Yay for T-bone for being patient with my absence!
Caranril: What happened to the rest of y'all? Did I just annoy the hell outta you or somethin'?
Legolas: Or somethin'. Welcome back.
Caranril: Hey thanks. Here's a nice slow chappie to get back on track.
The Dark Before The Dawn - Chapter 9: The Spiritual Realm
As most holes seem to be, it was pitch black. There was a flicker of light, then a flame, as Zelda held out her hand to form a ball of magic light. It floated a few feet before them, far enough they could see ahead, close enough they wouldn't stumble over any tricks that might lie in store for trespassers.
The tunnel was long, dank, and reeked of old air. It was just like any tunnel, except as they went on, they could see symbols marked with the stones.
"They are spells to protect and ward off evil," Zelda read and pointed consecutively, "spells to honour, and spells to prevent the bodies being raised as living dead. I can see so many things here in these walls. I can see the magic in them. It is quite beautiful, but also quite forbidding."
Link shrugged, unable to see the magical flows that Zelda could. He saw the symbols, but they were meaningless to him.
Zelda muttered, reading what few spells in the Sheikah tongue she could, wondering at the power, so she didn't see the gaping hole in the floor. With a startled cry, she tumbled in. Link watched in alarm, and without a second thought dove after her.
Zelda screamed for a while, then as she ran out of breath and was still descending through the air, she was silent. Well, she thought, either I'll fall until I die of old age or I hit the bottom... She gasped as she felt an arm grab her waist. She lit a ball of light and found herself staring at Link.
"Hello, Princess," he said politely.
"Link, why did you follow me down? You could have continued without me and saved yourself."
Link stared into her cobalt eyes. "No, I couldn't have."
She stared back at him. A strange feeling suddenly washed over the both of them, and Zelda felt her heart flutter oddly. Link pulled away slightly, then looked around.
"We've stopped falling," he observed, noting the stalactites descending from the ceiling of a cave that was not too far away. "Wha..."
Zelda recognized the strange feeling to be typical of sudden stops in free-fall. She missed what Link was looking at and glanced down instead.
She gasped. "Link! We're floating!"
He looked down as well, right into a brilliant light that reflected Zelda's hand-held light on water, except the reflection was a large Triforce symbol. Zelda extinguished her light, but the symbol continued to blaze. The pair slowly sank several feet until their feet touched the water and remained firmly on the surface. Link gazed down and found the ability to see his perfect reflection somewhat disorientating, but it wasn't something he hadn't encountered before...
Zelda was staring at something and had taken a step forward. Link reached to pull her back, but she didn't sink. Link lifted his eyes and saw what she was eyeing and found himself irresistibly drawn to it as well. Three large, golden replicas of the goddesses stood before them, glowing with an inner aura. There was an unearthly sort of music emanating from the statues, growing slowly not in volume but in distance as the singing seemed to surround them. At the feet of the goddesses was a large stone that held many carvings. The language was ancient and befuddling, and Link couldn't make heads or tails of it, but Zelda was able to translate a few choice words.
"It's ancient Sheikah, carved with magic, that's why it's lasted so long...hereda mino-ancal...that would be blessed spirits...guard...triste. I wonder if that's anything like trete, which means time. Um...foe...rocks? No wait, probably chains..."
While Zelda's muttering continued to confuse him, Link looked across the lake and noticed a light approaching them. It was pale and shimmery, and as it drew closer, Link thought it looked like a figure...
"...Don-a lodhel. Okay, from what I can tell, it says something about the goddesses guarding something chained in time until the Breaking begins. That's all I can get from this-"
"Sh!" Link's hand flew to her chattering mouth. "Look."
Zelda followed his gaze to the light that was definitely a figure and watched silently as it stopped a few feet away. It was eerily translucent, yet held a rather solid form. The eyes shined silver, framed by a strong face and long hair that was tamed by a band and floated as if underwater. It was wearing a robe, but underneath could clearly be seen the eye of the Sheikah.
"Wielders of the Triforce, what sinister hour has brought you to the depths of the grave when you should be rejoicing in the light above?" the spectre said, its deep voice oddly not echoing throughout the cavern.
Zelda cleared her throat. "Spirit, are you a former member of Impa's family?"
"I am. My name is Daegond."
Zelda glanced at Link before continuing. "She sent us here, saying you could help us out."
"What is the task you wish for me to complete?"
"Well I don't know. You're supposed to tell us."
"There's somebody named Lord Meltose who wants to kill us and destroy everything that bears the Triforce's power," Link intervened. "If we don't find a way to prevent him from escaping his prison, he could destroy the entire earth."
