Disclaimer: I repeat . . . I do not own any of the Soul Calibur or Zelda Series. There is a
little part in this story which a borrowed and slightly altered from another story. I forgot the title of the story and the author but the credit goes to that author.
Chapter 2
The world has been at peace for a time. Trade was flourishing and most misdeeds were reduced. Yes, it would seem that all the evil that Soul Edge had wrought finally faded. For some individuals, however, knew that evil never is destroyed and only sleeps. A hooded individual opened his eye, a deadly looking scythe held in his right hand. "Someone has arrived, someone from another world." He murmured as he looked over the cliff he was standing on. "Maybe he has the key to my final death." The hooded man said as he turned to leave.
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Epona slowly trotted on a path through the forest they were in. "Even after a year I still get lost on this world." Link chuckled to himself. Though the hylian and his steed enjoyed the scenery they were in. The forests would probably be the only thing that the two would feel at home. When Link had arrived in his new world, he found himself in a forest, he had found a road after a few minutes of traveling and motioned Epona to follow it.
As the two continued, with Link playing his ocarina, they had found themselves in front of a lake that could rival Lake Hylia. Link spotted a small town on the other side but decided to go there later. Link dismounted Epona, took of her saddle and set it on the ground beside him. Link then patted Epona before taking the saddle to the lake's edge. The once blonde kneeled by the water's edge before taking off his hood.
Link looked at his reflection in the water, his once teenage face had matured but not by much, his piercing blue eyes had also matured. His once blonde hair, now silver, slightly billowed as the wind passed by. The hero of time lifter a gloved finger and traced the areas where he knew the war paint was placed, he sighed as stood up and looked at the clear blue sky. 'I can feel my thirst for battle, it's dormant but its still there.' He thought. Deciding to make use of his time, Link sat down and started to rummage for his provisions, not before putting back up his hood just in case.
As Link rummaged through his satchel, his eyes widened as he felt a handle of a sword, he pulled on it and out came Deity's double helix sword. Setting aside the strange sword, Link continued to look for his provisions, 'Let's see now . . . bombs. . . boomerang . . . bow . . . arrows . . . deku nuts . . . Zora tunic . . . Megaton hammer . . . long shot . . . extra tunic . . .underwear . . .' Link blushed as he quickly stuffed back his underwear. "No doubt Saria's little goodbye prank." He mumbled as he finally pulled out some bread, cheese and some water. After a light snack, Link stood up and before he could stoop down and pick up his new weapon, it disappeared and reappeared in his left hand.
'That could prove useful' Link thought as he took out his Biggoron Sword with his right hand. Normally, Link would practice with his shield but seeing that he had two weapons and could easily handle them with one hand each, he decided to practice with both. He placed his right foot forward about a foot and half apart, then turned his left foot to it's respective direction. Link held the Helix Sword in a reversed hold behind him, parallel to the ground. The Biggoron Sword held in front of him in a normal position, tilting to the left in a 45º degree angle.
Link started off with a simple horizontal slash to the right followed by a slash with his new sword by spinning on his right foot. As he completed his first spin, Link ducked then did an upward slash with the Helix Sword then let go of the hilt to flip it to the normal position while being followed by a upward-left diagonal slash by the Biggoron Sword. Then the hylian brought down the Deity's former weapon, let go of it then followed the movement with another horizontal spin slash which turned into upward-right diagonal slash as he completed the spin.
Link then re-sheathed the Biggoron Sword as he willed away the Helix Sword. It was a good practice but Link would have to develop his skills in two handed weaponry or learn from a teacher before he would use it real combat. 'Probably when I'm surrounded or when I get better with this style will I consider using it.' Link thought before he took another drink of water from his flask.
