CJON: Lol, happy places are always nice things to have.
Ri2: I can't give anything away that is in the future of this story, so I will leave you to your own imagination on that part of the story.
Mudora: Main characters suffering any sort of bodily injury is always interesting, hehe. Seriously though, I think it is necessary in stories such as these. Too many stories have main characters that are all powerful and can crush anything in their way easily. Having my characters being prone to injury and eventually death lends a sense of realism that otherwise might be missing.
The Pilot: Another history buff, pleasure to meet you. I was thinking perhaps of something like that, but that leaves me the issue of having the sides seemingly unfair. My initial thought was to have something on a prototype scale that would be deployed perhaps on the Freedom's Cry and a few other select ships, seeing as the system would be quite expensive. I'm not sure and I'm still open to suggestions. By the way, thanks for being the first I think to suggest a new technological innovation for the story, please e-mail me to discuss this further as I think the idea has potential. Secret weapons will be in the offing, some of them based off the Zelda games, I wont say more for fear of spoiling the story. Traitors are also in the future, but as Master Yoda said, "hard to see the future is."
Shadow taker of souls: Little sibling are always a pain, I have a little sister and I know exactly how you feel. Lol, I would like to see what would happen if Marth were a real person and you were left in a room with him, he'd probably come out missing a few organs and limbs.
Heroodonuts: Lol yeah, ill make sure he goes a few chapters now without serious internal injuries, just your basic concussions, lacerations, bruises, and other sundry injuries for now, the poor fellow deserves a break. They do still hate each other, I think there was a moment earlier when they were civilized, but the number of times that has happened can be counted on the fingers of one hand.
Janus Kamaren: I admit, my grammar is terrible. Thanks for saving me from perhaps more humiliating mistakes in the future.
Cavalyn: Yeah, the multiple developing storylines is confusing and I hope it becomes clearer, however, in war, things are not always as clear as we would like and that's kind of what I'm trying to illustrate here.
Shadow Rave: Another Marth hater, welcome to the club!
Terachi Kaishaku: It's been a long time for both of us it seems, as I also have not updated for quite a while. Nice to know that you're back and I will get around to reading and reviewing chapter 7 of Paper Dragon soon. I know that you like action and I think that you will find this chapter very much to your tastes.
As I mentioned in my profile, I am still looking for an artist for this fic. If you would be willing either to do this out of the kindness of your heart or in exchange for a fic written by myself, I would be grateful. Please e-mail me at or leave a review for this story if you are interested in the job.
Something completely different, I am looking to co-write a Zelda fic with. It would probably be a Zelink fic. If you want to do this, again please e-mail me or leave a review and we can discuss possibilities.
Finally, I will be away on a required school trip to the wilderness from July 27th to August 21st, so there won't be any new chapters posted during that time. I hope that you don't decide to abandon reading my stories because of that update gap. The trip does have a lot of time to contemplate and think and I am planning on outlining the next several chapters of all my stories as to speed up writing when I return. However, this chapter will be quite long as to make up for my slowness in updating and the upcoming gap.
Nayru Lunar Base
Deep in the bowels of the moon base lay a room with electronics of all sorts covering the walls. Armed marines stood at intervals along the walls making sure that everything took place according to rules and regulations. Printers on either side of the room continually spewed out paper with text upon it. This room was the nerve center of Hylian Military Intelligence which was in charge of intercepting and decoding all enemy military transmissions, as well as interpreting the enemy intentions. With the codebooks that had arrived recently, cryptographers were scrambling to decode the backlog of intercepted IFC military messages stockpiled since the first day of the war.
The Major in charge had just finished working on a dispatch that had arrived hours ago and was now preparing for a sudden urgent meeting of the Hylian Central Command. The message which he contained possibly spelled the end of the war effort of the republic.
The briefing room of the base was now filled with the surviving top officers of the Hylian military and their aides.
"You summoned us here for an urgent meeting Major Luske?" stated the elderly Goron who was commander in chief of the Army.
"Yes sir," the major replied stepping up to the podium. "Twenty hours ago, we intercepted a message from the IFC High Command to all of its forces," he spoke to the crowd of assembled officers.
"May I ask how you managed to decode the message?" another general asked, this time an elderly teal haired gentleman who happened to be the father of Marth.
"Yes, several days ago, three of our destroyers made a raid on an enemy convoy. The enemy did not fully follow his own protocol when abandoning ship and a party of marines sent by the destroyer found an intact copy of the codebook used by all IFC military forces," the major informed Marth's father.
"Thank you," returned the teal haired general looking gravely at the papers before him.
"If I may continue. Upon decoding this message my staff and I have discovered some alarming news. The contents of this message reveal that the IFC is planning a major assault on one of our remaining space bases. Present in the message are orders for the IFC to assemble a large force of troop transports as well as several divisions of troops, in addition to a large naval force. In the message the target of this assault is only referred to by the letters GD. In order to figure out the target my staff and I put together a list of our remaining outposts." The major now turned to indicate the projector where he had uploaded the very list that he had spoken of.
