A/N: This chapter was revised as of 1/26/2019 - Polished, minor errors and typos fixed.
When Heroes Fall
By: Selphie Kinneas 175
Chapter 11: Truth or Dare
.:.
"Someone should go after him," Ren mumbled into the window, watching the figures outside grow more and more distant.
He looked over his shoulder and everyone was hustling to get Luda upstairs. He glanced outside, then back to his loved ones. He chased them up the steps, his heart pounding at everything that just transpired. He stood at the door as Renado and Talo got Luda onto a bed, talking amongst themselves about what needed to be done and what had happened. Ren knew she and the baby were in danger, but he just couldn't get his father out of his mind. His heart was racing, his mind was rambling. He was jittering, and his hands clenched and unclenched at his sides.
He couldn't take everyone ignoring it a second longer.
"Someone should go after him!"
"Then what are you waiting for! Go!" Talo stood and shouted, glaring at the boy with all the seriousness in the world.
The room went silent, the tension a thick fog that clouded the air. Talo stared him down, brows drawn together and sweat dripping down his temple. There was a bloody cut across his cheek and a small nick above his left eye that was starting to swell and turn purple. He breathed so hard his shoulders visibly rose and fell, and his fingernails viciously dug into his palms. His wife lay unconscious before him, and his fear was overwhelming him.
Ren looked at him in shock, his lips just barely parted. He glanced between everyone else, each occupying an awkward space with confused silence.
"Fine. I will," he said at last, but Zelda was quick to stop him.
"No," she stood as the boy turned for the door, "Viscen will use you against Link to get him to do whatever he wants. You would be leverage, just as Emeline and Shad were."
Ren stood there, halfway out the door, wanting nothing more than to just run through it and not look back. He knew she was right, but he was still so conflicted.
"You feel uncertain," Emeline spoke up from the farther bed, "You long to be a hero in your father's footsteps but you do not know which path he would take."
Ren opened his mouth to respond but Talo interjected, "So you can see things?" he motioned to his wife, "Then see them."
Emeline was taken aback. The young man's anger was strong and the amount of worry and fear and uneasiness in the room began to overpower her.
"I-I am still learning. I cannot quite distinguish-"
"Please!"
Everyone went still. Talo stared at the princess but everyone else glimpsed at one another. He was terrified of the fate of his wife and unborn child. Luda was just barely hanging on – he didn't know what he would do if he lost one of them, or goddess forbid both of them.
"Son," Renado spoke somberly, "Perhaps you don't want to know yet."
"Yes I do!" he roared, "Tell me!"
"I-I'm sorry, I don't know! There are too many emotions and colors and lights blocking my view! I cannot see..."
Talo huffed agitatedly, "Please."
Emeline began to tear up at the pressure. Her hands twitched and her breath caught in her chest. Zelda went to her daughter and placed a soothing hand on her arm.
"Focus on one thing and one thing only, my sweet," she whispered, her pleasant voice calming the princess down. She related what she was going through to learning to control her own powers, something that she worked on even to this day. "Try to ignore all other distractions and concentrate your energy into one place."
Emeline shut her eyes tighter as everyone else in the room watched her closely. Her brow tightened and her knuckles went white in her lap. In a moment, she breathed deep, and her muscles relaxed. She sighed heavily, as if she had an outcome she wish she hadn't.
"What do you see?" Talo asked.
Emeline swallowed hard and opened her mouth, but the words didn't come out.
Heat rose in Talo's face as he shouted again, "What do you see!"
"Talo, please," Renado urged.
"I see..." the princess quaked, "When I look at Luda, I see only one light, and it is dim."
Talo's voice stuck in his throat. His jaw was slack but he made no sound. He looked down at his wife, her beauty shining through the perspiration thick on her face. If she was right... one of them was dead and one of them was possibly dying. He was empty inside.
"Please leave," he muttered.
Everyone looked at one another or at the ground in discomfort, but when no one moved, he screamed, "Leave!"
