Not much to say this time around. Let's just get a new chapter out, all right?
Chapter 18
The Ruby Master of Blades
"The Ruby Master of Blades, huh?" Link asked as he started walking towards the knight in question, his face hidden by his helm.
"My title in life was naught but the Master of Blades. But in death, I have been given new power, and with that power a new name. I am now the Ruby Master of Blades, the King of the Sword," The knight replied, sword still resting with the tip in the ground.
"So, you worked for Dolan before you died?" Link asked, stopping a few feet in front of the Ruby Knight.
"I serve under him still," the Ruby knight explained. "His soul still roams this place, and I, one of his most trusted servants, roam it also."
"That must be a rough existence, standing here all the time and just waiting for challengers," Link said. "I'd imagine you don't get visitors here very often."
"My time here is irrelevant. I only awaken when a challenger arrives. So tell me," the Ruby Knight questioned, "who is the current King of Hyrule?"
"The current King..." Link said, thinking. "That would have to be King Daphnes VIII."
"As I had thought," nodded the knight. "It has been 2 generations since I have last awoken. King Daphnes VI was the last to rule when I was challenged. King Daphnes IV was the King in my time."
"Wow," said Link in surprise, "who'd have thought you'd have been here for that long?"
"As I have said, my time here is irrelevant. All that matters is..." the knight asked as he grabbed his sword, pulling it out of the ground and pointing it at Link, "are you prepared to meet the challenge of the dead?"
Link gripped his sword firmly, nodding back to the warrior in front of him. "Bring it."
The Ruby Knight came in quick, moving deceptively fast for having such a heavy suit of armor, slashing quickly at Link, who veered the strike off of his shield before attacking in return, though his blow merely bounced off of the sturdy armor. The knight chuckled for a moment before kicking Link's shield hard enough to throw him off balance before bringing his own blade down, Link barely dodging out of the way of the colossal sword.
"Damn, he's fast..." Link said before ducking a wide sweep from the knight, dodging back as such to get out of his deadly range. "Not only that, but my sword isn't tough enough to get past his armor... Goddesses, this is Scaldorm and that Queen Gohma all over again..."
Switching over to his ax, Link dodged another huge attack from the Ruby Knight before slamming his own weapon into his side, knocking him away and earning a grunt from the larger warrior.
"There we go!" Link said before releasing a wave of Starfire as a distraction before leaping at the Ruby Knight, ax held high to land a huge blow on his head. However, through the flames came a heavy strike from the knight's free hand, throwing him back. Landing on his back, Link got up and held his chest, as the wind was forced from his lungs due to his collision with the ground. He quickly looked up to see that the Ruby Knight had stopped, seemingly waiting for Link to catch his breath.
"I will not fight a weakened foe. I will only fight you at your best," the knight explained.
"And they say chivalry's dead," said Link when his breath came back to him, lifting his ax back over his shoulder. "Let's try this again."
The knight nodded, closing in on Link before taking a huge upwards swing that hit Link blunt in the chest and smacking him into the wall, cracking it a bit. Link fell, blood running down his lip.
"Oh... That's bad," said Link before coughing, a bit of blood coming up as well. "Not good at all. It's a good thing this armor is solid, otherwise that might have killed me."
"No armor can suppress the bite of my sword for long," the Ruby knight said.
"Then I'll just have to pull through before then," said Link as he shakily stood to his feet, wiping the blood off of his bottom lip.
The knight laughed before Link lay down a new wall of Starfire, the Ruby Knight shaking his head before slashing hard enough to put out the flames. To his surprise, Link wasn't there anymore. Looking around, he was caught off-guard when Link slammed his ax into the knight's back, knocking him off-balance and setting him up for another hit that threw him to the ground. Taking this chance, Link brought his ax down with everything he had, embedding it in the armor coating the knight's back. After he ripped it out, it wasn't long before the Ruby Knight turned around, sword more than ready to behead Link. However, Link ducked the colossal blade, uppercutting with his heavy weapon and knocking his foe off balance once again. Knocking him down once more, Link left another gash in his armor and leaving a large V shape in it.
"How?! You were incapable of landing a blow earlier, and now you make a fool of me!" the knight asked as he stood, kicking Link away.
"You always go for large, powerful blows when you think I'm not ready. It's an easy thing to figure out after seeing it so many times," Link said as he snapped his fingers, sparking the air around him. He payed it no mind, but the sparks created by his spell were much larger, even dwarfing the knight before him.
"I see. Your skills extends beyond that of simple swordplay and magic. You're quite the strategist," the Ruby Knight deduced, holding his sword forward. "I fear that even my skill wouldn't be enough to hold off such a combination for long. Thus, I will show you the full extent of my power in its unrestrained, most feral state."
Link was about to ask what the Ruby Knight meant before he suddenly brought his sword down, sending a large shockwave of fire at him from his slash. Barely dodging, Link turned wide-eyed to towards the attack in question. Once it struck the wall, it easily incinerated whatever it hit, and it appeared to have more than enough momentum to keep going.