"Now, we eliminated from the list those posts that have little strategic significance such as those of B-983, C-189, and the Tion region. We also struck those posts that the IFC would consider too highly defended and too costly to invade such as the shipyards at Bethesda, Racknall IV, and New Kakariko. This leaves us with these few," and as he spoke the list became gradually shorter as the names he mentioned were removed from the list.
"From the remaining few choices we picked that which would have the most impact upon our ability to wage war, and as a result we came up with the outpost at M-354. Our reasoning behind it is this, this base links the main body of the republic with the vital area of the Silesian Cluster. The Cluster supplies us with manpower, metals, and ships and the only way to access it is through the spacelane which M-354 sits astride. By striking at this outpost they force us into a decisive battle against their superior forces. They know that we cannot allow the base to fall yet they also know that our forces are not yet strong enough to confront them head on," the major analyzed.
"Well then what exactly do you propose?" Admiral DeLanz, a male Zora, the commander in chief of the Navy inquired.
"The IFC does not know that we are privy to their plans. Their plan calls for a quick strike on the base that will swiftly conquer the post and then to reposition their ships to greet the counter-attack that they know we must launch and then allow us to beat ourselves to death on their defensive line. We must muster all the strength now and move them to defend the post. This is made difficult in that the enemy must not know we have dispatched reinforcements. During this engagement our forces will surely be inferior to theirs. Only through secrecy and surprise can we hope to achieve victory," Luske proposed.
"Major Luske, have you considered the possibility that Ganondof and his cronies might be baiting us. They could have sent this message in the hopes that we would get it, concentrate our forces in one place, and use that time to conquer other location that have been weakened," Marth's father ventured forth.
"General Lowell, my staff and I have considered that possibility but we have concluded that it is extremely unlikely. Currently all branches of the armed forces of the IFC use this code that we captured the codebooks for. They would not purposefully allow us access to the code that reveals all of their intentions to us. The manner in which we obtained the codes make such a play extremely difficult. Our destroyers were freelance raiders, following no particular plan or schedule, it would have been impossible for the IFC to count on our ships showing up when they did. Additionally, our interception station have given us no new messages with no new encoding systems so we can conclude the IFC is still using its same codes, unaware that we now possess them," Luske countered, with the reasons that he and his staff had moments ago pieced together.
"So then, it seems we must make our stand here then or the war is lost," Senator Harkinian said as he spoke for the first time. "When do we expect them to strike, Major?"
"The message details the attack to begin two and a half weeks from now. Already, they have fleet elements involved in the assault commencing exercises and are also re-training their ground force involved."
"Well then, what do we have to meet them and who will command this force?" the senator inquired, not particularly enthusiastic about the answer that he knew was coming given their grave situation.
The admiral in charge of the fleet spoke first.
"We're severely limited in our deployable ships as of now. As you know, we have a massive amount of new construction but the majority of the crews are still training and those that have finished basic training I would not trust in an operation of this importance. If we scrape up whatever we can, I believe that we can form several battlegroups to send out however that would leave some areas stretched thin. If I may suggest sir, that we speed up repairs on damaged ships as to get as many of them back into fighting shape as possible. Any ship that has just concluded a battle should be immediately repaired and resupplied for deployment to our outpost at M-354."
"Very well Admiral, issue the necessary orders. General?" the senator indicated with a gentle wave at his hand at the Goron general in charge of the Army.
"The best I can get without sending in raw recruits is a pair of infantry divisions, a reinforced armored division, and a mechanized brigade," replied the graying commander in chief of the army.
The commandant of the Marine Corps, a Sheikah female decided to speak up, "I can also provide a heavily reinforced marine division."
"Well then that answers the first question, now to answer the second," the senator proceeded.
"If possible Senator, I would like to be placed in command during this battle," Marth's father interjected.
"Weren't you the one who believed that this was all a hoax, General?" Admiral DeLanz inquired softly.
"Yes, ma'am, however Major Luske's presentation convinced me that we could not take the risk of disregarding the message and I am tired of sitting here while our soldiers put
themselves at risk."
"Very well General, I will the appropriate orders drawn up for you. Please confer with Admiral DeLanz, General Tarunia, and General Callista on the specific amount of troops and resources you will need for this campaign," the senator relented.
"Thank you sir," the General saluted with his eyes glinting with some untold emotion.
H.N.S Freedom's Cry
The first air-raid was followed by several others in the next few days. The remaining ships from the Freedom's Cry taskforce had dispersed to their various assigned beaches.
The Freedom's Cry was posted on the beach that was most opportune for an invasion landing. It was posted at the fringe of a forest that bordered the beach. It was resting on its own landing gear, parallel to the beach, her guns trained outwards. It was now nighttime and some of the crewmen who were hard at work constructing a large earthen berm in front of the ship for protection returned to the ship to turn in for the night as did the others who were helping engineers construct makeshift bunkers and strongpoints near the ship. Several mortar batteries were erected in the forested area and had been ranged on various parts of the beach. Infantrymen finished carrying crates of ammunition to their foxholes and stringing barbed wire near the beach before returning to their tents.