So they left. Renado stayed to do what he could. The others that had followed upstairs went back to the first floor to join those who hadn't. Luckily, the commotion outside had prompted most patrons and visitors to flee to their rooms, so no unnecessary ears filled the space around them. Kina was quick to greet them.
"Are mom and dad okay?"
"Daddy said we were going to have a little brother! Is it time?" Orielle bounced up and down cheerfully.
Zelda smiled a sad smile, "We shall see, little ones. Why don't you play to occupy your time while we wait?"
"Aw, but we're bored in here!" Orielle whined.
Emeline reached her hands out in their direction to which the smallest one grabbed back, "I will keep them company, mother."
Zelda nodded, and her daughter could feel it. The children happily took their new friend to the back room which was one of their favorite places to play.
The queen saw Shad sitting at the table with a bloodied hand still grasping at his neck. She pulled out a chair and sat facing him.
"Are you alright?"
Shad forced a meager grin, "Ah! All is well, considering, Your Highness. How marvelous it is to see you again."
She giggled at his optimism and at how bizarrely different he looked without his glasses, "Yes, if only it were under different circumstances." She reached down and tore a section of fabric from the bottom of her dress, "I am no healer, but we should at least get your wound bound."
"Y-Your Majesty, you do not need to-"
"Shad, I understand that you have great respect for your queen and for that I am grateful. Now, however, I simply wish to be your friend," she smiled, and he sat in silence. "We have seen much together, and yet, it seems to never end. These are strange times... I will need all the aid I can get. Link will need all the aid he can get."
The scholar nodded, dropping his hand as the queen leaned forward to dress his cut, "These are strange times indeed. Why, I was merely grabbing some produce from the market when they snatched me."
Zelda frowned, "I am so sorry you had to be dragged into this in this way."
He shook his head, "I would much rather it be me than someone else. I had every confidence in the old boy that he would figure out what to do. I never doubted him for a second."
"But now Viscen has him. I fear what will happen," she murmured quietly, gently wrapping the fabric around Shad's neck.
"As do I, but I know that he is the hero through and through and he will do what he must. I saw that young lad come out of some of the most outlandish and gruesome circumstances still standing tall. Why, he is his very title."
"I know," she sighed, "That is perhaps what worries me most. He puts all others before himself, he thinks not of what consequences will befall him so long as all others are protected. He cares deeply for everyone and would see no one suffer. It is his strength and his weakness. Viscen knows this... He used my daughter against him and now you as well."
Shad nodded slowly, contemplating in his brilliant mind, "She is a seer now."
Zelda breathed deep, "Yes."
"Ah, yes... There once were many, now there are few."
The queen tied off the fabric and dropped her hands to her lap, "She claims to see things that I cannot understand. She says she feels things... colors, emotions, lights."
"My stars... The goddesses have touched her, I believe."
"I agree... She has some part to play, I feel it deep within my heart. I only wish I could relinquish this burden from her. She is just a child."
Shad placed his hand on top of hers, "Well, my queen... She is strong and intelligent like her mother before her. I do believe she will play her role marvelously and prove to the goddesses that they made the right choice."
Zelda smiled and rested her other hand on top of his, "Thank you, Shad. It truly is wonderful to see you again. How bitter it is to think that we have lived within the same city walls for all these years, but have not been granted the privilege of one another's company."
Shad went to push his glasses up the bridge of his nose, but remembered dolefully that they were not there to which Zelda giggled, "Well, my stars, Your Highness. Had I known you longed to see your dear old friends, we would have made a point to stand at the front of the crowd during the king's many speeches."
She laughed whole-heartedly, but it was an ironic laughter, "How foolish I have been to let that man gain so much power."
"No one saw this coming. Some of us had our speculations, you see, but I do not believe anyone anticipated this magnitude of events."
"I did," she stated bluntly, "I just... thought I was overreacting. I did not trust my intuition, in my power that the goddesses bestowed upon me. I second guessed myself, and it will forever haunt me."
"Well, my queen, if it is not too bold to say... Perhaps not all bad came of the king's arrival in Hyrule."
She perched a brow, "Oh?"
