bolt hig the ground, and in a cloud of smoke, a tall, green-skinned woman was stadning there, a look of utmost hatred upon her face.
"Now our powers are combined, and we shall rule the world!" she said, as if she had been in the conversation all along. "We will start by disposing of you!"
With a twitch of her finger, lighting shot forth towards Mark, Paul, Nayru, and Marin.
"Get back!" Mark cried, pushing Nayru out of the way. The lightning struck him full force, and he collapsed dead on the ground.
"Ah, ha, ha, ha!" Veran laughed. "What a foolish boy!"
"Mark!!!" Nayru cried, dropping to her knees, shoving the body, "Wake up! Get up, Mark!" There was no response.
"You didn't…" she growled at Veran, staring up at the sorceress. "You did NOT just kill him!" A dull blue glow began to surround Nayru, and as her anger grew stronger, so did the light. Finally, in a blast of smoke, Nayru transformed herself into a huge dragon.
"Let's go, bitch." she hissed.
"Ok, I can play the transform game." In another burst of light, Veran became a giant, winged demon.
"I'll handle her." Nayru hissed to the others. "You two take care of Onox."
"Roger." said Paul.
Nayru redirected her attention back to Veran. "It's time for you to die."
"We'll see."
A great and terrible battle began. Nayru charged the sorceress, but Veran easily dodged, then countered with a huge blast of fire. Nayru created a shield to block it, then fired lasers out of her eyes. And so the battle went on and on, and it looked as if Nayru would not be able to beat Veran.
As she dodged blow after blow, Nayru tried to think of another attack method. Then she thought of Mark, her hero, her knight in shining armor, the one she loved… and now he was dead, all because of Veran… but she loved him so much…
As warm feelings filled her heart, Nayru opened her mouth wide and a bright white blast shot forth, engulfing Veran with the feeling that would destroy her… love.
As Veran vanished, Nayru shrank back to her normal self, and ran to Mark's side again.
"Just remember how much I love you, Mark." she said through her tears. "And wherever you are, in that better place, please don't forget me."
Onox sat on his throne, waiting for Veran to return from destroying Nayru the dragon. He didn't notice, however, the two figures that crept up behind him.
"What's the plan again?" Marin asked.
"If we take the key, he'll transform back to normal," Paul said, looking around. "Then we just kill him like we kill a man."
Paul finally saw the key, shining on a high pedestal.
"I'll distract Onox, you get the key." Paul whispered.
"Got it."
"Hey fat boy!" Paul shouted, jumping out from behind the throne, "Look who snuck in here!"
Not surprised at all, Onox looked up and smiled. "I am looking. It's the same person who dies now!" Paul was able to duck just as the mace came sailing towards him.
While Paul and Onox fought, Marin stole quietly around the room towards the pedestal.
"Gar har har… where do you think you're going?" Vire cackled, swooping down behind her.
"Enough of your shit for one day." Marin growled, elbowing the demon sharply in the face. Then she bolted up the stairs and snatched the key.
"Gack!" Onox gasped, dropping his mace, "Who has taken my key? I… I'm returning to that awful man… nooooo!"
As both the King and Queen of darkness had lost their powers, the tower began to crumble around Marin and Paul. As columns collapsed and pillars fell, Paul grabbed Marin and, dragging Jeremy behind him, jumped out the window. About forty feet to the ground they were rescued by a large, furry animal with wings.
"Great timing, Moosh." Paul said, scratching behind the bear's ears.
"It was nothing." Moosh said as he carried Paul and Marin to safety.
Nayru had watched the tower crumble, and she had already felt her will to live crumble. For once, she had found happiness, and now it was gone. Tears flowing openly from her eyes, she gave Mark one last kiss…
It felt as though an electrical current was surging through the body of that Brooklynite… he began to shake and gasp… the power of the Kiss of True Love had revived him!
"Whoo…" he choked, sitting up. Then he saw Nayru beside him, her face glowing. They kissed for all the joy in the world.
"Hey you guys!" Marin called, running over to them. "Hey! He's alive!"
"I guess I am." Mark said with a grin. "Love indeed is the strongest force on earth."
Nayru smiled.
"Hey hang on a second…" Paul said. "If that temple was holding Veran, what about the Elder? Was he killed?"
"From the looks of it, no." said an aged voice to their right. They looked to see the Elder climbing slowly over the rubble towards them. "I go out to get the evening paper, and I come back to find the temple in ruins! Imagine that…"
They burst out laughing.