At that moment, a duo of HF-29s roared overhead, returning from the evening's patrol flight. The two dove towards the beach before lining up on the border of the beach and forest to land on the ship whose hangar bay doors were open and lights beckoning to the tired crews who couldn't wait to get some rest. The HF-29s gracefully floated down and entered the hangar bay one right after the other and taxied to their appropriate berths where crew chiefs motioned for pilots to shut down the engine.
Link and Navi rose out of the fighter taking off their flight helmets as they did so. As soon as Link was on the deck of the hangar he motioned Darunia to come over.
"Hey, Darunia, could you take a look at the number two engine, there was a fluctuation in the power levels that worries me a little bit?" he queried of the Goron mechanic.
"I'll check it out as soon as I can, but one of the other flight officer's blew out the power conduit between his weapons controls and the beam cannon and that's a disaster waiting to happen," he replied.
"Thanks," Link replied before heading out with Navi.
"Whew, I'm tired," Link yawned.
"You're so damn lazy Link. Hard to believe the fate of the republic rests on pilots like you isn't it," she teased.
"No, I'd like to think the republic is in very capable hands," he retorted smartly.
"Careful, you might want to watch yourself there or you'll find yourself turning into another Marth and I'd hate to have to kill you and try to find another pilot," she said playfully punching him.
Link just mock glared at his happy companion.
"You always just seem to make me fool motivated don't you?"
"It's my job," Navi said smiling sweetly.
"Well regardless, I still have to go get some sleep," Link stated before yawning once again.
"Well I'll probably turn in anyway since there isn't anyone to talk to, everyone else is asleep," she conceded.
The two headed off towards their rooms which were located amidships and across from each other in the hallway.
Rendezvous Point Alpha Ten
A group of small craft roared over the ocean's surface just a couple of feet above the sprays of seawater. Eight of these ships were painted with a Stalfos on their fuselages signifying them to be part of the IFC Commando force. Seconds later, the four other accompanying craft, IF-3s broke off to head towards home while the dropships continued on below radar range of the Hylians.
Each dropship carried 25 commandoes many of them veterans of Operation Norse, fully armed. Unlike normal IG-11 dropships, these were outfitted with engine baffles so that they were nearly silent. Their mission was a vital one for the success of the next days invasion landings. The commander of the attack had received intelligence that the Hylians had used naval ships at various beaches as strongpoints in order to repel invasion. The Freedom's Cry had been posted on the beach that was best suited for a mass landing and the commander wanted something done about it. These commandoes were to move in silently, board the ship, and attempt to blow up anything that they could before being withdraw.
Within moments the beach was in sight and officers aboard the dropships began motioning for their men to prepare for landing. The eight black dropships soundlessly passed over the edge of the beach hovering just a foot over the beach while commandoes leapt out, weapons at the ready. After all the commandoes had disembarked the ships pivoted and returned to the sea waiting for the recall signal from the mission commander. The body of two hundred commandoes split into ten groups and silently made their way towards the behemoth that was the Freedom's Cry. Silently, they cut gaps in the wire as they moved forwards.
Motioning for a halt, the mission commander hand signaled his men, indicating that there were sentries on the berm in front of the battleship. Each of the ten groups had their own sniper who un-slung their silenced sniper rifles from their shoulders and taking aim.
There were fifteen sentries along the length of the berm watching tiredly towards the sea. Suddenly without warning ten of the sentries dropped dead, their heads exploding in a flash of gore. One of the sentries frantically looked down from the berm and saw a man in black with a rifle. It was the last thing that he saw before another bullet struck him between the eyes.
That task done, the commandoes found a gap in the berm used to allow vehicles passage and poured through. The ten teams split up, each of them heading for a different hatch in the ship's side. To their amusement, the commandoes found the metal doors locked shut. This presented only a slight barrier as the commandoes extracted electronic devices that would override the lock and open the door. Within moments, the commandoes were inside the ship heading for various targets. One group headed for the hangar bay and began planting explosives amongst the catapult machinery that allowed the ship to launch its fighters and propellant tanks were also wired to explode. The team silently crept out but were startled by a loud shout from one of the above gantries.
"You there what are you doing?" a Hylian marine shouted brandishing his rifles. The IFC commandoes hastily grabbed their weapons but not before the Hylian let go a long burst from his rifle. By some chance of fate, a burst hit the commando who held the detonation remote and in his dying moment, contracted his finger subconsciously and hit the button that set off the explosions. The commando team was far enough from the detonations that they were unaffected however the Hylian marine was thrown into the air as a result.
The team leader's radio cracked as the mission leader sent an inquiry.
"Status report," the mission leader reported.
"We've had a premature detonation sir. A guard opened fire as we were leaving and hit our demo man who hit the button right before he died," the team leader replied his veins now filled with adrenaline.
