Chapter 9: Beneath the lava pools. There lies the next Stone.
The mountains rose high into the clouds as they drew near the mountain ranges.
"Ok why are we here? I doubt that the stone of fire would be here anyway," Mikagami said.
"Well let's just say that the stone is hidden in one of these mountains. And one of them is a volcano and there lies the next stone," Misty said.
"Are you serious? You mean we have to search for a volcano and hopefully we will find the stone?" Tamorie asked.
"It wont be that hard to find the active volcano... Just follow the smoke that is floating in the distance," Rasheed said.
"... Great another active volcano..." Mikagami muttered. Remembering that day when they got caught in an eruption scared them, literally. They were blasted to different parts of Hyrule and were separated for days.
They walked up the rocky hill, slowly getting close to the active volcano. There were short rumbles but they were very weak. When they finally reached the volcano they noticed that it was dead silent. They were expecting more rumbles but for some reason everything fell to a dead silence.
"That was strange," Misty muttered.
"... So is something supposed to happen right about now?" Saya asked.
"I have no idea," Tamorie said. Mikagami walked up to the entrance to the inside of the volcano and looked in. To his surprise everything was black in ash. No lava, but where is that smoke coming from?
"Hey guys, I think you should come in here and check this place out," Mikagami yelled. Misty and the others ran in but as soon as they saw the crate they walked very slowly.
"What the hell happen to this place? It looks like it hasn't been active for decades," Rasheed said.
"Could be the stone of fire. Maybe it has something to do with this," Misty said.
"Maybe..." Mikagami muttered. They separated and started to search around the crater. Though Rasheed stayed close to Misty just to make sure nothing bad happens. Tamorie looked around to make sure no one was looking; he kicked down a small boulder and a secret passage way opened. There inside the spiritual stone of fire stood.
"I could take it... But my other half says no," he thought. Meanwhile Misty walked over to a strange rock formation. She was about to call the others over but decided not to, not until she finds out what it is. She started to tap it a few times. Harder and harder, till she finally gave up. She leaned on it and fell through, the passage slammed shut leaving no way to get in. Tamorie heard it and took the stone out and slipped it into his pocket. Rasheed walked to where she was last standing.
"Misty?" he called out. Saya and Mikagami walked over and looked around.
"Where did she go?" Saya asked.
"That's what I'm wondering about," Rasheed said. Behind them the ground glowed red and lava flowed out. By removing the stone of fire, the volcano comes back to life.
"You fool... Oh well, as long as they don't know that you don't have the stone then everything is fine," said Hattorie.
"Yeah? Well I'm going to give it to them once we find Misty," Tamorie fired back.
"Hey kid, who are you talking to?" Mikagami asked.
"Er... Nothing," he said quickly. Rasheed looked at the formation and banged on it as hard as he could, but it wouldn't budge or crumble. It suddenly got hotter causing them to sweat.
"Guys? If this volcano isn't suppose to be active then why is it hot?" Saya asked. Mikagami turned and poked her on the shoulder. She turned and her eyes grew wide.
"Oh that's why..." she muttered.
"Something must have caused the lava to flow again. Maybe the stone is doing this," Mikagami said. They were then surrounded by hot lava ad no way out.
"Well I don't know about you guys, but I would like to get out of here and find Misty," Rasheed said. They all backed against the trap door and fell threw. They fell into a cave, which was really cool, and not hot. But the problem was it was dark and you could hardly see anything.
"Hey guys, we should see where this goes... Guys?" Rasheed called out. No one answer, he was left alone.
"... Where the hell are we?" Saya asked Tamorie.
"How should I know? Mikagami nor Rasheed is here with us," he replied. Mikagami was walking deeper into the cave, below was a small river that gave off some steam.
"I must find my sister," he muttered. Misty was found limping down the dark cave. Her right leg was bruised and bleeding. It was terribly swollen and could be broken, though she continued to walk on.
"Why must I always get hurt like this?" she thought to herself. Beads of sweat formed on her fore head and her hair covered her face and shoulders.
"Misty!" Rasheed called out. He looked around and tried calling out again. He looked down and saw some footprints leading down the cave. Spots of blood could be seen near the trail. He took off that way while continuing to call out her name. Misty reached a fork and stopped.
