Hello, hello, ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the next chapter! Since I have so many stories, I believe I shall only really reply to the regulars, those people that review every single chapter of everything I write! It'll sure help cut down on response time.

Dragon-Charmer16: Actually, the whole deal with Lilith is explained here. Plus I'll hint at something. Hint, hint. And I sure do wish you could enter! I was looking forward to viewing your entry.
thegirlwhocantwrite: Yes, yes, the Sasuke Happy Song shall devour us all. Beware! DO NOT CALL ME SPOONZIE!
Blondie91: Yah, I just gotta get my humor back at some points. Yeah, Pep Rallies are for losers. Let's play ocarina instead!
da marshmallow: Yup, that's Wizard of Oz, but with an airplane instead of a house. You should enter the contest! Your sister did! Yes, yes! Enter the contest! Muahahaha! That way I'll have an even three entries and not one of my award graphics will go to waste! I'm glad you like my CRAPPY TERRIBLE AWFUL HORRIBLE poetry. I liked the imagery in that one, though. n.n; And I'm sorry I hadn't reviewed Dark Sages. I was reading it the other day and I was forced to get off before I finished and I completely forgot! Sorry!

LOTS OF THANKS TO EVERYONE ELSE WHO REVIEWED! Now here's the chapter!

Chapter 11: The Purgatory?

Link dodged the whip of his nemesis before Diana could use her transportation magic. Lilith lashed her weapon to the side and caught Link on his back with the barbs. The green-clad stumbled to the ground with a cry of pain. Lilith poised herself over him and revealed that her whip's hilt contained a keen-edged dagger, which she stationed directly beside her captive's throat menacingly.

However, a burst of green light stole Link from the grasp of his foe, and he reappeared behind her with his sword pressed against her neck. "How's it feel, Lilith?" he smirked. The woman struggled, but she could not free herself from the boy. "What do you want!" she shouted, still thrashing about. Link narrowed his eyes.

"Answers," he replied simply. "For one, how did Dameus bring you back?"

"The Purgatory," Lilith muttered, defeated. "Wherever you think Hell is, the Purgatory is a tangible location. Dead souls wander there forever, waiting for someone to retrieve them. Visitors come and go: aspiring sorcerers, people looking for their lost ones, bodies searching for a soul, candidates for reincarnations… It goes on and on."

"And Dameus found his way into the Purgatory and brought you back with him," Link finished. Lilith nodded stiffly. "But certainly there is some kind of price," the boy said. "People can't just waltz in and take any soul they fancy, right?"

"No, there's a great price…" Lilith responded with an insidious grin. "You must give up your own soul to restore that of another."

Link gasped in realization. "Wouldn't that mean that Dameus doesn't have a soul?" Diana asked. She had obviously been following along quite nicely. Lilith giggled. "Smart girl. Theoretically, Lord Dameus shouldn't have a soul. However, he found a way to cheat the Purgatory."

"What might that be?" Link demanded. Lilith chortled, her laughter echoing through the alleys and off the buildings. "Like I'd tell you that!" she laughed, bringing her leg up behind her and propelling her body away from Link's. The boy blundered backwards, leaning against a wall. Lilith cracked her whip at Link, and the barbs cut a long gash vertically down his left eye. Diana used her wind a moment too late, but it still get Link out of the way in the event of another attack.

The boy brought out his bow and readied an Ice Arrow. He launched the projectile, scathing Lilith's arm. However, just the tiniest bit of contact was enough for the magic of the Ice Arrow to work. Lilith gasped in horror as the chill ran up her body and chunks of ice enveloped her flesh. "What will you do now?" she whispered fiercely. "Will you praise yourself on your success? Will you regroup with your friends and the other two incarnations? Will you track down Dameus? What then? Will you really turn your sword against your former ally?"

"Shut up," Link commanded. The ice spread and covered the rest of Lilith's now frozen body. The green-clad hero returned his bow to his back and his arrows to his quiver and, with a sigh, struck at the ice with his gloved fist. The ice fractured and shattered. The woman inside was broken and dismembered, blood leaking from her severed veins. Diana bit her lip and sought shelter behind Link.