Link heard movement behind him, he turned around to see a little girl about the age of ten, with long brown hair and matching eyes wearing a plain white tunic and brown leggings with a pair of brown sandals on her feet. The girl was busy looking through his satchel. Link slowly crept behind the ten year old who didn't notice him until he overshadowed her. The little girl tried to make a run for it, but before she could get away, she was grabbed at the collar of her tunic and hoisted. "Please don't hurt me, I'll do anything you want!" She cried. Link turned her to face him and he could he saw that she was on the verge of crying. He placed her on the ground, then she started to cry. The hylian went on one knee then placed a hand on the girl trying to comfort the little one. "Why were you trying to steal from me? Don't you know its wrong to steal from others?" he asked in a caring tone.
The little girl nodded as her crying had started to fade into small sobs. "It's – bec-ause my mom-my a-nd I need the money to sa-ve my dad-dy." She hiccupped. "Shhhh, its alright, I won't hurt you. Tell me what's going on, maybe I can help?" Link said trying to coax the child into telling him her reasons for her actions. The girl nodded silently as she wiped away her tears. "You see, bandits came into our town days ago, they kidnapped my daddy as well everyone else's daddies, grandpas and grandmas. They said that if we don't give them a lot of money then we'll never see them again." She said with tears threatening to fall again.
Link gave her a warming smile then nodded "I understand, is that your town over there?" Link asked as he pointed to the other side of the lake with his free hand. The girl followed the direction of his finger then nodded after seeing the town. Link then stood up and looked at the peaceful looking town with determined eyes. He looked down the girl then asked "What is your name little one?" The girl looked up at him "My name's Suzy." Link then offered the hand that was on Suzy's head a minute ago. "Okay Suzy, lets bring you home and then I'll see what I can do to help." The ten year old's eyes shined with hope and disbelief. "Y-You will?" she asked hoping beyond hope. Link just nodded in affirmation.
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Link, with Suzy riding on Epona, was reaching the entrance of the town when he heard a woman calling out. "Suzy! Suzy! Where are you! Come home please!" Link then saw a woman about twenty-four years of age at the entrance of the town. She wore a white blouse and a grey skirt, she also wore sandals on her feet. Her hair was long, braided into a long, single pigtail with a pink bow tied at the end, reaching the middle of her back. She also has the same brown eyes as Suzy.
As the two neared the town, Suzy cried out happily and waved her hands to get the woman's attention. "Mommy!" The woman looked towards their direction after hearing Suzy's voice, a look of relief washed over her. "Suzy!" she cried out in joy as she rushed over to her daughter and hugged. "Suzy, where have you been? You had me worried." She said with a loving tone before she released her hold on her daughter. "I was out looking for money to help save daddy when I met Link. He says he'll help us get daddy and everybody back." Suzy answered her mother enthusiastically. The woman, then looked at Link. "Thank you for bringing my daughter home. My name is Rebecca and I run and own the local inn." She said as she led Link to the inn. He looked at the sign which read "Heaven's Rest".
After leaving Epona in the barn nearby, he went inside and decided to talk with Rebecca while Suzy went out to play. "I heard from your daughter about what is happening here." He said as he took a sip of the water he was offered. Rebecca looked sad as she answered solemnly "Bandits attacked us a week ago, it was the middle night so they had taken us by surprise. They had kidnapped all the men and the elderly and demanded a ransom for each and every person they took, including my husband. They said that if we don't give them the ransom by the time come back today, they will kill everyone they took and comeback here for us." Rebecca explained.
Link looked at the liquid in his mug "How many were there?" he asked. The inn owner looked at the warrior with eyes wide with fear, she had guessed what the hero of time, though she didn't know of this title, was thinking. "You can't fight them all alone, there are about thirty of them that attacked and there's no telling how many are there." Rebecca saw a smile adorn Link's lower face. "Don't worry, I'm used to fighting against the odds and I don't think you have the money to pay for the ransom or else your daughter wouldn't have tried to steal a few items from me." He said as he stood up and headed out the door. Link stopped at the entrance. "Don't worry, I'll rescue everyone." He said before he started to walk towards the entrance of the town. As he did he noticed that the mothers, including Rebecca had started to call their children inside and had started to close up shop. 'It's not even sundown, so that means the bandits are on their way.' Link thought as he reached the entrance.