The ghost stared at him in disbelief. "Foremost, only followers of the fallen god call him 'Lord Meltose'. Sequently, there is no prevention of the Breaking of the bonds that hold him from freedom. Ten thousand years was the given time, and just like all things governed by Meltose, Time will always hold."
"Wait, are you saying that Meltose controls Time?" Link asked in disbelief.
"No, he does not control it, but rather is of it."
Link and Zelda looked at each other in confusion.
"Allow me to elaborate. Just as each goddess governs Power, Wisdom, and Courage, Meltose governs Time. He came before the other three, since nothing existed before Time, which needed a master to maintain its eternal flow. His sisters arrived later to bring order to the chaos that he thrives in creating. When the plans to make life were formed, he sought their destruction. Therefore the great Battle ensued, in the dark before the dawn of life. Meltose was strong, but not strong enough to defeat his three sisters. Meltose was chained for ten thousand years, but his time is nearly over. Time cannot exist without the god, and the god without Time."
"But I've been able to manipulate Time," Link protested, fearing that this story was leading up to something he didn't really want to hear.
Daegond shook his head. "No, you rather caught a hold onto the flow with a better grip than others have. Your strong will and goddess-given courage let you maintain your hold."
"So, once he breaks free, there's no way to stop him, since we can't exactly stop Time?" Zelda asked, disheartened.
"...Yes."
Link sighed. Zelda looked at her hands. The ghost stared at them.
"He had been dormant, but because of your Time traveling, you awoke him with a cruel slap in the face. And now that the Princess has revealed herself, he will certainly break free."
Zelda looked up. "How do you know who we are?"
Daegond almost smiled. Almost. "The dead who remain to aid those who succeed them must know many things, and many of those things we cannot even reveal to you."
Zelda gave him a small smile. "You must miss your daughter a lot."
Daegond started, his robes and hair accentuating his slight movement. "How did you know that Impa was my offspring?"
"Because I grew up with Impa as my guardian, and you act and speak quite like she does. Always with this rather elegant tone and posture."
This time, Daegond did smile, though it was sad. "My death was untimely. It was during the burning war that had swept across the land of Hyrule. I was a personal guard of one of the princes myself. It turned out that this one was one of the traitors that had betrayed his own country, and he killed me to keep me silent. He ended up dead at the hands of the very man who had employed his skills. The source of the entire war. He was never found, but many of his followers were killed and studied. They were of the ancient race of Dark Sheikah who remained behind during the surfacing." He shook his head. "Of course, I didn't know that until after I died, and what use is that?"
"Plenty," Link said grimly. He was sorting the information this Sheikah had given them out in his head, and from what he could tell, they needed to move quickly. "Thank you for your aid. It was much more help than I would have expected."
"I am unfinished." Daegond walked over to the stone tablet beneath the feet of the goddesses. "'To the blessed spirits who sent the Triforce as guard against the Breaking of the chains of Time that bind its own master. Ware of the Letting.' That is what this tablet says. Unfortunately, I can't tell you what the second part means. I may be old, but not that old. A Sheikah is chosen to guard the spiritual realm for those who need aid, and it is my turn. I feel that perhaps it would have been better for an ancient Sheikah to reveal to you what I did, for they would surely know more."
"You gave us plenty of help, sir," Zelda said gratefully. She glanced at Link, whose face contorted as he mulled over something. "From the looks of things, Link is piecing it together."
"I am still unfinished." He placed a ghostly hand on the stone, the gentle touch causing the tablet to sink into the floor. A hidden cache was revealed, and in it were two items. He pulled the first out, a long, tightly wrapped object, and handed it to Link.
"I believe you bear my old scabbard, the abode of Beleguial..."
Link eagerly unwrapped the sword.
"...mighty twilight, the Quietus of the Dead. Like twilight separates day and night, so Beleguial separates those in life and death."
The silver sword shone brightly, producing its own inner light and reflecting the golden light from the statues. Link could see his face perfectly in the blade, where there weren't any Sheikah inscriptions, which ran from the centre of the blade to the hilt. The silver cross-hilt twisted elegantly, then slipped into the deep blue firm grip that had enough space for two hands if needed. The pommel had a blood-red, raised carving of the Sheikah eye. Along the cross-hilt were two, diamond shaped holes, slightly offset from a blue diamond shaped gem in between them. Link touched it gently and found it yielded to his finger.
"Beleguial is a magic-wielding sword. If you press the ice gem..." the ghost suggested.
