AN: I want to thank everyone who has reviewed, especially Cassidy Dell, who is the amazing author of 'Of Myths and Legends'. Go read it! I'm giving a bigger update than usual, because the ends of the first two chapters aren't as good of cliffhangers as the third one, so I just decided to give them to ya all! And I'm 'roughly' finished with this story as of yesterday! Last couple of chaps needs some fine tuning, and I have to add one more part…but the battle is done and everything has come to its fated end! *evil laughter*.
Chapter Nine: When the Time Comes
Link was knelt in prayer, something he seldom did. By this time in three days Hyrule could possibly be overcome by a second darkness, if he failed. The consequences of good and evil were always death, weren't they? He was prepared to die though; he had a year to prepare for this. But even time didn't help.
Even if he thought better of his plan, to sacrifice himself instead of Loraefin, there was no time to call her here. And even if the Goddesses themselves stood in front of him, and commanded him to draw his sword on her, Link did not believe he could do it. There was only one option for him now.
The pain in his heart ached; the fear in his mind grew. Was the choice he made correct? Was listening to a Sheikah Sending futile, over the will of the future? Vividly Link remembered the scored and broken buildings of the Market, the death and destruction. People he loved had died, even in that time, he had perished too…tomorrow was a chance to save them. Tomorrow he would rewrite the future.
The entire forest was on edge with a terrible anxiety. The Deku Sprout had summoned Link some time ago, but for all his power he was still to weak to penetrate much beyond the borders of the wood, and Link would not speak a word on the subject. Link packed and made ready for what might be his final battle.
His Shield, magic draughts, his bow and a quiver full of arrows, anything that he might need, for this battle would be hard won indeed. If won at all. Navi had been pestering him for weeks, sensing his unease and offended that he did not confide in her, as he once did. But Link could not tell her either. Even now, as she entered his home, finding him preparing for battle, he could not tell her. Her faery glow lit up with rage as she rushed to him.
"What is all this?!" She demanded, flying dangerously close to his eyes. "Where do you think you're going? And you were going to go without me, weren't you?" Her faery voice was hurt and wounded as she alighted on one of the bottles strewn over the table. Link glanced at her, but could not hold eye contact for more than a few moments.
"Please, don't do this Navi," he asked, mechanically packing a bag and inspecting weapons. He walked over, grabbed a clean rag off the shelf, and stuffed it into a pouch.
"Oh, you bet I will! You've been acting weird for months and you won't tell me what's wrong! How is that supposed to make me feel?" Oh, she was angry, Link had not realized how much. His face softened and he kneeled down next to the table so that he might be eye to eye with her. Her glow lessened, diminished, so that she was no more than a small, pale figure with crystalline gossamer wings sitting on an empty bottle. For the first time Link could see that she was crying.
"Navi," he said softly, keeping his gaze calm and assuring, "I trust you with my life, you know that, but this task is for me alone. You can't come, do you understand?"
"So you're going to leave me like some faithful hound hmm?" She snapped. "I thought we were partners, I thought we were friends!"
"You are my friend, Navi, my dearest friend, but there are some things that I can't tell you. Please, understand." Link's voice was almost begging before he realized it.
"Can't or won't?" Navi retorted her light now ablaze again.
"Can't," Link said firmly and rose. "Now we'll drop this, okay?" He went back to packing, turning his back to her. There was a long silence, but Link could not bring himself to face her again.
"I hate you Link!" Navi shouted in anger and flew from his house, not meaning the words, but too bitter with fury to realize the hurt of them. Link flinched, and went back to his mechanical stuffing.
When everything was packed and secured Link sat down on his kitchen chair and sighed, then got up again and walked out onto the balcony. He looked up and around, hoping to see that Navi had not flown far, but she was nowhere to be seen.
"Ah, damn it," Link muttered under his breath and stalked back inside. He should go and find her, but what could he say? He still couldn't tell her what was about to happen.
"She'll come back, I'll give her a few hours, she'll come back," Link reassured himself. Naryu, no she wouldn't! He'd hurt her, she could be gone for days! Link groaned and went upstairs to sit on his bed, which he sunk into with ease. Loneliness really hit him hard for the first time in a long while and it shook even his masculine frame.
Even though he was alone, it was hard to let himself cry, but by the gods, he wanted to cry. Nothing was simple anymore. Everything was so complicated. The last time he had cried had been in the arms of Loraefin over his own guilt for not protecting her from the rape. With his arms wrapped around her waist, Link had felt her small hands had run over his scalp and he remembered feeling her energy flowing into him. Would he ever feel her again? He had not seen her since that day…how was she fairing? Has she smiled? Has she laughed?
Naryu, he couldn't think of that now, what he needed to concentrate on was the coming battle at hand. This would either be his last battle or his greatest one and for the first time Link was unsure which the outcome would truly be. He only knew at that moment he would have to face this combat without the one thing he trusted and depended on the most… Navi.