Disclaimer: Not mine. You should know that by now. In fact, reader, I'm disgusted at you.

*whispers*

However, my muse/lawyer has reminded me that Mr. Miyamoto doesn't know that yet, so never mind.

*

Within the heart there is an answer

Not all is lost yet

Light and salvation come

There is only one last threat.

He comes to you in dreams

His minions in your sleep

You have the light to drive away

A sword to bury deep.

But if darkness—

If darkness whispers to you

And steals the light from within

All is lost—

If darkness.

*

"She's what? Meep!"

            "She practices dark magic," Zyuiu told Shiek. "I am loyal to you, Shiek. I will drive away whatever darkness plagues you. If I do—maybe there will be time to save Ymota U."

*

Shiek stared at her schedule, cursing the luck. Her first fight was against Prince André. She wasn't entirely sure having extreme multiple personality disorder would save her from André's sword. She could heal herself in half an instant, but Zelda had not been fast enough to escape Damion—would Zelda cut it in the Tourney? Had she overestimated her skills?
            Shiek's worryings were cut short by knockings on the doors. Rhia and Lindsay stepped in. "Who're you fighting first?" Rhia asked.

            "Prince André," Shiek sighed. "How about you guys?"

            "Rowrun," Lindsay said with a grin. "Rhia hasn't told me hers yet, she wanted to wait for you."

            "Yeah? Who is it?"

            Rhia sighed and glanced at her schedule. "Ymota U," she said. "I'm fighting Ymota U first."

            Shiek's mouth fell open. "Rhia, she's practicing magic," Shiek said. "Zyuiu told me."

            Rhia looked at her fingertips. "The worst that'll happen, really, is that I'll turn her into a chicken and she'll kill me," Rhia shuddered. "Ugh! Death by chicken! How embarrassing!" Rhia looked at Shiek and Lindsay, who were looking doubtful. "Remember, I am an archseer. Maybe I have ADD…I bet that's the problem…but I can take care of it, guys, plus I'm a good fighter anyway."

            "If you say so," Lindsay said. She grinned suddenly. "Seriously, Rhizzy, I have faith in you. Hylian Fried Chicken…yummy…"

*

Link stared into the slowly rising sun. He was scheduled to fight Roy first. But that was the last thing on his mind. He was thinking of Ymota U, Zelda, Shiek, Damion…none of it added up when he thought about long enough. But it was like being taught that 2+2=5, knowing it's wrong but not knowing why. Link jumped when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He whirled around and Fyre stood there. Fyre was still shorter than Link, but otherwise, a near-mirror image of the Hero of Time. Link suddenly felt ashamed of himself—he had been at the Tourney for over a week and hadn't made contact with his brother! But Fyre didn't seem to want to yell at Link.

            "Something's wrong," Fyre said softly. "In your eyes."

            Link didn't answer right away. "In my eyes?" he said finally. "What kind of greeting is that."

            Fyre shrugged. "A greeting from a brother who hasn't seen you in years," he said. Another shrug. "Remember, I left because I hated you."

            "Gee."

            "That's faded," Fyre said. "I don't miss you, though."

            "All right, Fyre, what are trying to get at?" Link snorted. "Always playing the eloquent young man when you want something. Don't think I haven't forgotten that."

            Fyre shrugged again, a half a grin on his face. "I heard about Princess Zelda," he said, the grin fading. "I'm sorry, Link."

            "You've heard about Zelda and you ask what's wrong," Link said. "You were always the weird one."

            "It doesn't make sense, does it," Fyre said. "Shiek leaving with Zelda's body. Leaving it would have left a stronger message. And then Shiek coming here, to the Tourney—why didn't she go to whoever hired her?"

            "What are you getting at?"

            Fyre shrugged. Link remembered the days when a shrug had been his best answer. Then he'd become the Hero of Time…but that's another story. Fyre said, "Link, you sit here dreaming with your eyes wide shut. Open your eyes and see something. I don't care what you see—See Shiek as not a murderer but only your opponent. See me, not your brother but your opponent. See something, Link!"

            Link stared at Fyre, confused. Fyre stared defiantly—or was the confidence in his eyes?—at Link, and then turned and was gone. Link turned slowly back to the rising sun, more confused that before Fyre had come. Why was everything in his life going wrong?

*

The good luck wishes, the confident assurances, the hugs all resonated in Shiek's mind as she stepped into the dusty arena. Prince André of Odnetnin was coming out of his entrance on the other side of the arena. Shiek gripped her whip and fingered several needle-sharp darts. The words of her spell echoed in her mind and haunted her tongue.

            Master Hand, as the head of the Tourney called himself, cleared his throat from wherever he spoke. "Prince André of Odnetnin versus Shiek of the Shiekah. Let the fight begin!" It was an open fight, and the crowd roared. This was the first fight of the Tourney.