Link complied, and he held the sword at arms length away to study the silent blue fire that danced along the blade. He walked to the edge of the lake, then with a mighty swing brought the sword to the surface. Instantly, a radius of ice formed around the struck area, but just as quickly disappeared.
"You cannot change the waters of the spiritual realm, but had this lake been natural, the area affected by your strike would remain frozen until temperatures were sufficient to melt the ice. If you press the ice gem once more, the flames extinguish."
Link did so and examined the other two holes. "It looks like something else should go here," he commented.
"I thought so too, but alas, as hard as I searched, I never found the other gems. My father nor my grandfather nor my great-grandfather had them, since this sword was passed from them to me, but before that...I don't know."
Link studied the shape a little more, then balanced the sword on its tip and leaned the handle against his waist as he dug into his wallet.
"Link, I don't really think there's need to pay him..." Zelda said slowly, then trailed off as Link pulled out a shining red stone that was identical in shape to the blue one on his sword. He slid it into the first slot and pressed it down. The sword erupted in red fire, and Link grinned satisfactorily.
"Where did you get that?" Daegond asked in disbelief.
"I found it at Lake Hylia in the water." Link frowned. "One of those victims to Lord Jabbu Jabbu's insanity must have owned it. Probably a child's precious stone."
Zelda and Daegond reflected silently, while Link pressed the gem and sheathed the sword.
"Thank you, Daegond."
The ghost nodded, then turned and held the other item before Zelda. "This is not a weapon, but the knowledge can be wielded as such."
Zelda took the object and pulled a blue orb out of a bag.
"This is an annatur. They are gifts of mastery selected by the giver, and they can only be used once. I made this a long time ago when in a dream the three goddesses came to me and commanded my fabricating of the annatur. Because I never found a use for it in life, it, along with my sword, were buried with me. And now I know the purpose of my dream and efforts."
Zelda placed her palms on either side of the orb, and her eyes rolled to the back of her head as a blue light resonated from the annatur. She shook slightly, then after a few minutes, dropped the orb, which shattered on the floor.
"Zelda!" Link exclaimed.
"It is all right. The annatur is useless once the recipient uses it anyway," Daegond told him.
Zelda stood in shock, then slowly sank to her knees and shook rather violently. Link knelt by her side and tried to still her convulsions. She calmed down, lifted her head, and glanced at Link's hands grasping hers. She met Daegond's gaze.
"Wow," was all she could manage.
"What happened?" Link asked concernedly, helping her to her feet.
"I learned so much about magic...and I learned new techniques too. I was given the power to form three new magic elements: earth, water, and fire. I learnt of better ways to use my light power, and I am simply much stronger."
Daegond nodded. "And you will find that when you transform into your Sheikah form, that you will know more of our black magic. Of course, you do not sense it now, nor will you sense your current changes in your other form."
"W-well thank you so much!" Zelda said, flushed. She reached for Daegond and wrapped her arms around him, surprised that he felt warm and solid, like a real being. He was startled, but he slowly returned her embrace. Link watched, beginning to feel out of place as the seconds ticked by.
When Zelda pulled away, she had tears in her eyes. "I give you Impa's love. I know she misses you tremendously, and if there's any way you can see her, I wish you'd do so."
Daegond looked at her sadly. "Please return my love to Impa, if you should see her before Meltose is freed. And tell her...that I miss her..."
Zelda backed away from him, nodding. She stood next to Link, and they watched the statue of the goddesses and the glowing form of Daegond shrink as they were sent back to the living realm.
> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >
Caranril: Another rather slow chapter, but I guarantee the next one to be a bit of fun. :p
Legolas: I'm sure.
Caranril: Both Daegond's name, Beleguial's title, and Zelda's orb present came from Elvish words of Lord of the Rings. I have this long list of short words, and I can either put them together or leave them short. It's quite handy when you want to create exotic-type names.
Legolas: What, "Caranril" is exotic? But you're as white as a snowflake.
Caranril: Exotic doesn't necessarily mean tropic, pretty boy. In this case, it means strange and different.
Legolas: Watch who you're calling pretty boy.
Caranril: Excuse me? Who's the one who wears hairnets at night and comes out of every battle with his hair perfectly straight and neat? And who wears a silver night tunic?
Legolas: (eyes dart) Sh! You're not supposed to tell anyone!
Caranril: Hee, too late. ; )
Legolas: Hell...
Caranril: (pinches Legolas' cheek) Aw, is wittle Lego-chan all ruffled up? Maybe hims needs a time out...
Legolas: Help...me...Review...
Caranril: What do you say?
Legolas: PLEASE!