"I... Don't think I can make it... But I must go on and find that stone," she said while breathing hard. She took the left fork and moved at a slower pace. Her skirt was matted against her right leg. It stung and blood formed on the cloth. She grunted but kept going. Rasheed reached the fork and noticed a fresh trail of tracks going to the left. He took off at full speed. Misty collapsed due to it hurting her too much.
"Why me?" she muttered. Rasheed continued running for about three minutes.
"Man... She must be moving at a fast pace... But the blood..." he thought. He stopped when he saw her lying on the ground, her right leg was worse then before. Her eyes half way open and she moaned due to her broken leg. He ran and kneeled down. He looked at the leg and ripped off that part of her skirt. He took the remains and took some holy water to damp it. He began to clean it up and wrap it tight enough to keep it straight. He then leaned over her and tried to wake her up.
"Misty... Misty wake up," he said softly. She blinked and looked up at him. She opened her mouth the say something but he placed his finger on her lips.
"Don't waste your energy," he said. He sat down and held her in his arms.
"Rasheed... The stone, we need to find the stone," she said. She tried to get up but couldn't. Her leg throbbed when she moved.
"Don't worry about it, the others will find it. You just rest here and we'll leave as soon as you build up your strength," he said.
"Rasheed... Please we have to go on with the mission. My leg is fine," she said insisting.
"No.. And I'm not letting you leave... Your leg is broken, how can you move on with only one leg?" he asked.
"I can just hop then," she muttered. He chuckled and kissed her on the lips. Another passionate kiss that caused them to be on the ground. Mikagami arrived at the same fork. He started to head down the right fork until he saw the series of footprints. But at the same time some blood trails were seen. He bent down and dipped his index finger in some. He looked at it closely and thought,
"I wonder... My sister has been here," He got up and started walking down the path. Meanwhile, Misty and Rasheed were sitting up leaning on the cave wall. His shirt was off and wrapped around both of them. He held onto her while she started to doze off. Mikagami was about half way there until he saw more and more blood. He started to run but as he got to where the blood trail stopped, anger flowed through his eyes. He saw Misty and Rasheed together and what's worse is that he knew what they have done. He poured water on his hand and a sword formed. Rasheed woke up and got up, that startled Misty and she too woke up. But she just stayed on the ground and wrapped Rasheed's shirt around her. Mikagami noticed her leg was wrapped but her skirt was torn.
"How dare you..." he said angrily.
"Mikagami... Please you must understand," Rasheed pleaded. Mikagami drew closer, his eyes full of rage.
"No you don't understand... How could you have... Done THAT to MY sister," he said. Misty remained silent and pressed against the wall.
"Because... We are in love Mikagami. I have told you that before. Why can't you just accept that?" Rasheed said.
"Why? WHY? I'll tell you why. The reason is I don't like it when guys go and fool around with Misty," Mikagami yelled.
"Please stop it," Misty said softly. Her hands were shaking but she clenched Rasheed's robe tighter and tighter.
"For your information, I'm not just some guy. We are going to get married weather you like it or not," Rasheed said in a low tone.
"Over my dead body. I challenge you to a duel. You lose; you must stay away from Misty... Forever!" Mikagami said. Rasheed drew his twin swords and said,
"I accept. And I shall not lose for I don't want to lose Misty," Both men got in a fighting stance and went all out.
"No... Please don't," she said again but in a bit stronger voice. Metal clashing echoed in the cave. Tamorie and Saya turned sharply when they heard those sounds.
"Think it could be the others?" Tamorie asked.
"Let's go and find out," Saya said and they took off. The stone hidden in Tamorie's pocket started to glow bright.
"What is up with this stone? Wait a minute," he thought. The legend said that the heir of one of the goddesses should obtain the stone of their power.
"That Rasheed is the heir of Din. So the stone is reacting to his energy, must be seeking out its master. But in the legend it also said that if the stone was destroyed so would the heir of-"he though again but was cut off when Saya grabbed him and ran faster.
"Then I must destroy both the stones of fire and water to get rid of the heirs," he thought. They reached the others just in time.
"What the hell is going on here?" Saya asked. She noticed Misty on the ground and ran to her.