"Very well, move about and cause as much chaos as we can," the mission leader shot back annoyed.
"Very well sir.""
Flight Officer Link's sleeping quarters
Link had just woken up as he felt the urge to use the restroom when he felt a weak rumble in the distance. His curiosity took the better of him and he threw on his shipboard uniform. He stepped outside into the hallway and looked about when something caught his eye. Down the hallway he saw a file of men all in black and carrying rifles. He distinctly made out the Stalfos patch that marked them as IFC commandoes. Instincts taking over he rushed back into his room. He had to tell someone, his mind shouted out at him. Another part of him forced him to grab his pistol and spare magazines from his closet. That done, he cautiously peeked into the hallway and finding no one there he crossed the hallway to Navi's door. The digital keypad indicated that the door was locked but Navi had told Link the code a while back which Link typed in. Entering the room he saw his friend curled up comfortable in her bed.
"Navi," he whispered trying to awake his friend but in vain. He attempted this several times all with no success.
"And she calls me lazy," he muttered to himself.
This time he grasped her shoulder and shook her firmly. What happened next was not what he had expected. The fairy's eyes immediately shot open as she threw off the sheet covering her and sitting up with a pistol now in her hand.
"Whoever you are, you'd better give me three reason why I shouldn't blow your head off right here and now," the fairy threatened not recognizing her friend in the darkness of her room.
"Don't shoot, its me Link," he cried out.
"What the hell are you doing here at this hour, I told you already, I'm not interested in you." She replied amusedly.
The ship's cooling system had broken down and it was quite hot, so as a result Navi was only wearing her bra and panties instead of her full pajamas while she was sleeping.
"Of course I'm not," Link stammered, red-faced having noticed that fact.
"Not pretty enough for you am I?" she pouted playfully.
"Damn it Navi that's not what I'm here for. There are more serious things we have to deal with," he pleaded exasperatedly.
"And what might those be?" she inquired.
"There's IFC commandoes in the ship Nav."
"Are you sure," she asked skeptically.
"Of course I'm sure, I saw the Stalfos patch on their shoulders."
Navi froze at this remark. The Stalfos commandoes of the IFC were some of the most feared soldiers in the galaxy.
"Fine, we've got to warn the rest of the crew."
"That's what I thought, we should warn the bridge first since they can warn the whole crew from there," Link stated.
"Ok, just give me a sec to change," she said as she climbed out of bed.
Link flushed a deep red again and turned around while Navi donned her uniform.
"Oh look, Link's scared of a woman in her underwear." She teased.
"Shut up, we've got more important things to do right," Link groused.
"Right," she replied but not without a note of amusement.
The two stepped out of Navi's room both now with pistols drawn. They crept along the hallway as quietly as they could making their way to the bridge. Luckily for them they did not encounter any of the enemy on their way to the bridge. When they arrived, they saw the bridge manned by the secondary crew, with Impa at the head.
"Ma'am we've got some bad news," Link reported to the First Officer.'
"What is it Flight Officer?" she queried sternly that told Link that if she thought this was trivial she would have no compunction about snapping Link in two.
"IFC commandoes on the ship ma'am, I saw a group of 'em near my quarters, there might be more, I don't know," he said in a rush.
"We must act quickly then, they're probably here to sabotage the ship," she mused. She then activated the ship's public address system.
"Attention all crewmembers, this is the Bridge. We have been infiltrated by IFC commandoes, all hands prepare to repel boarders," she ordered over the intercom.
"You two, find Lieutenant Kitana and her marines. Tell her I want guards near the most important areas of the ship and the rest in teams to scour the ship," she demanded of Link and Navi who quickly hurried out towards the section where the marines were quartered.
Immediately the ship sprang to life as tired crewmen were woken up by Impa's announcement. They quickly donned clothing and made their way to weapons lockers to arm and organize.
Meanwhile Link and Navi ran into the marine's equipment room where they found the Lieutenant and her troops already in their uniforms and holding their rifles and relayed the First Officer's orders.
"Right then," Kitana acknowledged. Her marine unit of 80 marines had been worn down to 62 which she split into 6 uneven squads some of who she sent to vital areas of the ship such as the reactor, and main power conduits.
"You two come with me, and take these, they'll work a lot better than those peashooters you're holding now," she ordered throwing each of them a rifle from a weapons locker.
The squads of marines streamed out of their equipment room and began scouring the ship for the enemy. Link and Navi followed Kitana's group, wary, and rifles at the ready. There were several dead bodies in the hallway near a weapons locker, evidently having been caught before they could arm themselves. Kitana's squad slowly crept forwards, checking rooms on either side of the corridor they were in, most of them empty but a few with corpses in them of crewmembers who did not heed the alert in time. As they crawled forwards, they heard the crackling of gunfire in the distance. Immediately Kitana ordered her marines into a run towards the sound of battle. Rounding a corner, they saw several crewmen using doorways as cover, most of them with pistols, and a couple with rifles, exchanging fire with a group of commandoes just down the corridor. The marines joined the skirmish, their rifles flashing. Navi raised her rifle coolly and shot one through the mouth on her first burst. Link on the other hand was a les accurate but still blazed away enthusiastically the sheer number of bullets he fired, guaranteeing him a hit. The firefight continued for several minutes before the remaining commandoes decided to retreat.
