Disclaimer: Ok, I guess everyone puts one of these in here, so here's mine. I obviously don't own Zelda or Link or any other characters thought up by Miyamoto, or anything else Legend of Zelda related. I just like to write about them.
Chapter 10
Blood everywhere. A thick sense of nausea overcomes me, but I can do nothing but watch as two large eyes rip open before me, their gaze eerie and piercing. The white irises are stained with red slashes, as if something has torn into them. Thunder crashes from above, making the world tremble, tiny scarlet droplets falling from sky. My vision is affixed on the giant, monstrous eyes ahead, which seem to cut into my very being. My forehead aches, as do my ears and arms; the fresh scar along my chest burns as if the wound has just been reopened. I squint, wishing I could hold my head with my hands, but I am paralyzed from the neck down.
With a brilliant flash, the ruby-stained world seeps away, whirring into a solid black void. The eyes remain, focused and unwavering as a low, distant scream shudders past them. The red splotches covering the white irises peel and fall, revealing glassy, cerulean markings beneath. I watch, captivated by the strange sight. The eyes blink slowly, teardrops forming in the corners. I can feel the pain in my chest residing, and when the eyes open again, the blue markings streak into the tears, and are washed away to show perfect, white eyes staring back at me. The darkness fades into a bright white, and the eyes blend with their new surroundings, slowly losing focus and eventually closing, hidden in the white background.
Upon a sudden impact to my chest and face, my eyes are abruptly and painfully cast open to a dark, hazy world, returning me to the land of the living. I ignore the pain, and instead turn my attention toward my unconscious reveries. The dreams are so real, so disconcerting, but I still don't understand what they mean. Perhaps they have no meaning. Perhaps they foretell an event of some type. Perhaps I'm losing my nerve, or perhaps I already have.
As a loud iron clang sounds behind me, I move my arms as if to push myself up from the ground but hesitate when a sharp pulsating pain weaves its way through my veins and renders me motionless for the time being. All at once the memories come back to me, images flashing over my already hazy eyes. I squint to force them out of my sight, but the images keep coming, images of Hellpahrn and Keal and that damned dagger flying at my chest with uncanny speed and severity. My whole body is shaking with rage and confusion, an unusual combination but something I have definitely felt before. That useless sensation when something horrible has happened that I can't do a damn thing about. The day Ganondorf found Zelda and I had failed. Then I had reason to blame myself for someone else's pain, but what now? I'm usually to blame when something happens to me, aren't I?
My fingers grasp at the jagged fragments of hay and dirt as I make one last attempt to put distance between myself and the ground. Somehow I manage to push myself into a sitting position of some sort and lift a hand to my burning chest, but when I lift my head to view my surroundings, I nearly fall over again. The pain in my chest has become almost numb, though what remains of the burning is far from bearable. My vision eventually gives way to tall, vertical lines of light thrust through fine crevices between—bars? Oh, joy. A prison. Had I known where I was going before, I could have easily cast myself into my own prison without the help of Hellpahrn.
Speaking of the devil incarnate, what the hell was he talking about? "Now watch, with the help of this magical serum, as I change both his fate and mine!" My fate as well as his? How did slicing and dicing at me change his life? And why didn't he kill me? He physically had to stop himself from thrusting that dagger right into my heart. And why not kill Delphie? And what haven't they told me? Too many questions swim through my groggy head, stirring my brain into a weary nausea. I'm about to fall over again, and I probably would have had my attention not been redirected to a second metallic clang behind me.
I hear a rusty creak and another clang, followed by the sound of crunching hay beneath a pair of familiar boots. "Feeling better?" Damn that voice. That creepy yet so familiar voice.
"Piss off," I manage through clenched teeth.
"That's no way to speak to someone who saved your life. Had I been so inclined, I could have released Keal on you long before—"
"And why didn't you?" If only I had the means, I would kill him now.
"Because it is not my place." I hear shuffling move around me until the sharp form of Hellpahrn stands before me, nearly stepping on my fingers. A knee drops down next to mine, and a finger gently lifts my vision to his. His eyes look so cold, the icy blue pupils nearly freezing my muscles on the spot. "Your visions, what do they tell you?" My visions?! How the hell did he know about those? They're really just freaky dreams. Or so I thought. I only stare at him with pure anger manifested in my expression. He sighs, then continues. "You caused the blood to spill. You are the undoing of yourself, Link. Don't follow the eyes." What the hell is he talking about?
Hellpahrn begins to stand as if to leave me with his words of wisdom, but I catch him just before he does with a bloodied hand, the pain in my chest rising. I ignore it and instead divert all of my energy into reaching for the dagger at his knee with as much possible speed as I can muster. I grasp the handle with satisfaction, but my hand comes to a halt just as the blade becomes visible. Hellpahrn, whose sudden look of shock nearly bewilders me, has my wrist in his hand, trying to force the blade to point away from him. My arm suddenly gives way and the blade sweeps downward, cutting through the air and ripping into my leg. My screech of pain sounds as if doubled, echoed even. My immediate reaction being to squint and use as much energy as possible not to cry out, I force my eyes to return to their opened state to find Hellpahrn leaning heavily toward the ground and grasping at his leg. My eyes shoot open wide in comprehension of what then becomes clear. The scars, the voice, everything was so familiar. But how!?
"Well 'e knows now, idiot," comes a deep, raspy voice from behind me. Keal strides to my side—I don't remember the gate opening—and leans down to tear the dagger from my leg. I try to let out a faint screech, but my dry throat doesn't permit it. I instead let myself fall to the ground, using the hard surface to put pressure on my aching form in a vain attempt to ease the pain. I watch from the corner of my eye as Hellpahrn—or my older self, I suppose—lifts a hand to conjure a fireball spell. He is too slow, however, and instant death follows the dagger's blade to his heart. The final sound emanates from his lips, that harsh, breathless gasp of unwilling defeat. His limp body falls to the ground, eyes shot open in horror. The pupils fade to a sickly pale blue, and his hair turns suddenly from stark white to a dirty, dry blond. Were I in better shape I would freak out. Now I want only to lose consciousness.
With what little grasp on reality I still own, I watch as Keal kneels before the body of a man, not just any man, some tortured being formerly myself. Keal's eyes are wide in disbelief as he glances from one of us to the other. "It's true, then. You are the same." Slowly he stands with a low, muffled grunt before returning his gaze to me. Without a word, he bends down and takes me into his arms, and through my confusion and detestation of him, I do not resist.
A/N:
Holy wow! Lookie, I updated! Yes, it has been a long time, and I know the chappy is short crap, it's only three pages in Word, but at least you aren't quite as confused now, right? That should have opened up some doorways to your brains or something, or at least a window or two! Please encourage me to write more. Maybe someday I'll actually finish this stupid story. And KC, I'm not lazy! I have school and homework and other stuff! BLAH!
Oh, and you can all thank h7 for giving me the inspiration to write. I just finished reading her chapter 56, and boy was it awesome as usual. Someday I might write 56 chapters. Shaaah! And monkeys might fly outta my butt!