            Though André could not see the grin on Shiek's face, he sensed it, and wondered just what she had to be so happy about. The two circled warily about for a moment. Then, André raised his sword and swung out at Shiek. She easily dodged the swing and flipped away, slinging a few darts at the weak spots of André's armor as she went. André merely grunted in pain. Shiek danced a bit closer, and snapped out her whip. It lashed around André's sword. Shiek pulled back on the whip, fully expecting the sword to be jerked out of André's hand. She remembered belatedly that André held the Sword of Power.

"Oh, shit!"

            A bluish light surrounded the sword briefly, then it turned into a three-balled bolas. The whip became entangled in the bolas. Shiek jerked at the whip, but the harder she tugged, the more entangled the lightning whip became. André grinned and pulled hard on the handle of the bolas. The whip flew from Shiek's hands and into the dust at the edge of the arena. Shiek cursed heavily. She flung several more darts at André, then broke into a run for her whip. Shiek did not watch as the bolas turned into a long spear. André hurled the spear and it landed right in front of Shiek's feet. Shiek skidded to a stop and whirled around. She didn't even try to take the spear out of the sand—she didn't know how to work it. "That was mean," Shiek snapped. The energy lulled a bit as Shiek slowly made her way towards her whip and André pulled what was now again a sword out of the sand. Shiek picked up her whip and listened, satisfied, as it crackled into life.

            Shiek took a few running steps and then high-kicked André, hitting him in the chest. Even as her leg was still in the air, Shiek let loose her whip. It wrapped around the front of André's shoulders, shocking him. Shiek watched, slack-jawed, as the sword turned into a lightning whip like hers and wrapped around her whip. The crackle of electricity raced up Shiek's whip and she dropped it as it began to shock her. André was pointing the Sword of Power at her even before it was fully a sword again. "Looks like I win," André said, half an apologetic smile on his face.

            "We'll see about that," Shiek said, taking a step back. Small white lights suddenly surrounded her. André lowered the sword a bit, wondering what was going on. His mouth fell open and his eyes went wide—then Zelda punched him. She let out a fly kick, catching André's cheek with her high-heeled shoe.

            "What the f—" André began, and then a fireball exploded in his face. He swung out with his sword at Zelda—and then she wasn't there. He felt a tap on his shoulder and then was kicked in the back. He saw through smoky eyes as Zelda went for the Sword of Power. André rose slowly, the Sword of Power pointed at him, then touching his chest. The white lights surrounded Zelda and then she was Shiek again. "What say I've won?" Shiek said.

            "I…" André shrugged. "I guess you won."

            The voice of Master Hand suddenly blared out: "Shiek of the Shiekah has defeated Prince André of Odnetnin!"

            As Shiek handed the Sword of Power back to André, she was suddenly aware of the roar of the crowd. They had been a continuous roar throughout the fight—most of them were used to the Sword of Power. But when Shiek became Zelda, the crowd had gone deathly silent, and then began to cheer wildly. Shiek whipped off her mask so the spectators could see the grin of her face. Soon, Lindsay and Rhia came out, hugging Shiek and congratulating her. Zyuiu hung back at the entrance of the arena, hesitant. Shiek beckoned her over. "If this is what winning the first fight is like, what's it like to win the Tourney?"

            Zyuiu shrugged. "Ymota U won twice," she said. "I never did." She smiled. "Congratulations, Shiek."

            There were two people who had not come to Shiek's fight…Link, and Ymota U.

*

"So are you gonna think you're hot stuff just because Shiek beat André?"

            Lindsay snorted. She was in the arena, in her first fight—against Rowrun. "I know I'm hot stuff," she said. "The question is, do you?"

            The two circled warily around. Rowrun kept talking. Lindsay would answer shortly, knowing the games Rowrun played. "So, Flames, I bet Ms. I-Can-Turn-People-Into-Chickens-Because-I'm-An-Archseer told you about the Sword of Power and the rest, right? Know which one yours is?"

            "No," Lindsay grinned, her eyes on Rowrun's sword. Zyuiu had told her that Rowrun, while lacking skills in archery, was an absolute master swordsman. "Guess we'll find out, huh?"

            Rowrun made the first move. It was an open fight and an epic sword battle. The two danced about, sparks flying as metal clashed against metal—and every time Rowrun made eye contact with Lindsay. Rowrun tried to stab Lindsay in the arm. Lindsay twisted around but caught the full brunt of the stab deep in her back. Still clutching her sword, Lindsay fell down. Rowrun dropped his sword. "No!" he said. Lindsay struggled up so she was on her knees. Please, heal me, somebody should have been her last coherent thought…Bright white lights shone around the fatal wound on Lindsay's back and then—the blood still stained her shirt and then pain still a dull ache—but the wound was gone. Lindsay rose slowly, staring at Rowrun. She grinned and whirled her sword so it caught Rowrun in the side. Blood spilled over her sword and Rowrun staggered back. Lindsay was only aware of the silence—the crowd was roaring and the wind was howling at her—but Master Hand said nothing.