"Are you all ok?" Kitana asked of the remaining crewmen.
One of them, who apparently ranked over the rest replied, "A couple of us are alright, but the rest of us have injuries of some sort or another."
The marine Lieutenant indicated for two of her marines to stay behind to help administer aid to the wounded crewmen while she, the rest of her squad, Link, and Navi pushed forwards. Just then Kitana's radio crackled.
"Lieutenant Kitana we've got a situation here," one of the other squads reported.
"What is it?" she asked apprehensively.
"The IFC has already been here, they've got remote explosives that could be set off any minute," the marine on the other end reported.
"Same here, ma'am," another squad leader cut in.
Kitana swore and hit the transmit button. "This is Kitana to all squads, find those explosives and disarm them as quickly as you can." She then also transmitted this to the bridge where Impa promptly ordered all crewmen to be on the lookout for explosives as well as the enemy.
"Where to now Lieutenant," one of the marines in her squad inquired.
"We move aft towards the engine room," she quickly ordered.
The small group moved throughout the hallway which was illuminated by the red flashing emergency lights. They reached a corner that lead to the entrance of the engine room and were about to round it when they heard voices around the corner.
"Best to be safe and see who those guys are around the corner before we go barging in," Kitana mentioned to the others. She motioned to one of her marines who took a small mirror from a pouch on his belt and crept up to the corner. The marine cautiously poked the mirror around the corner and looked at the reflection in it.
"Another group of enemy commandoes ma'am, looks like they're just starting to set charges in the room. They've got the doors to the engine room jammed open so they can get in and out easily," the Kokiri marine reported.
"Alright, here's how we handle it. We can't go barging into the engine room and start a fire fight cause we might end up lighting up the whole ship if we hit the wrong this. Navi, you're the best shot here, I want you to round the corner and take out a many of them as you can before you get their attention. Then lead 'em back around the corner and hit the deck and we'll open up on them before they know what happened, got it?" Kitana whispered Navi who grinned ferally in response before the group split up for their assigned task.
Navi checked her rifle while the rest of the group retreated a bit down the hall to set up their ambush. She took a deep breath and rounded the corner finding herself several dozen yards from the engine room. Looking down the hallway she saw the black shape of IFC commandoes shuffling about the room setting charges on equipment. She raised her rifle carefully to her shoulder and took careful aim and squeezed her finger down on the trigger. Her shot struck the unsuspecting commando in the head twisting his whole body around with the force of the impact before dropping him to the deck. Unfortunately for him, none of his comrades noticed and having been far away and immersed int eh sounds of the engine room the rest of his teammates did not hear the crack of Navi's rifle.
Thanking the goddesses for her luck, Navi sighted her rifle on another target and again pulled the trigger with the same result. This time however her target was facing a fellow commando who was out of Navi's vision and saw his comrade fall to the ground, a hole where his left eye should have been.
"Hey, there's someone out there!" the commando shouted to the rest of his team.
The commandoes dropped their immediate tasks and grabbed their weapons and surged out into the hallway where they saw the single form of Navi, her rifle still raised and another flash as she took another shot before breaking into a sprint around the corner. Her third victim dropped much like the previous two but the rest of the commandoes were now returning fire.
For once, Navi appreciated being small as her profile made for one that was very difficult to hit as she was moving quickly. Skidding around the corner she saw the black muzzles of Kitana, her marines, and Link trained at the corner that she had just rounded, and dove to the ground just as Kitana had told her to. The IFC commandoes rushed around the corner expecting to find only the fairy sniper but instead aw the flashes of Hylian assault rifles as the Hylians opened fire. The commandoes never had a chance and only one of them managed to get off a burst that hit the walls of the corridor harmlessly. Kitana motioned two of her marines forwards to check to make sure that all the commandoes were really dead while the rest remained vigilant in case any more of the enemy showed up. After the two signaled that the commandoes were indeed dead, the group proceeded to the engine room. The sight inside was indeed quite gruesome, several crewmen on duty on the room when the invaders forced their way in were draped across machinery, blood streaming from large knife wounds in their necks and faces.
"You three, stay here find those demo charges and disarm them now and make sure that no one whose not supposed to comes back here," Kitana ordered while Link and Navi held down the bile they felt rising in their throats.
"All squads report in," the Lieutenant commanded over her radio as her now reduced group of seven moved out and back into the corridors of the ship.
"Squad two, is near main turret three. We encountered a group of enemies earlier but they have withdrawn but we don't know where. We've taken some casualties, three dead, and one wounded but we've got all the charges they set here," the squad leader reported.
"Squad three, is in the forward magazines, no enemies reported and no past contacts."