As he did he saw a line of men, varying of different origins, looks, armors and weapons. There was one on a horse which Link assumed to be the leader riding in front of the others. The leader was wearing a black, knight-type armor and was wielding a humongous battle axe in his right hand with ease. Link counted and found there to be at least fifty bandits, including the leader. Link walked out to meet the group and he could feel his body tingling, his tunic had disappeared and was replaced by the armor and clothing he had worn when he had first fused with the mask. His vibrant blue eyes, hidden underneath the hood, had returned to it's piercing white color.
The leader urged his horse to go forward a few steps in front of his men to talk with Link. "So do you have the ransom to pay for the lives of your people? Or do you want the men of Sir Leo VIII to slaughter everyone?" the black knight asked in a coarse and raspy voice. Link gritted his teeth in anger, he could feel the man's grin from underneath his armor. Trying to keep himself collect, Link responded. "No, I do not have the money. I am actually offering you the chance to surrender, release the people you have taken and to leave these lands forever."
Leo just laughed heartily along with his men. "And what position are you to make such an offer? You are outnumbered fifty to one and I have twenty more men with the prisoners." Link just smirked 'Idiot, he just told me how many men he had in reserve.' "So do I take that as a 'No'?" the silver haired hylian asked as he subtlely inched his right had to his satchel. Leo just laughed again. "How about if I just show you our answer by killing you instead?" Leo said as his men started to surround his opponent. "Works for me." Link muttered with a smirk as he tossed a small object to the air. Everyone looked at the object and were caught by surprise as the object exploded in a blinding light.
Link took this chance as he took at the Megaton Hammer that was in his satchel and literally started to pound the living daylights from the bandits using his superior speed and strength. When the light had faded all the bandits except Leo were knocked out, Link just stood in the same place with the hammer back in his satchel, like he hadn't moved at all. Leo seemed stunned, even if Link couldn't see it because of the helmet Leo wore. "Y-Y-You'll regret this." Leo stuttered as he urged his horse to race back to his other men. Link just rolled his eyes as he gave chase. With his new prowess he easily caught up with the black knight.
Link stayed hidden as he followed Leo, he wasn't worried by the other bandits, he made sure to knock the others out for at least two days. Leo finally made it to the campsite, his men looked at him with confusion. "Boss, something the matter?" one of his subordinates asked. "Get those prisoners out! Kill all but five!" the black knight ordered. The bandits had huge grins on their faces as they brought out their swords. Link felt disgusted, he had an idea on what Leo was going to use the five for . . . human shields. The prisoners were all held in a dome like structure in the middle of the camp. When hearing the orders of the bandit leader, all the young men stood protectively in between the entrance of the cage and the elderly. Before the first bandit could make it near the cage, a voice echoed around the camp.
"So this what your going to do eh Sir Leo VIII? murdering defenseless men and the elderly and leaving a few to use as shields. What had happened to your bravery earlier? Aren't you a brave and steadfast knight? Or are you a coward, picking on those who can't fight back and only being brave when backed up by an army of warrior or bandits?"
Leo got of his horse and lifted his battle axe. "Show yourself coward, you dare me call me that which you are! I bet you could not fight without your parlor tricks!" There was silence in the camp for a few minutes. Leo had thought he had scared his opponent until movement was heard in front of him. A figure stepped out of from the foliage, which made the knight and his men quake in fear. Link took steady steps towards the camp, his hood down, the Biggoron Sword drawn in his right hand in a reversed position. Leo out of sheer stupidity his opponent could not fathom, yelled
"I AM INVINCIBLE AND I CANNOT BE DEFEAED BY THE LIKES OF YOU!"
as he charged towards Link followed by his men. He was the first to reach the hylian, with a mighty cry the black knight tried an overhead chop which threatened to cleave any man in two. "Oh please." Link muttered as he stopped the axe with his left hand, more specifically, his fingers.