"What happened? And what's up with your leg?" Saya asked. Tamorie kneeled down to Misty and looked at the broken leg. She didn't answer at first but then she started to tell them what had happened and why Mikagami and Rasheed are fighting.
"Figures... Mikagami never liked the idea of you two being in love," Saya muttered.
"But we have to stop them before they kill each other," Misty pleaded.
"Yeah but how?" Tamorie asked.
"You guys just stay out of this!" Rasheed yelled. This stunned the three. They were about to protest until Mikagami cut them off.
"Get Misty out of here!" he yelled.
"But what about you guys? I don't know but if we don't get out of here, somehow the lava will break through and kill the both of you," Tamorie said.
"Just go and take Misty to a safer place!" Rasheed yelled.
"But-"
"GO!" Mikagami yelled. Saya and Tamorie helped Misty to her feet and took the short cut back outside. It was suddenly getting hotter and they could smell sulfur getting stronger.
"But the stone of fire..." Misty began.
"Don't worry about it... I found it on our way here," Tamorie said.
"You what?" Misty and Saya said in unison.
"Damn you... You weren't supposed to tell!" Hattorie yelled.
"Ah screw you," he said. Misty looked at him suspiciously but then looked away. Mikagami and Rasheed stopped for a few seconds.
"I let you get a little close to her... But then you went too far," Mikagami said.
"Look buddy... I love her and she loves me. And we will not give up on each other that easy. And as I said before, we are getting married weather you like it or not," Rasheed said.
"Well I say that this marriage of yours is over," Mikagami said and they lunged at each other... For the last time. Misty and the others were near the exit, and it lead out to another part of the forest. As they got out some lava started to spit out from the top. They took her near a river and sat her down. Misty's leg was throbbing like crazy and they had to cool it off with the cold river water. Back inside the volcano some lava started to flow through the cave walls. Rasheed went and slashed Mikagami across his chest. It didn't do much damage and Mikagami just grinned. He lunged for Rasheed to stab him but he dodged and made a counter attack.
"Guys... I want to go back in there," Misty told them.
"You can't, you are in no condition to leave," Saya said.
"Yes I am... Now let me go!" she said while trying to get up.
"Tamorie hold her down!" Saya said. Tamorie got up and pulled Misty down to the ground. He held her in his arms and kept her from struggling.
"Let... Me... GO!" she cried. Saya placed her hand on Misty's forehead and casted a spell. It knocked her out and made her limp.
"What did you to her?" Tamorie asked.
"I just put her to sleep that's all," Saya said calmly. The fight rages on, both men breathing hard.
"Look... I think it's best we get out of here... The volcano is about to erupt and we will both die if we stick around here any longer," Rasheed said. Mikagami was about to say something but was cut off when lava exploded out of the cave walls. He looked at Rasheed and nod. They took off running to the exit but stopped when boulders fell and blocked their only way out. When Rasheed went to pound on the door, Mikagami made a sneak attack and strucked Rasheed.
"Think I would let you live?" he said.
"Why... All you care about is killing me. What about Misty?" Rasheed asked.
"I do care for her... And I will show you how much I care by killing the both of us," Mikagami said. Back outside the volcano erupted, rock and lava flowed down but good thing Saya, Misty and Tamorie were in a far enough distance.
"No... Think they'll make it?" Tamorie asked. Saya remained quiet. The stone of fire glowed and disappeared out of Tamorie's pocket.
"What?" Hattorie said in his mind. "It must be after the heir of Din... Rasheed." Rasheed glared at Mikagami and started to curse at him. The lava rose faster and higher and soon you could no longer see them.
"No! Oh... poor Misty," Saya finally said.
"What? WHAT?" Tamorie asked. Some tears fell from her eyes and she looked back at Misty.
"I'm... So sorry," she whispered. They all got up and carried Misty away from the volcano.
"Guess... We should get the final stone," Tamorie said softly.
"Yeah... We should," Saya said.
"But... What should we say to Misty?" Tamorie asked.
"We will have to tell her what happened... Even if it would be the most painful day in her life," Saya said while whipping away the tears.
So... The love between the two gods is broken. She lost her brother and her one true love. Is this really the end?