"Squads five and six are heavily engaged in the mess hall," a marine reported over the radio, heavy gunfire sounding off in the background of the transmission.
"Squad four is at the power core, all charges disarmed and enemy killed."
"Squad five and six, hold on, I'm on my way," Kitana transmitted after hearing the final report.
Spurring her troops into a rapid trot, the group moved towards the mess hall as quickly as they could. In many of the hallways they passed through were scores of wounded crewmen, with overtaxed medical personnel trying to take care of as many as they could. The ship's sick bay was already full to capacity and more and more casualties were filtering in from various parts of the ship. However, not all the crew was helpless as demonstrated by the prone forms of commandoes throughout the ship, having met determined resistance from the crew.
Eventually, the small team came to one of the doors leading into the mess hall. Each person reloaded his weapon as they prepared to move in. One of the marines hit the door switch while the rest poured through. The mess hall was beyond any recognition. Usually, the large room held a large number of tables arranged neatly, with spotless floors and chairs lined up at each table. Now however the room was entirely different. Tables were turned on their sides on each side of the room one group of tables sheltering the body of commandoes that was keeping the other marine squads pinned down. Shell cases littered the floor while several bodies littered the space between the two positions, remnants of a failed assault. Luckily for Kitana's team, they entered the room near friendly positions and they dove for shelter behind a long rectangular table. Bullets ripped through the air as IFC commandoes noticed the newcomers and sprayed them with volleys of bullets. One marine caught a burst in his throat, gurgling blood before he dropped dead, his body still twitching.
Link was huddles behind a table with Navi on his left. He looked around a bit to survey their position. Marines from the two other squads were hunkered down behind tables occasionally popping up to fire a burst before return fire forced them down again. Crewmen from various parts of the ship were also clutching weapons and hiding behind the tables. Farther down the line where he couldn't reach them, Link saw Ruto and Mido both with rifles grimly taking cover as a prolonged burst slammed into the metal table they were hiding behind. Behind them lay the wounded whom were being administered to by a pair of marines and Saria who were combat medics. The groans of the wounded made Link and Navi both wince in sympathy.
Just then, Link heard the distinctive click as a rifle's cocking handle was yanked. Link didn't remember seeing any of the marines on his left when he first took cover so he let his curiosity take over and peeked towards the left. The person that was next to him was the last that he would have ever expected to be here. It was Zelda, her ordinarily immaculate uniform wrinkled and speckled with dust and blood. Her hair was messily tied back and although she looked distinctly different from the prissy ensign she usually was, Link still found her beauty quite breath taking to say the least.
"And what Goddesses name do you think you're looking at," she spat at him, eyes flashing.
"Nothing, just didn't expect you to be here, that's all," he muttered, embarrassed at having been caught staring.
"Oh, so you think I'm just a spoiled little princess don't you. You think that I'm the damsel in distress who falls apart after a broken nail and that I would run away screaming because can't handle a real crises like this," she hissed.
"Well if the name fits. The way you strut around expecting us to step out of your way when you come down the corridor and bow, you can't exactly be mad people think of you that way," Link snapped back without thinking as Navi on his right popped up to fire a burst.
"Well let's get one thing straight here, I'm not a spoiled princess or a damsel in distress and I can very well take care of myself. If you ever call me a coward again or insult me in such a way, I will have you ejected from an air-lock without a vacuum suit," she growled, grabbing the collar of his uniform and pulling him close so that they were eye to eye.
"Look, I'm sure you two will have lots of time to kill each other later, but can we focus for a bit right now and try to get out of here in one piece," Navi shouted at the two as a bullet carried away a lock of her sky blue hair.
The two Hylians glared at each other furiously for another couple of seconds before a shout interrupted them.
"GRENADE!" one of the marines down the line shouted. The marines and crew all dropped to the ground covering their heads as the said black object sailed through the air, and bounced on the deck before exploding in a puff of flame and smoke. Four marines were mutilated beyond recognition while a fifth was clutching his knee where the bottom half of his right leg was dangling by a thin fiber of flesh and screaming.
"They're trying to close in and finish us, take 'em out!" Kitana shouted as she poked her head up above the edge of her table before being forced down by a burst of bullets. Link hazarded a peek and saw that indeed his friend was right. Half of the enemy commandoes were advancing, with fixed bayonets gleaming on their rifles while their other comrades kept up a brisk fire that forced the Hylians to keep down and unable to eliminate those enemies who were seeking to finish them off hand to hand.
"This is Lieutenant Kitana. We are in the mess hall and under heavy attack, we need reinforcements. Anyone, come in!" Kitana shouted over her radio as the enemy crept close.
"Lieutenant Impa here. I have a squad of your marines and several crew volunteers, we are en route now, hold on as best as you can," Impa's voice crackled back over the radio.
"Shit, fix bayonets," Kitana ordered her remaining marines.
The whisper of blades leaving the sheath sounded along the line as the Hylian marines fixed the long steel blades atop the muzzles of their assault rifles.