            "Say I've won so I can heal him!" Lindsay howled at nothing in particular. "Say I've won, dammit!"

            "Lindsay Vinsick of Hyrule Proper has defeated Sir Rowrun of Odnetnin!" boomed a disembodied voice.

            Immediately, Lindsay was on her knees by Rowrun. Heal him, heal him, please! The little white lights covered Rowrun's wound. Like Lindsay's back, the blood was still on his clothes, and his side ached dully, but he was completely healed. Listening with a grin to the roaring of the crowd, Lindsay helped Rowrun up. "Guess I have the Sword of Healing," Lindsay said. "And a damn good thing, too, otherwise Rhia and Shiek would kill you—very slowly."

            "Heh," Rowrun said shakily. "Nice fight, Flames. Er, scary fight, but nice fight."

            As Shiek, Rhia, and Lindsay came out from one side and André on the other, Rowrun leaned over and kissed Lindsay on the cheek. Lindsay flushed scarlet. "Gives a whole new meaning to the name Flames," Rhia said cheerily. Lindsay scowled and said, "You're going to be wishing for death by chicken if I get you!"

*

Rhia stopped in the archway theat divided the sand of the arena and the stone of the corridor. A green shield seemed to cover the sky, covered everything. Ymota U already stood in the middle of the arena. "This isn't supposed to be a closed fight!" Rhia said.

            "I asked," Ymota U said. "Didn't they tell you? They sent a messenger."

            Rhia noticed bloodstains on Ymota U's hands.

            The voice of Master Hand seemed blotted, muffled through the green stuff. "Ymota U versus Rhia D'nalz. Let the fight begin!"

            The two stood their ground. Each was building up a magic shield around herself. "So tell me, Rhia," Ymota U said conversationally. "How do you plan on beating me if you can't even control your magic?"

            "Didn't they tell you?" Rhia said, mimicking Ymota U's mocking voice from before. "I'm an archseer."

            "Coulda fooled me."

            Rhia extended her hands. She hand no idea what would happen, but she could feel the immensely powerful magic build up inside her and knew it wouldn't be good for Ymota U. A blue light filled the closed arena for a moment. When it cleared, Ymota U was clutching her eyes. "My eyes! You gouged out my eyes, you little bitch!" Ymota U took her hands away from her eyes, which were still there. "Uhhh…" Rhia said. "Yeah, sure I did."

            A moment later, Ymota U snapped her head from side to side. Her vision seemed to have returned. "Oh, you think you're funny, don't you?" she snarled. "I'll show you funny!" Ymota U flung her arm out at Rhia—they were across the arena from each other—and several hundred daggers appeared from nowhere and soared towards Rhia. Rhia held out her hands, unsure of exactly what would happen. Each and every single one of the daggers turned into a chicken.

            Ymota U shrieked a curse. "What is it with you and chickens?"

            "I think one scared me when I was little, and I haven't been quite the same since," Rhia said, grinning. Ymota U waved her hand and the chickens disappeared. A ball of blue fire materialized in Ymota U's hand and she flung it. It hit Rhia in the collarbone and flung her backwards. Rhia lay stunned a moment, and Ymota U crossed over to Rhia. Ymota U took out her jousting lance to finish the Archseer off. Rhia muttered some magic words that her father, before he had gone on to walk with the sun, had told her never to say. A shockwave knocked Ymota U off her feet and shattered the green dome above them. Ymota U, still reeling from whatever Rhia had done, grabbed Rhia's leg, muttered some magic words, and the two disappeared.

            The crowd, who would wait to hear who had won, cheered excitedly as the green dome shattered, and then was absolutely silent as they saw that neither Ymota U or Rhia were there. Shiek, Lindsay, and Zyuiu pushed through the crowd and looked at the empty arena. Tears welled in Zyuiu's eyes. "Ymota U will kill her," said the blonde-haired fighter. "And Rhia won't stand a chance."

            "We have to find her!" Lindsay said, exchanging a glance with Shiek. Shiek and Lindsay began to push through the crowd, but Zyuiu stayed rooted in her spot. "Zyuiu, come on!"

            "I can't," Zyuiu said guiltily. "I have a fight in another arena in ten minutes!"

            "Then forfeit the fight!" Lindsay said.

            "If I forfeit the fight, I forfeit the Tourney," Zyuiu said.

            "Then forfeit the Tourney!" Lindsay howled.

            "Zyuiu," Shiek said. "You're Ymota U's sister. You're the one with the best chances of knowing where Ymota U went. Please, Zyuiu."

            "I think I know where she took her," Zyuiu said after a brief second's hesitation. She bit her lip, then said, "Follow me." The three pushed through the crowd, Zyuiu in front.