"What the...?" was all the he managed to as he turned fearfully back to the knight before him.
"Another ability I was granted due to my afterlife is my magic, Inferno. I can burn anything that stands in my way," the knight explained, slashing once again at Link.
"My armor should stop that, but... I felt the heat as it passed by. Damn, magical flames must not be included in fireproof..." Link deduced before dodging the next strike, which once again burned through the wall as if it weren't there.
"But wait, the way he's using his magic..." Link said as he charged in, drawing the Antares Edge instead of his ax. "He's using the blade to channel the flames!"
Link quickly dodged to the side of another strike from the Ruby Knight, a trail of fire left in his blade's wake. Drawing the idea from him, Link slashed with his own blade after snapping his fingers close to the blade, igniting it. Luckily, his idea worked out, and the attack left a huge gap in his foe's armor.
"Gah! You learn quickly, boy!" the Ruby Knight declared before slamming a greave into Link's face and driving him away. "But what of moves you cannot replicate?"
Link didn't even bother to ask and quickly grabbed his shield as the knight slashed the ground around himself before grabbing it with his bare hands and lifting it over his head. Link noticed that his gauntlets began glowing with an unnatural light before the huge chunk of earth caught ablaze and it was thrown at Link. Wide-eyed, Link rolled out of the way before the Ruby Knight was on top of him sword held high to finish the job. However, Link managed to veer the blow off to the side using his shield before impaling the knight with his sword.
"*Coughcough* Not bad, mortal. Though I warn you, this isn't over yet!"
Link quickly ripped his sword free before back stepping a few times to get away from the Ruby Knight before his entire form was coated in flames.
"Inferno is such a powerful art. I can even channel its power throughout my armor to function as a deterrent."
Link gritted his teeth. "So, I can't even get close."
"Good. You are smart. That will make this much easier, mortal," the knight said before swinging his sword, the ruby blade lighting ablaze.
"I don't intend to go down without a fight!" Link shouted before charging the Ruby Knight, having instead opted to use his ax for the current situation. Lifting the blade high, he hurled it as hard as he could at the knight before him, catching him off guard and burying the weapon in his shoulder. However, Link didn't expect what happened next.
Within mere moments, the flames from the knight's body were absorbed into the blade of the ax, the cutting edge now burning white hot.
"What in the name of the Three?!" the knight asked as he ripped the ax from his shoulder, throwing it away. Link reacted quickly however and caught it, rolling to halt his momentum.
"This thing... can steal magic from my foes?" Link asked himself.
"I give you too little credit, mortal. You were more than prepared to face me."
Link looked to the knight for a moment then back to his ax, having finally come up with a name for it.
"Heh. The Greed Ax," Link said, settling into a fighting stance.
The knight shook his head before igniting himself again. "Regardless, it will earn you no victory. Though I must say, you are by far the best to take up the challenge of the Emerald Grave!"
"I intend to be the last!" Link replied before charging in with his ax, countering the titanic blow that came from his foe with his own heavy weapon and opening a gap in which he could fit in a blow, carving a huge X into the breastplate of his foe's armor and staggering him, at the same time stealing his flames once again.
"Incredible...! You are truly worthy of our challenge, mortal," the knight said, holding the gaping wound on his chest. "But I fear you have much more to do before I can say you've bested it!"
Link gritted his teeth and back stepped right as the knight drove his sword into the ground, releasing a cataclysmically large wave of flames around him and nearly torching Link had he not dodged when he did. Once the flames dissipated, Link was greeted by the huge flaming knight slamming his shoulder into his chest and sending him back, more blood running down his lip. Quickly wiping the blood off, he grabbed his shield to try and fend off the blow, though the knight's speed and power was too great, and the Sirius Shield was blown from his hand.
"Goddesses damn it!" Link shouted as he gripped his now-burnt hand in pain. The Ruby Knight didn't let up, however, and raised his sword to finish the job, though his blow was halted by a heavy strike to his chest from Link's sword, now piercing through his chest and coming out the other side. Staggering back due to the weapon, he was caught off guard as Link brought the Greed Ax down onto his shoulder again, stealing his flames for a third time. This time, however, Link noted that the entire ax now glowed white, not just the blade. Ripping the weapon free, Link spun around before catching the knight's neck with the burning edge, zipping clean through not only his undead flesh, but also his unyielding armor. It took a moment after the fact for Link to realize that he had done so, but he eventually fell, panting, to his knees.
"That was... way harder than I had thought," he said as he wiped some more blood from his lips. He could really use a good swig from a red potion...
"Incredible."
Link quickly looked around to see that the knight's armor had begun to burn, bathed in a beautiful golden flame. Said golden flame then began smiling at him.
"No, not this again," Link said as he rested his face in his hands. "Why does all of this fire talk?"
"I do not know about that which you speak, but I shall not pry. After all, you, Link Valion, have proven worthy of the trial of the dead! This is no small feat for a mortal, even one as skilled as you. Not only that, but you are the first to have bested me since the Dolan of Late. Because of this, you have earned my favor. Now, come claim your prize, the Meteor Mitts," the spirit of the Ruby Knight declared before the flame faded, revealing that all that remained was his sword and his gauntlets.