Seeing that Link, Navi, Zelda, and the other crewmembers did not have bayonets, Kitana ordered two of her marines to scavenge those from the bodies of dead marines. They came up with one each for Link, Navi, Zelda, and a couple of others, but not for all.
It was all Link could do now to wait for the oncoming rush to meet him. Kitana waited as long as she could hoping to draw as many of the enemy a close as possible so not allowing the others to fire on the Hylians. With a shout, she stood up and with her pistol shot down an IFC commando who was mere inches away. She shot a couple more before dropping the pistol and brandishing her rifle and bayonet menacingly. The others followed Kitana's lead and clambered over the tables to come to grips with their enemies. Many of the crewmen were inexperienced at hand to hand combat having done no more than their basic training and were defeated easily by the elite IFC commandoes. The marines fought hard, but were slowly being overwhelmed and pushed back.
Link found himself grappling with a commando that was a full five inches taller than him and more muscular. He was barely able to dodge his adversary's first bayonet thrust. The commando did not use only his bayonet but his fists, feet and body to wear Link down. One sharp blow from the enemy's large fist sent Link to the ground gasping for air.
"Help…" Link wheezed out as loud as he could hoping to catch any of his allies attention while he fell on all fours.
Navi caught her friend's plea and hurried over as fast as she could.
"Hey, ugly! Over here!" his fairy friend called out getting the attention of the commando who was about to skewer Link and finish him off. The commando turned to see the comparatively tiny form of the fairy standing before him and chuckled. Using the time that Navi bought him, Link mustered up his remaining strength and jammed the butt of his rifle into the gut of the commando, sending him sprawling backwards where Navi put two rounds into his heart to make sure that he didn't get up.
"Thanks," Link gasped to his friend.
"Anytime," she returned, firing another shot and downing another enemy that she had seen moving in her peripheral vision.
Whatever their minor successes the Hylian soldiers were pushed back further towards their wounded, fighting desperately all the way.
Link took a glance around him in order to see who was left. Ruto and Mido were fighting hard alongside a trio of marines on the far right of the main line of battle. Kitana, several survivors from the other squads, and a smattering of crewmen were holding the center, while Link, Navi, Zelda, and four marines held the left. Just then Kitana's voice rung across the mess hall turned battlefield as she issued another order.
"Fall back!" he cried, hoping to make a last stand near the wounded and to buy more time till Impa and the reinforcements arrived.
The Hylian soldiers gradually retreated trying to keep a much distance between them and the enemy. Link again looked around to see who was left from the group defending the area he was in. Navi was alright as were three of the marines, he saw the fourth draped over a chair, his neck dangling at an impossible angle. He too was about to pull back when it registered that he had not seen Zelda. Eyes sweeping the room, he saw her, holding her ground as four commandoes advanced on her menacingly.
"Zelda get back, we need to regroup!" he shouted, feeling a pang of guilt for perhaps causing her to take reckless chances by insulting her earlier and causing her pride to well up and incite a desire to prove Link wrong.
She chanced a look back, her eyes flashing with defiance which Link initially interpreted as her deciding that she would stay her ground. However, deciding that discretion was the better part of valor, she broke and ran avoiding obstacles in her way. Link stood frozen watching the progress of the young woman as she ran towards the relative safety of her regrouping comrades. Then, just as she seemed about to make it, one of the IFC commandoes perhaps angry at losing perspective prey, raised his rifle and fired a single shot. A spray of blood shot out from Zelda's back near her lower left abdomen as the bullet struck home. Link watched in terror as she staggered along, the blood slowly seeping into the blue blouse of her uniform, until she finally collapsed to the deck still alive but too weak to continue on.
"Shit," Link mumbled to himself. "Navi, cover me, I'm going back to get her," he called out to his best friend who had also stopped and seen Zelda fall.
"Are you nuts? Don't go playing the hero saving the damsel, you'll be killed before you go three steps," she protested.
"Look, I'm going to get her alright?" he replied with absolute finality.
"Alright fine," Navi consented, muttering to herself how one day Link would get them all killed.
"Thanks, I owe you one," he grinned before he switched direction to retrieve Zelda.
"Yeah, it's a big one," she retorted dryly, raising her rifle.
Link had slung his rifle back across his shoulders and was now sprinting to where Zelda lay, barely breathing. Luckily for Link not as much attention was paid to him as Navi was fulfilling her job admirably. She was kneeling next to a pile of chairs, picking targets as calmly as she could and dispatching them with all haste. Soon enough, Link reached Zelda's prone form. He cringed at her injury which looked far worse up close than it had from afar. Her eyes were closed and her lips moved weakly as breathed laboriously, a dribble of blood oozing its way out of her mouth and onto her pale cheek.
He wordlessly picked her up as gently as he could and held her bridal style in his arms. Turning around so that his body was now protecting hers, he moved as fast as he could back towards friendly positions. Navi also slowly retreated, skillfully using tables and chairs as cover as she pulled back, firing all the way.