*

Without lifting a finger, Ymota U had tied Rhia to a tree and begun to torture her. It was mostly a beating, with some magical sapping. To a mage, especially to a wounded archseer, magical sapping had the same effect as blood-letting. "When I'm done with you," Ymota U said. "Lindsay won't be hard. Take away that sword of hers and she's got nothing. And taking away the sword won't be too hard. She can't wear it when she sleeps, can she?" Ymota U chuckled. "It's Shiek that'll be the hard one. But I don't intend on killing Shiek myself. Link will do that for me. And if she kills him as he kills her—what's to lose?"

            "Why do you want to kill Shiek?" Rhia said, spitting blood from her mouth.

            "Because I know a lot more about Shiek than you'd think," Ymota U said with a smirk. "I know, for instance, that she didn't murder Zelda. And that she probably is Zelda. And that dark forces reward well when Princess Zelda and the Hero of Time are killed."

            "What dark forces?" Rhia sputtered.

            "Damion, in Hyrule Proper, for one," Ymota U said, grinning. "I'm surprised the King and Queen of Hyrule would hire anyone named Damion. Farther out, just a little beyond Odnetnin, everybody knows that a dark wizard named Damion has been on the rise and serves him." Ymota U eyed Rhia a bit enviously. "And the Bane of Hyrule can be brought back from the Sacred Realm by the calling of his name by an archseer. I could make you scream anything I wanted you to. But I won't—not now. I have enough rivalry from Damion as it is, and I don't need him—not yet, anyway—to make it worse for me."

*

Zyuiu, Lindsay, and Shiek crashed through the forest surrounding the Tourney. "There's a spot Ymota U likes to go to sometimes," Zyuiu said, not looking at Lindsay or Shiek as she talked. "It's where we decided to call ourselves Zyuiu Dbyu and Ymota U for good. She'll have gone there. And if not there, we'll be too late." Zyuiu did not add the ominous obviousity that they may be too late as it was.

            It did not take Zyuiu long to find where Ymota U held Rhia. "Ymota U," Zyuiu said, her voice strangely calm.

            Ymota U looked up from the magic beating Rhia was still receiving. "Didn't take you long," she remarked, as calm as her sister. "Fine, you can have her. Let's call this a warning, shall we?" Ymota U muttered something no one but perhaps Rhia could hear, and slowly faded from sight. Lindsay and Shiek rushed over to Rhia. Lindsay healed Rhia as best she could with the Sword of Healing as Shiek undid the ropes that bound the young archseer to the tree. Zyuiu stayed where she was, looking horrified. Her eyes were distant; maybe she was thinking of old fractured memories and truths no longer true. But maybe not.

            "What did she do to you?" Lindsay said, sickened, as Rhia fell limply into her arms.

            "Oh, not much," Rhia said. "We had tea and scones, and then a long chat with a squirrel." Rhia's body jerked spasmodically. "What does it look like she did?? She beat me and sapped my magic!"

            Shiek looked up at Lindsay. "Can you heal her? With your sword?"

            "I don't see why not," Lindsay said with a shrug. She drew her sword and held it over Rhia. Pleasehealherpleasehealherplease! The white lights swarmed around Rhia's body and were gone a moment later, all her wounds closed. "Better?"

            "Yeah, mostly," Rhia said. She closed her eyes. "It didn't help the sapped magic. That'll take me days to get back!"

            "I'll carry—" Shiek and Lindsay both began when Zyuiu snapped out of her trance, crossed over, and picked up the fifteen-year-old mage as easily as anything.

            "We should be getting back," Zyuiu said quietly.

            "Right," Shiek said. Zyuiu turned and began to head back to the Tourney with Lindsay and Shiek in tow.

*

"Zyuiu Dbyu?"

            Zyuiu hardly looked at the registrar as she passed him by. "I forfeit the Tourney," she said. From Zyuiu's arm, Rhia said, "Me too!"

            The registrar looked shocked, but turned dutifully to his clipboard. He looked up at Shiek and Lindsay as they passed, and each shook their heads. Zyuiu stopped walking a moment and said, "My sister forfeits, too. She wanted me to tell you that."

            "Right," said the registrar. Shiek, Lindsay, and Rhia all smiled grimly, but Zyuiu's face may as well have been made of glass.

*

*

*

Well that chappy's done! Plot twisty, huh? Nah, not really. A look at Tourney fights. André and OmniGG…er, sorry your characters got their asses whooped. Zappermon who is no longer Zappermon—how are Zyuiu and Ymota U turning out? Winkybunnion, how's Rhia? And her chickens?

Like that! 'Nother chappy coming eventually.

Lil' Blue Muse: And if you think this one was filled with important plot devices, wait'll you see the next chappy…hoo boy!

Me: Yes.

~winged one~