The new God of Battle then used the handle of his sword and hit Leo through his armor. The black knight just fell on his back, a large dent in his armor. Link surveyed the other bandits with his white eyes. They were all shaking and before he could even breathe, they all ran away like dogs.
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"I don't know how we can thank you for what you have done?" Henry, Rebecca's wife and Suzy's father asked as shook Link's hand for the umpteenth time. Said person smiled awkwardly "Its okay, you don't have to do anything really. Just maybe tell me where I am? I'm kind of lost." Henry just looked at Link but then smiled. "Well, you're near the city of Athens, if that helps, however, I insist you spend the night here." Link scratched the back of his head but nodded.
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As the town sunk further into the horizon, Link pulled out an object from a leather pouch he had purchased from the town yesterday. The item is a metallic shard as big as Link's palm, it glowed red silently. The Hero of Time clenched his teeth as he looked at the item, as if he wanted nothing more than to be rid of it, though he knew he could not leave it for someone else to find. The item he held is a piece of Soul Edge, the cursed blade he thought Talim had destroyed a year ago in this world's time. Link had found the piece in Leo's tent after the remaining bandits were captured or had left. This piece of the corrupted blade answered his question as to why Leo had shouted his line before charging him.
"After everything we've been through and Soul Edge still survives. This time, Soul Edge will be destroyed." Link said to himself as he made his way to Athens. It took one day's worth of traveling before he made it to the greek city by that time, the sun had gone down. When he had arrived he went immediately to the Temple of Hephaestus. He remembered from his last visit that there were sisters who were devoted into destroying Soul Edge. He was surprised to see the Temple of Hephaestus to be heavily guarded. Link dismounted and made his way to the two guards standing in front of the entrance. "Halt! State your business!" the guard ordered as he and his companion readied their swords.
The two were of regular build and seemed battle hardened, wore their armor with pride, but Link could tell they had yet to see real combat. "I am looking for Sophitia Alexandra or her sister Cassandra Alexandra." Link stated, his left hand going to his satchel, underneath his cloak, he had a feeling he would only be able see the sisters by force. The guards looked at each other before looking at Link. "I am sorry but we can not permit you to enter." The second guard said. "It is best if you leave now stranger before we have to force you to leave." The first one said. The hylian, hand still hidden underneath his cloak, pulled out a deku nut. He observed that there were no other entrances except for this. 'No choice, I'm sorry you two.' He thought as he silently tossed the deku which exploded in a blinding light, this distracted the two guards and gave the Hero of Time the opportunity he needed to swiftly knock the two guards out and entered the greek temple to look for the Alexandra sisters.
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The White Wind, a group consisting of several warriors who had wanted nothing more than to eradicate Soul Edge from their world. The group compromised mainly of the Alexandra sisters, Sophitia and Cassandra. The monk, Kilik, along with his lover, Chai Xianghua, the original wielder of the Krita-Yuga, aka the Soul Calibur and the one who had defeated nightmare five years ago were also part of the group. Along with them were Maxi, a friend of Kilik and Xianghua who sadly lost his memory of the two after being healed from his fight with Astaroth and Talim, a wind priestess who they had met at the Ostrheinsburg Chapel.
Other members who were not residing at the Temple of Hephaestus presently, as they were in Japan, were, Heishiro Mitsurugi a rogue samurai. Fuma-no-Taki, a high class ninja/demon hunter and Yoshimitsu, the leader of the manji ninja clan. The White Wind was established after the group of warriors had discovered that Soul Edge had survived and that it's wielder, Nightmare had formed an unholy alliance, called the Schwarzwind which means Black Wind, with other warriors who wanted Soul Edge for him or herself. Nightmare, Astaroth, Cervantes, the lizard man, Aeon Calcos along with every corrupted soul had prompted the formation of the White Wind.