Kitana and the others had seen Link carrying about his task and were also directing covering fire so that Link could return safely. However, his comrades were not entirely successful as one commando managed to graze his left hip with a bullet while another lodged a slug in the side of his thigh. Gritting his teeth he continued forth as best as he could. Moments later, he had reached the far end of the mess hall where the Hylian wounded lay, and the rest had erected a last stand barrier. Setting Zelda down, Link unslung his rifle and headed towards the barrier where the survivors were huddled.
"They're gonna try the same thing again where they keep us down, advance and try and finish us up close, only difference this time is that we don't got any room to pull back any further," Kitana informed Link who only nodded.
The firing continued for several more seconds and then abruptly stopped, the Hylian marines and naval personnel assuming that the IFC commandoes were now making their charge and prepared for the final assault. It never came, seconds ticked by as the expected hedge of IFC bayonets never appeared. Link took his chances and took a glance above the barrier. He was terrified to see that an IFC commando was only a mere foot from him but was even more surprised when the commando's head was suddenly separated from his body. The mystery was solved when the body crumpled revealing the lithe form of Impa standing behind, a pistol in one hand, and a Sheikah dagger in the other.
"Wh…W….What did you do?" Link asked stunned at having seen a decapitation so close to him.
"Old Sheikah trick, snuck up on him, never heard me coming," the first officer replied dismissively.
The rest of the defenders of the mess hall stood up to see that their attackers were now on the ground dead having been caught by surprise when Impa's force had stormed the room. Now marines from another squad and armed crewmen stood guard at the door as medical personnel began hurrying in carrying stretchers. Seeing the stretchers, Link was reminded of Zelda who he returned to and found still unconscious as he had left her earlier. He knelt down over the prone form of the young ensign, visually examining her injuries. Although normally pale, she was now even more so than before, much blood having been lost and little left of it till in her cheeks. Link used his thumb to wipe away the dribble of blood and noticed how peaceful she seemed like this, almost as if she was just asleep and not shot and wounded. Feeling a soft hand on his shoulder, he looked up to find Saria, Navi, Ruto, and Mido.
"You did a good thing Link going back out to get her." Saria said comfortingly.
"You're a good guy, maybe a bit daft at times, but I'm still proud to say you're my friend," Navi stated warmly.
This moment was rudely interrupted as Marth decided to make his presence known.
"Hey, you piece of trash, get your filthy hands off my girlfriend. I know your kind, trying to do anything you can to get with a respectable high class girl," the teal haired pilot threatened Link.
Link stood up, his anger beginning to boil and his left hand instinctively reaching for the pistol he still had until he felt Navi's small hand prevent him from doing so.
"Well I don't think you have to worry about that. Your girlfriend is just as bad as you, always putting on airs, and acting better than the rest of us. I wouldn't be attracted to her even if you paid me. I was only doing my duty to protect the citizens of Hyrule," Link hissed through clenched teeth.
"Duty, low born maggots like you don't know what that word means," Marth replied, his voice dripping with contempt.
"Funny, since we're on the subject of duty, why do you seem to be the only one with a clean uniform and no wounds here. Wasn't your duty as a member of the crew to help and battle the intruders," Ruto snuck in.
"Or was your idea of duty, hiding in your closet," Navi taunted.
"Just stay away from Zelda from now on!" he retorted jabbing his finger into Link's throat before following two medics who had by now lifted Zelda onto a stretcher and were now taking her to the infirmary.
"Let me at him!" Link furiously roared, struggling as his four friends held him back.
"Calm down Link you need to be treated for your wounds!" Mido cried as he narrowly missed being swiped by Link's flailing arms.
It took the group nearly another ten minutes to finally calm Link down enough to a point where he allowed a medic to examine and bandage his wounds.
"I'll get that bastard one day, he'll regret that," Link mumbled as the painkiller that the medic administered took affect.
H.N.S Freedom's Cry, Bridge
Impa returned to the bridge, her dagger again in its hidden sheath and strode up to her waiting captain.
"All resistance has ceased ma'am. We got most of them but a couple dozen managed to escape back to the beaches and were extracted." Impa reported crisply.
"Very well, casualties?" Nabooru asked the question she dreaded the most.
"They were heaviest during the initial moments when crewmembers were scurrying about unarmed and unorganized. Once we had armed most of the crew and had formed into groups we managed to repel them quite well. Additionally the only charges that went off were the ones in the hangar bay that destroyed the catapults, every other one was found and destroyed," the first officer relayed her findings.
"That means we can't launch our fighters then?" Nabooru inquired, her eyes betraying her worry at this fact.
"No ma'am, Darunia says he can't fix it without going into a fully equipped shipyard."
"Very well, then, fix what you can and double the standing guard," Nabooru ordered with resignation.
A/N: whew the longest chapter I have ever written. Please review this chapter
Next time on Legend of Zelda Freedom's Cry: With the crew demoralized and depleted the men and women of the Freedom's Cry struggle to repel the first waves of the IFC assault.