The mountains rose high into the clouds as they drew near the mountain ranges.
"Ok why are we here? I doubt that the stone of fire would be here anyway," Mikagami said.
"Well let's just say that the stone is hidden in one of these mountains. And one of them is a volcano and there lies the next stone," Misty said.
"Are you serious? You mean we have to search for a volcano and hopefully we will find the stone?" Tamorie asked.
"It wont be that hard to find the active volcano... Just follow the smoke that is floating in the distance," Rasheed said.
"... Great another active volcano..." Mikagami muttered. Remembering that day when they got caught in an eruption scared them, literally. They were blasted to different parts of Hyrule and were separated for days.
They walked up the rocky hill, slowly getting close to the active volcano. There were short rumbles but they were very weak. When they finally reached the volcano they noticed that it was dead silent. They were expecting more rumbles but for some reason everything fell to a dead silence.
"That was strange," Misty muttered.
"... So is something supposed to happen right about now?" Saya asked.
"I have no idea," Tamorie said. Mikagami walked up to the entrance to the inside of the volcano and looked in. To his surprise everything was black in ash. No lava, but where is that smoke coming from?
"Hey guys, I think you should come in here and check this place out," Mikagami yelled. Misty and the others ran in but as soon as they saw the crate they walked very slowly.
"What the hell happen to this place? It looks like it hasn't been active for decades," Rasheed said.
"Could be the stone of fire. Maybe it has something to do with this," Misty said.
"Maybe..." Mikagami muttered. They separated and started to search around the crater. Though Rasheed stayed close to Misty just to make sure nothing bad happens. Tamorie looked around to make sure no one was looking; he kicked down a small boulder and a secret passage way opened. There inside the spiritual stone of fire stood.
"I could take it... But my other half says no," he thought. Meanwhile Misty walked over to a strange rock formation. She was about to call the others over but decided not to, not until she finds out what it is. She started to tap it a few times. Harder and harder, till she finally gave up. She leaned on it and fell through, the passage slammed shut leaving no way to get in. Tamorie heard it and took the stone out and slipped it into his pocket. Rasheed walked to where she was last standing.
"Misty?" he called out. Saya and Mikagami walked over and looked around.
"Where did she go?" Saya asked.
"That's what I'm wondering about," Rasheed said. Behind them the ground glowed red and lava flowed out. By removing the stone of fire, the volcano comes back to life.
"You fool... Oh well, as long as they don't know that you don't have the stone then everything is fine," said Hattorie.
"Yeah? Well I'm going to give it to them once we find Misty," Tamorie fired back.
"Hey kid, who are you talking to?" Mikagami asked.
"Er... Nothing," he said quickly. Rasheed looked at the formation and banged on it as hard as he could, but it wouldn't budge or crumble. It suddenly got hotter causing them to sweat.
"Guys? If this volcano isn't suppose to be active then why is it hot?" Saya asked. Mikagami turned and poked her on the shoulder. She turned and her eyes grew wide.
"Oh that's why..." she muttered.
"Something must have caused the lava to flow again. Maybe the stone is doing this," Mikagami said. They were then surrounded by hot lava ad no way out.
"Well I don't know about you guys, but I would like to get out of here and find Misty," Rasheed said. They all backed against the trap door and fell threw. They fell into a cave, which was really cool, and not hot. But the problem was it was dark and you could hardly see anything.
"Hey guys, we should see where this goes... Guys?" Rasheed called out. No one answer, he was left alone.
"... Where the hell are we?" Saya asked Tamorie.
"How should I know? Mikagami nor Rasheed is here with us," he replied. Mikagami was walking deeper into the cave, below was a small river that gave off some steam.
"I must find my sister," he muttered. Misty was found limping down the dark cave. Her right leg was bruised and bleeding. It was terribly swollen and could be broken, though she continued to walk on.
"Why must I always get hurt like this?" she thought to herself. Beads of sweat formed on her fore head and her hair covered her face and shoulders.
"Misty!" Rasheed called out. He looked around and tried calling out again. He looked down and saw some footprints leading down the cave. Spots of blood could be seen near the trail. He took off that way while continuing to call out her name. Misty reached a fork and stopped.