The only warriors who had a neutral status were the Koreans, Hong Yun-seong or normally called Yunsung, who had wanted the sword for glory for his country but was not evil as Nightmare or any of the others. Seong Mi-na, also called Mina, who followed Yunsung trying to retrieve the wayward warrior. Then there was Isabella "Ivy" Valentine, once a member of Nightmare's group but became neutral after discovering her origins form Taki. No one has heard from her for a long time, but no one has assumed she has died, because, one, she is an exceptional fighter and two, the only one who could possibly have the prowess to kill her would have to be either Nightmare or Cervantes. Finally, the French fencer, Raphael Sorel, nobody knew his intentions and he was secretive and hard to track.
The warriors in a meeting in one of the various rooms, they all stood around a rectangular table which had the map of the world on it. They were discussing their next move for counteracting the Schwarzwind. "So Talim where did you say the direction of the shard was?" Sophitia asked the younger woman. "I sensed the shard was nearby, it wasn't big but by no means small. It was probably a day or two worth of traveling from here. Lately, it has been getting closer to Athens and . . . " before the wind priestess could continue one of the temple guards burst through the door. "Lady Sophitia! Lady Cassandra! There is an intruder the temple!" he exclaimed.
The members of the White Wind looked at the guard, then they looked at each other in silent confirmation, they all drew out their respective weapons before running out the door followed by the guard that had entered. "Where is the intruder now?" Cassandra asked the guard as they hurried through the hallway. Before he could answer, everyone stopped as the sound of music had started filter through the halls, it was a soft melody which seemed to be coming from a wind type instrument. "Who on earth could be playing that?" Xianghua asked but everyone heard Talim gasp. They looked at her but were surprised when she bolted in the direction of the temple courtyard. The others followed greatly impressed in the burst of speed the wind priestess hand just summoned. They left the guard who was exhausted from trying to keep up with the seasoned warriors.
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He had sensed her as soon as he had entered the Temple of Hephaestus, her soothing soul had been hard to miss. Link had wanted nothing more to do but go to her directly but he had to deal with the guards that had been alerted to his presence. Almost all the guards had yet to see battle and were easily dispatched with one swing from his Helix Sowrd as the halls were too cramped for his Biggoron Sword. The guards kept on pouring out by the numbers which had forced our hero to look for a larger arena. By luck, he was able to find the temple gardens but he had been surrounded. Link jumped to the tree and willed away his Helix Sword before pulling out his Ocarina, closing his eyes he pulled the instrument to his lips. The moon was full and bathed Link with it's light as he played the Goron lullaby. The song had an immediate effect as slowly, one by one, the guards had started to fall asleep. As he ended the song, he opened his eyes and found himself looking at a slightly winded and slightly sweaty Talim.
Kilik, Xianghua, Maxi, Sophitia and Cassandra caught up with the black haired teen. They followed her line of sight to one of the trees branches and saw the intruder, clad in a dark green cloak with a hood which covered the upper part of his face. The older warriors were going to move in to attack but Talim spoke up. "Is it really you? Have you come back?" everyone noted the near pleading tone in her voice. This confused them, when they had met Talim at Ostrheinsburg Chapel they noted that she had been crying. No one wanted to press her why she had been out of respect of privacy. The dark green clad figure hopped of the branch and walked towards them until he was a foot away. Talim raised her left arm "Stay your blades." She said with a tone which reminded Sophitia of herself when she was disappointed with Cassandra or had tried to order her younger sister from doing something rash.
The man, clearly seen from his build, pulled out something from underneath his cloak. It was a red jewel, shaped like on oval. Talim took the jewel from the stranger and had placed it on the empty oval shaped locket that was part of her white tunic. What she did next caught everyone off guard. She embraced the man while crying happily. "It really is you! You came back! I thought . . . I'd never see you again Link!" she said as she sobbed onto the man. The man, Link, silently comforted the girl, when Talim finally stopped crying, she let go of the man. "So Talim . . . care to introduce us?" Kilik asked. Talim looked at the monk and smiled. "Kilik, Xianghua, Maxi, Sophitia, Cassandra . . . I want you guys to meet Link. He and I traveled together before I met you." She said then turned to Link. "It's okay Link, you can show them, your among friends." This confused the others until Link pulled back his hood.