"Oh thank the Goddesses that ended," Link said before grabbing a red potion from his pouch and taking a swig, kneeling next to the weapons left by the Ruby Knight.
"So, the Meteor Mitts..." Link said as he eyed the bracers, which actually matched his current armor set. "Sure, I'll bite."
Donning the gauntlets, Link was satisfied that they felt rather solid, meaning that they could take a hit. That, and they more rather formidable weight, so he might also be capable of dishing out some unarmed strikes at this point.
"Not bad..." he said before looking down at the Ruby Knight's sword, which for some reason seemed smaller. "And his greatsword, no less."
Reaching down, he was surprised that once his hand was wrapped around the handle, the blade caught fire, much like it had when the knight from earlier wielded it. Quickly releasing the blade, he backed up, watching as the flames quickly subsided.
"I get it, the gauntlets have Inferno in them, so the blade catches fire when used together with them. That's pretty cool," he said as he reached down and grabbed the sword again, the blade catching fire once again. However, when he tried to lift, he was surprised to see that the weapon was exceedingly heavy, warranting the use of two hands, much like the Greed Ax. That being said, with two hands he found it very easy to wield, and after taking several experimental swings, he was very satisfied with the weapon.
"And the Ruby Greatsword, huh? I'll take it."
And with that, the gate barring the room opened, and as such he was free to leave. He quickly left the room, heading back down the stairs and back into the main lobby. He then gave the room a once over, now noticing the huge lock on the central door.
"Hm... I haven't found any other keys, and none of that size or shape. It's like a diamond... Or a sword."
Grabbing the Ruby Greatsword from his back, he was satisfied that the flaming blade fit perfectly into the lock, and after turning the blade, the door quickly opened up, allowing him to continue. His first few steps were weary since the following room was dark, though his new sword quickly changed that and he saw that the room was covered in torches. Using the sword to light them, he easily lit all of them, the room suddenly growing brighter and revealing a huge center column covered in runes with a large switch at the top encased in something.
"Well, more target practice I guess," he said as he drew his bow, aiming a single arrow at the overhead trigger. However, he was surprised that even though his arrow sunk in a small amount, it ultimately shattered.
"What's that covered in, ice?" he asked, noting that magical ice typically shattered when exposed to a foreign body, or at least shattered whatever was exposed to it. "I could probably melt it with my sword, but how to reach..."
Looking around the room, Link saw that this was actually a large hub room with 4 doors in it, including the one he had just entered from. One door was open while one was barred, and the one opposite the one he entered from was closed by a grand lock.
"So, only one way to go right now," Link deduced as he went through the open door. The next room was a long hallway lined with coffins, as well as torches.
"Hylia damn it," Link said as the door behind him shut and the coffins fell open, revealing multiple Redeads, a total of 6 this time.
Drawing his new sword, he was quickly reminded that it caught fire when wielded, and it gave him an idea; If his regular Starfire was enough to incinerate a Redead, then what about the flames from his new sword?
He cautiously approached a Redead that he yet to notice him and quickly struck, dragging his blade up the length of its body and lighting it ablaze. Confirming his hypothesis, the monster was quickly consumed by the flames and reduced to nothing but a smoldering skeleton. With this in mind, he made short work of the remaining Redeads, with only 1 noticing his presence, though it was silenced before it could do anything. The doors on the end of the hall opened, allowing him to progress further. Opening the door, he was greeted by a huge chamber covered wall to wall in sealing tags, in the middle sitting a large lantern with some kind of reflective ball in the middle and giving it shape. Approaching the lantern, Link was surprised to see how heavy it was, as when he went to move it, it didn't even budge. It was them, however, that he noticed that the sealing tags somewhat coated the lantern as well. Peeling one off such to try and move it by clearing some of the tags, he was startled when they all caught fire, the entire room being lit up in a blue blaze.
Jumping back and grabbing his greatsword, he was quickly glared at by a spectral being that came from the lantern. It was large, cloaked in blue, bore silver armor, and had a silver mask with blue detailing,
"Who dares to awake me? None have roamed these halls for generations!"
Link didn't answer at first, instead raising his flaming sword in challenge. "I do."
The specter looked at him for a moment before glowing blue eyes widened after seeing his sword. "You, a mere mortal, bested the Master of Blades? Outstanding! You are the first to do so since we became the guardians of this place!"
"He left me the sword as a parting gift," Link said as he backed away from the ghost. If he was like any other Poes yet as strong as the Ruby Knight, he'd need some time to form a strategy.
"I see. Very well. You may have bested my dearest partner, but can you best me, the Sapphire King of Shadows?"
Awww yeeeaaah, chapter 18. Good stuff right there. Heck, Link is doing pretty good for a dungeon full of the undead... I suppose those fire spells and weapons are helping though. Without those, it didn't really look like he could really kill those Redeads. But anyway, I'd say we're getting to a pretty solid story so far.
As always, OniHelix out!