"I... Don't think I can make it... But I must go on and find that stone," she said while breathing hard. She took the left fork and moved at a slower pace. Her skirt was matted against her right leg. It stung and blood formed on the cloth. She grunted but kept going. Rasheed reached the fork and noticed a fresh trail of tracks going to the left. He took off at full speed. Misty collapsed due to it hurting her too much.
"Why me?" she muttered. Rasheed continued running for about three minutes.
"Man... She must be moving at a fast pace... But the blood..." he thought. He stopped when he saw her lying on the ground, her right leg was worse then before. Her eyes half way open and she moaned due to her broken leg. He ran and kneeled down. He looked at the leg and ripped off that part of her skirt. He took the remains and took some holy water to damp it. He began to clean it up and wrap it tight enough to keep it straight. He then leaned over her and tried to wake her up.
"Misty... Misty wake up," he said softly. She blinked and looked up at him. She opened her mouth the say something but he placed his finger on her lips.
"Don't waste your energy," he said. He sat down and held her in his arms.
"Rasheed... The stone, we need to find the stone," she said. She tried to get up but couldn't. Her leg throbbed when she moved.
"Don't worry about it, the others will find it. You just rest here and we'll leave as soon as you build up your strength," he said.
"Rasheed... Please we have to go on with the mission. My leg is fine," she said insisting.
"No.. And I'm not letting you leave... Your leg is broken, how can you move on with only one leg?" he asked.
"I can just hop then," she muttered. He chuckled and kissed her on the lips. Another passionate kiss that caused them to be on the ground. Mikagami arrived at the same fork. He started to head down the right fork until he saw the series of footprints. But at the same time some blood trails were seen. He bent down and dipped his index finger in some. He looked at it closely and thought,
"I wonder... My sister has been here," He got up and started walking down the path. Meanwhile, Misty and Rasheed were sitting up leaning on the cave wall. His shirt was off and wrapped around both of them. He held onto her while she started to doze off. Mikagami was about half way there until he saw more and more blood. He started to run but as he got to where the blood trail stopped, anger flowed through his eyes. He saw Misty and Rasheed together and what's worse is that he knew what they have done. He poured water on his hand and a sword formed. Rasheed woke up and got up, that startled Misty and she too woke up. But she just stayed on the ground and wrapped Rasheed's shirt around her. Mikagami noticed her leg was wrapped but her skirt was torn.
"How dare you..." he said angrily.
"Mikagami... Please you must understand," Rasheed pleaded. Mikagami drew closer, his eyes full of rage.
"No you don't understand... How could you have... Done THAT to MY sister," he said. Misty remained silent and pressed against the wall.
"Because... We are in love Mikagami. I have told you that before. Why can't you just accept that?" Rasheed said.
"Why? WHY? I'll tell you why. The reason is I don't like it when guys go and fool around with Misty," Mikagami yelled.
"Please stop it," Misty said softly. Her hands were shaking but she clenched Rasheed's robe tighter and tighter.
"For your information, I'm not just some guy. We are going to get married weather you like it or not," Rasheed said in a low tone.
"Over my dead body. I challenge you to a duel. You lose; you must stay away from Misty... Forever!" Mikagami said. Rasheed drew his twin swords and said,
"I accept. And I shall not lose for I don't want to lose Misty," Both men got in a fighting stance and went all out.
"No... Please don't," she said again but in a bit stronger voice. Metal clashing echoed in the cave. Tamorie and Saya turned sharply when they heard those sounds.
"Think it could be the others?" Tamorie asked.
"Let's go and find out," Saya said and they took off. The stone hidden in Tamorie's pocket started to glow bright.
"What is up with this stone? Wait a minute," he thought. The legend said that the heir of one of the goddesses should obtain the stone of their power.
"That Rasheed is the heir of Din. So the stone is reacting to his energy, must be seeking out its master. But in the legend it also said that if the stone was destroyed so would the heir of-"he though again but was cut off when Saya grabbed him and ran faster.
"Then I must destroy both the stones of fire and water to get rid of the heirs," he thought. They reached the others just in time.
"What the hell is going on here?" Saya asked. She noticed Misty on the ground and ran to her.