Talim was surprised that Link looked sightly older and now sported silver hair instead of blonde, but that didn't matter as long as Link was now with her. "Y-Your ears!" Maxi exclaimed as he pointed to Link's ears. "Maybe . . . we could discuss this elsewhere." Link said as he looked at the sleeping guards who seemed to have a peaceful look on their face. "Let us go inside and let them rest." Sophitia said as the group went back to their meeting room.
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"So you're saying you came from another world a year ago and had helped Talim defeat Nightmare?" Maxi had summed Link and Talim's journey in one sentence. The two in question just nodded their heads. The older warriors were silently contemplating on what they had heard, a warrior from an entirely different world was sent to their's to stop Soul Edge. If the evil blade could threaten another world, how powerful was the sword?
"So you came back because Soul Edge hasn't been destroyed?" the younger Alexander sister asked. They were surprised when they saw Link shake his head. "No, I had no idea that Soul Edge had returned. I had busy in my world and I hadn't been able to detect it's present until recently." "I'm curious to know how you had been able to enter our world?" Maxi asked, thinking about how much he would be able to see in this Hyrule. Link sighed "The first time, I was sent here through the aid of the three goddesses of my world, Din, Farore and Naryu. The second time, I had gotten here through the aid of the seven sages."
Before anymore questions could be raised Sophitia decided to end the meeting. "It is late, we had better rest tonight. We can continue our discussion tomorrow." Maxi, Kilik, Xianghua and Cassandra nodded in agreement and started to file out the room. "Link, we don't have a room prepared for you right now. Seeing that you and Talim have traveled together for so long, I'm sure it is alright for you two to share a room. Sophitia said before she followed the others.
Link looked at Talim with loving as eyes, they were finally alone. "Um, would you like me to show you where my room is?" Talim said awkwardly as she blushed. "That would nice." Answered the silver haired man as he followed his 'guide' of the temple. After a few inutes of traversing the vast halls of the temples, the two finally made it to Talim's quarters. It was as simple room. The room was furnished with a single bed, with a table in the center of the square room and a small window for someone to peer through, but not big enough to go through. Talim placed her elbow blades on the table with her gloves, then taking of her footware before taking a seat on her bed. Link removed his cloak and hanged it on the chair before setting his things with Talim's. He too, took a seat on the bed besides Talim and before words could be said, Link found himself in a tight, loving, embrace. "I really missed you." Link heard Talim say against his chest. "As did I." was Link's reply as he stroked the woman's back. The hylian used his right cand and pushed his lover's face to look at him. They both looked longingly into the other's colored orbs before they slowly closed and kissed each other. For Link, it was the best thing eversince he had retuned to Hyrule. It had been more than eight years since he spent time with the person he loved and now he was enjoying this moment.
Talim felt great warmth spread through her body as her lips touched Link's, She hadn't seen him over a year, thinking she would never see him again. Their lip lock lasted for a minute, but to them it lasted even longer. After taking a small break to take in some air, the two kissed again, this time with more passion. Talim felt Link's tongue brush against her lower lip, begging for entrance. She complied with no hesitation at all. Link could taste her she tasted sweet, fruity even. His tongue wrestled hers for dominance, he eventually one and he found himself ontop of Talim, both panting hard from the lack of oxygen. Link slowly slid to Talim's right and used his right hand a softly caress her cheek. Talim smiled as she placed her own hand over Link's. The two pulled the other into a tight embrace as they slowly fell into a state of blissful sleep, never wanting to let go . . . ever.
They had been separated once . . . now they would make sure that nothing will be able to do the same. It had been so long for them, now they finally have each other in the other's arms. Their hearts were in sync they breathed as one and their souls have finally been able to meet each other once again. Link and Talim loved each other, for the rest of the night, the two did not care about the world, about Soul Edge. For this moment in their lives, they only thought about nothing except for the other and were content to lay in the their protective arms of his partners.