The boy turned to her with a sincere expression. "Diana, incarnation of the goddess Farore, I ask you to accompany me in a quest to save the world your origin aided in the creation of," he stated. Diana raised an eyebrow. "¿Qué te gusta hacer en la fin de semana?" she replied. Link blinked.

"Uh… You wanna come along with me and my friends to save some world you never heard of or been to?" Link repeated. Diana smiled and nodded. "Why not?" she shrugged. "I always thought this planet called Earth was kinda mundane anyway."

As they walked down the street, three gangs had a shoot-out, sixteen cars crashed, a jet made an emergency landing in someone's driveway, an old guy had a heart attack, a couple kids murdered a woman with a pair of scissors, and the president didn't act like an idiot. Link remained oblivious to it all as Diana explained to him how boring the city was.

---

Dameus roared in anger, smashing his looking glass to pieces.

"What's your problem?" Kaze yawned. He had just been roused from an especially peaceful nap by his lord's personal issues.

"First of all, if you're going to talk to me, you have to be respectful!" Dameus reminded. Kaze blinked at him and yawned again. "Secondly," the silver-haired villain continued, "your wretched friends have successfully located two of the three incarnations. Thirdly, that useless loudmouth Lilith just blabbed almost everything about the Purgatory!"

"Tolja she was worthless," Kaze smirked. "I beat her a long time ago. I was still just a little kid when I beat her sorry arsenic to a pulp."

Dameus growled and used powerful magic to return his looking glass to its former state. "Whatever. There's still one left, the Incarnation of Din, and your pathetic little friend Hieke will never defeat the one I have guarding her."

This stirred Kaze's attention. "Hey, Hieke's not so strong after the Spirit of the Celestials left her," he reminded. "Take it easy with her. I'd expect Lor to beat that good-for-nothing loser Brandon, and Link could take Lilith down any day, but Hieke…"

"Are you turning on me, boy!" Dameus demanded. Kaze cringed. "No, sir. I'm just worried about Hieke," he explained. A devilish smile contorted the man's face.

"I'll give you something to worry about," he muttered as he stalked off into another room.

---

Link had long since tuned out Diana's rambling about how boring and uneventful her life had been up until now.

"I wonder how Hieke is faring," he mused, remembering his first encounters with the environment and the inhabitants of this land. Diana realized he was no longer listening to her, so she silenced herself. "Who is Hieke?" she asked, for conversation. Link smiled wistfully.

"She's probably my best friend in any world," he replied. Diana noted the melancholy in his voice and turned her eyes to the ground. Whoever this Hieke person was, Link obviously cared a great deal for her well-being. Though neither of them knew it, he had good reason to be concerned. At that very moment in Hyrule, Dameus was preparing one of the most vicious demons he had to be the guardian of Isis, Incarnation of Din.

---

"My lady!" Impa called from the other side of the door serving as the entrance to Queen Zelda's quarters. "I must speak with you! It is very urgent!"

The oak door swung open on silent hinges, and Impa made sure to close it behind her. "My lady, it's horrible!" she exclaimed. "Ganondorf! Somehow, his essence is being extracted from the Guardian Tree! Not only that, Kuro's presence has weakened, which means most of his power is residing elsewhere!"

Zelda turned away from the window she was looking out as Impa told her of the situation. "Impa, certainly it isn't as bad as you make it out to be," she smiled. The Sheikah woman stared at the Hylian queen, appalled.

"My lady!" she shouted. "Have your senses dulled to such a point that you can't even discern the horrid evil drifting over this land like a storm cloud!"

Zelda's eyes clouded with remorse. "Impa, do you remember the malignant illness that swept across the plains at Ganon's revival?" she asked in a delicate voice. Impa nodded, confused as to where such a comment would lead.

"I fear it may be returning," Zelda whispered as she collapsed to the mahogany floor, the color paling from her face.

And that's it! The Purgatory will become very significant towards the end of the story. Muahahahaha. But no guessing! You'll ruin the surprise!

Hey! I got TWO entries for my art contest! Are you gonna make my third place award graphic go to waste? The deadline is October 31! See my profile for details!