"What happened? And what's up with your leg?" Saya asked. Tamorie kneeled down to Misty and looked at the broken leg. She didn't answer at first but then she started to tell them what had happened and why Mikagami and Rasheed are fighting.
"Figures... Mikagami never liked the idea of you two being in love," Saya muttered.
"But we have to stop them before they kill each other," Misty pleaded.
"Yeah but how?" Tamorie asked.
"You guys just stay out of this!" Rasheed yelled. This stunned the three. They were about to protest until Mikagami cut them off.
"Get Misty out of here!" he yelled.
"But what about you guys? I don't know but if we don't get out of here, somehow the lava will break through and kill the both of you," Tamorie said.
"Just go and take Misty to a safer place!" Rasheed yelled.
"But-"
"GO!" Mikagami yelled. Saya and Tamorie helped Misty to her feet and took the short cut back outside. It was suddenly getting hotter and they could smell sulfur getting stronger.
"But the stone of fire..." Misty began.
"Don't worry about it... I found it on our way here," Tamorie said.
"You what?" Misty and Saya said in unison.
"Damn you... You weren't supposed to tell!" Hattorie yelled.
"Ah screw you," he said. Misty looked at him suspiciously but then looked away. Mikagami and Rasheed stopped for a few seconds.
"I let you get a little close to her... But then you went too far," Mikagami said.
"Look buddy... I love her and she loves me. And we will not give up on each other that easy. And as I said before, we are getting married weather you like it or not," Rasheed said.
"Well I say that this marriage of yours is over," Mikagami said and they lunged at each other... For the last time. Misty and the others were near the exit, and it lead out to another part of the forest. As they got out some lava started to spit out from the top. They took her near a river and sat her down. Misty's leg was throbbing like crazy and they had to cool it off with the cold river water. Back inside the volcano some lava started to flow through the cave walls. Rasheed went and slashed Mikagami across his chest. It didn't do much damage and Mikagami just grinned. He lunged for Rasheed to stab him but he dodged and made a counter attack.
"Guys... I want to go back in there," Misty told them.
"You can't, you are in no condition to leave," Saya said.
"Yes I am... Now let me go!" she said while trying to get up.
"Tamorie hold her down!" Saya said. Tamorie got up and pulled Misty down to the ground. He held her in his arms and kept her from struggling.
"Let... Me... GO!" she cried. Saya placed her hand on Misty's forehead and casted a spell. It knocked her out and made her limp.
"What did you to her?" Tamorie asked.
"I just put her to sleep that's all," Saya said calmly. The fight rages on, both men breathing hard.
"Look... I think it's best we get out of here... The volcano is about to erupt and we will both die if we stick around here any longer," Rasheed said. Mikagami was about to say something but was cut off when lava exploded out of the cave walls. He looked at Rasheed and nod. They took off running to the exit but stopped when boulders fell and blocked their only way out. When Rasheed went to pound on the door, Mikagami made a sneak attack and strucked Rasheed.
"Think I would let you live?" he said.
"Why... All you care about is killing me. What about Misty?" Rasheed asked.
"I do care for her... And I will show you how much I care by killing the both of us," Mikagami said. Back outside the volcano erupted, rock and lava flowed down but good thing Saya, Misty and Tamorie were in a far enough distance.
"No... Think they'll make it?" Tamorie asked. Saya remained quiet. The stone of fire glowed and disappeared out of Tamorie's pocket.
"What?" Hattorie said in his mind. "It must be after the heir of Din... Rasheed." Rasheed glared at Mikagami and started to curse at him. The lava rose faster and higher and soon you could no longer see them.
"No! Oh... poor Misty," Saya finally said.
"What? WHAT?" Tamorie asked. Some tears fell from her eyes and she looked back at Misty.
"I'm... So sorry," she whispered. They all got up and carried Misty away from the volcano.
"Guess... We should get the final stone," Tamorie said softly.
"Yeah... We should," Saya said.
"But... What should we say to Misty?" Tamorie asked.
"We will have to tell her what happened... Even if it would be the most painful day in her life," Saya said while whipping away the tears.
So... The love between the two gods is broken. She lost her brother and her one true love. Is this really the end?