The Life and Adventures of Sheik
Chapter 3: Phoenix Burning
Disclaimer: Again, Nintendo everything Zelda, aside from my own character introduced in this chapter, Tyk!
As I lay there crying, the Sheikah were out there dying. They were sacrificing everything in order that Kakariko and I would go on living. It is for them the memorial stands, and it is for them I became who I am now.
The battle was waging on. That is, if it could be considered a battle. To Impa, it felt more like holding of a mob of brainless zombies. That too, of course, wasn't far from the truth either.
A few meters away from Impa, Tyk know they were fighting a losing battle. She was leader of the Order Guard assigned to the Death mountain region, and as such had been one of the first to arrive. One of the first to witness the horrid mass of brown groaning spectres in flesh, and knew that it would take all of her Sheikah experience and skills to hold it off. But the two dozen or so Sheikah who had come to Kakariko's aid were simply not enough, and by the second they were losing more and more ground as little by little the Sheikah protectors fell. Tyk glanced over at Impa for a second and their gazes met, their expressions enough to portray the depth of hopelessness that the two old friends both felt.
There must be more I can do! Impa screamed to herself as she flung her last dart through the neck of yet another nameless redead. The look she had just exchanged with Tyk was a clear sign that both of them knew that there was not anything more they could do, but at the same time, it had filled her with new determination. Impa had met the young Sheikah before she had even been as old as Zelda. They had become close quickly, first as master and pupil, and then as she grew, close friends. But that had all happened more than a decade ago. Tyk must've been around eighteen now, and Impa would not allow her to die before the prime of her life. That, and her sworn duty as Zelda's protector called for the survival of Kakariko. No matter how hopeless it was, Impa would not allow Kakariko to be consumed by the minions of darkness, whatever it took to save it, she would do.
Inside Impa's house, Zelda paced furiously. With the image of what was happening right outside the town etched into her mind, Zelda simply could not stay still. She had stopped crying too, but not by her own will. She was simply too worried about Impa and the other Sheikah to lay there weeping for her own selfish fear. She wanted to help, but she didn't know if there was anything she could do. She secretly wished she was as strong and swift as a Sheikah, maybe then she would've been able to help Link gain the spiritual stones, be with him when he opened the Door of Time and entered the Sacred Realm. Maybe if she had been a little stronger, she wouldn't have failed Hyrule…
Zelda shook her head vehemently. Now was not the time to be having doubts about what she had done. It was for Hyrule, she hadn't given up without a fight. And she certainly wasn't about to now. She kept that sense of pride as she walked towards the door.
Out in front of the pathway leading up to Kakariko, a feeling of ending was heavy in the air. The redead mob had been whittled down to a few dozen, but the Sheikah has less than ten. These, including Impa and Tyk, had formed a line in front of the steps and were more or less lined up a couple of feet away, ready to charge…as best a redead could charge, anyway. It was the final showdown. Impa and Tyk, side by side, gave each other wan looks. No more darts, no more magic, it was a simple matter of taking out the remaining redeads with their bare hands. It seemed they stood a chance. At that moment, Tyk felt a massive surge of pride for her guild. The Sheikah had always been protectors of the Royal Family. But with the palace incinerated and darkness flowing over the world, it was nice to see they could still do their job as guardians. Tyk couldn't help but smile. She turned and looked around at the wearied faces of her comrades. "Come on, let's do it for the Sheikah! We won't be taken off the face of this world by a bunch of mindless zombies!" A few scattered laughs echoed in the depth of the moment. They all turned to face the remaining redeads, and took the initiative to charge.
Zelda watched the moment from the top of the stairs. She knew Impa would be upset with her if she knew she left the house, but she just couldn't stand being locked up in there, worrying about Impa every second. Since Impa had been the only one without a ritual head covering, she had been easy enough to pick out from the remaining Sheikah. Zelda was glad to see she was still all right, but the gory scene beyond them with the corpses of both redeads and Sheikah tempered her spirit somewhat. The Sheikah had sacrificed nearly everything for Kakariko and her and she determined to repay them someday for their heroic act. One of the Sheikah spoke out, "Come on, let's do it for the Sheikah!" Zelda smiled softly to herself. She was glad that they had no resentment. Then Zelda watched as the seven remaining Sheikah charged towards the thirty-odd redeads that remained, and knew it would soon be over.
Sheikah clashed with redeads in a vicious dance of kicks, punches, and screams. With their renewed sense of purpose, the seven Sheikah were taking down redeads quickly and efficiently. Seven, twelve, eighteen fell in unity from Sheikah blows. A redead grabbed Impa's arm, only to lose its own arm by a well-executed chop from Tyk. Impa smiled at her. "It is nice to see we will actually have time to catch up after this." Tyk smiled back. "I agree, Impa…it has been a long time…look out!" Impa spun to see a redead leap at her. Using its momentum, Impa pressed her hands against it and flung it over her into a group of redeads behind her. "Thanks." Impa grinned, a sense of relief flooding over her. Looking around, she saw that what redeads that remained had been disposed of. They had won. But also looking around, she saw that the price of their victory had been very high. Out of the many Sheikah that had been able to show up, only seven of them remained. She frowned to herself, and Tyk laid a hand on her shoulder, "I know what you're thinking Impa. We have had a great loss today. But don't forget we also had a great victory. The Sheikah are guardians, we all know what we sacrifice our lives in order to protect the lives of others. It is what we live for. Never forget that." Relenting to Tyk's comforting words, she turned and gave her old friend a slim smile, "Well now, it seems the student has become the teacher…" "It could never compare to what you've taught me. But in any case, we owe our comrades enough to be properly buried and hold a memorial service. Let's get that done, and then we'll have some time to chat."
So, with that said, and the battle to save Kakariko won, the two Sheikah began the preparations to put to rest their shattered comrades who had died that the remnants of the Hylian people would live on. But the burning in Impa's heart told her that life would never be the same again, and it was right.