"Why, your daughter, my dear! Your daughter," he smiled brightly then, his eyes sparkling with that contagious optimism that she remembered from so many years ago.
She reciprocated, "Thank you, my friend. You are right."
Shad nodded, but his smile faded away as he caught sight of Ren pacing before of the front door. The hero's son gazed out the window and twiddled his fingers anxiously. He was clearly writhing in his own skin, aching to do something. But he didn't know what or how.
"I feel for the boy," Shad whispered, taking care to speak softly enough that Ren couldn't overhear.
Zelda glanced over her shoulder at him and sighed, "I know."
"I believe he will want to chase after his father, I'm afraid."
She nodded and repeated, "I know."
"Perhaps it would not be such a bad idea."
The queen looked at him confusedly.
The scholar pursed his lips, "Not right away – maybe even not at all, maybe as I have aged my brain has lost some sense – but perhaps we see what happens, how these events unfold and how our hero fares... and, maybe we will see."
Zelda hung her head and let out a heavy breath, "You may be right."
After several heartbeats, the queen gazed back up at her friend. He appeared exceptionally concerned, but for matters elsewhere.
"Does something trouble you?" her mellow voice inquired.
He looked up at her suddenly, again moving to nervously fiddle with his glasses to which he outwardly grunted at the awkwardness. "Ah, I did indeed forget how perceptive you are, Your Highness. Yes," he stammered, "I hope all is well back home in my absence."
Zelda smiled, "You and Ashei?"
His eyes went wide and his cheeks flushed, "Y-Yes, Your Majesty."
She giggled, "That is no exceptional perception on my part. Everyone saw that coming, dear friend."
After a moment of silent staring, he, too, had to chuckle, "My stars, perhaps it is so! She's got the entirety of Death Mountain's fire in her, that one. I only fear what she may do when she discovers what has happened. I hope she and our daughter do not worry over me too much... Perhaps I should ride home to tell them."
Zelda placed a hand on his arm, "I do not believe it would be safe for you to do so. Write her a letter. She is temperamental, yes, but she would not do something so rash as to place your daughter in harm's way."
Shad nodded with a bit of a sad smile, "I believe you are right."
The time ticked on then as it always did. Ren paced and Emeline kept the young ones busy. Zelda and Shad made idle chat and she saw to catch him up on all the recent happenings. They all worried deeply both for Luda and for Link. The future was so uncertain, and the passage of time seemed like it was everyone's enemy. Ren thought of what he could have done differently. If only he'd been braver, more like his father, he could have helped him. Maybe none of this would have happened... or maybe it would have been worse. He had no idea.
Emeline struggled to focus on the little girls eager to play with the princess of Hyrule. Memories of images floated in the darkness, hues and shades and shadows, colors bright and dim and mists thick and transparent. She tried to fixate on one at a time as her mother instructed, but it was difficult. When all was calm and emotions were settled it wasn't so hard, but when so many people felt so many things, it crowded her brain. She was still learning and connecting what colors meant what; mostly she just went with what she felt in her heart.
She could see that the older of the girls, Kina, had slight worry behind her playful exterior. She was more mature and could tell something just wasn't quite right. Orielle, however, felt only excitement in meeting her new sibling and joy in the anticipation of finally getting to be a big sister herself.
As the girls beside her giggled with their dolls, Emeline felt something. There was a prick on the outskirts of the darkness. Lights flickered, some danced like flames and some waned like moonlight. Her heart told her something had happened, and she tried to concentrate. She cast out all external distractions. She no longer heard the young daughters of Kakariko or the whispers of the stray guest or two that lingered about. She no longer felt the staleness of the inn on her cheeks or her breath in her chest.
Her eyes closed tighter, and she saw so much.
She could see the worried family upstairs. She could see their fears, their fates. She saw less lights than there should have been. She saw the hero and her father. She could see their caution, their intentions.
Orielle tugged on the princess' sleeve, and it snapped her back to reality with a gasp. Emeline got to her feet in a hurry and went for the main room where the queen sat with her old friend.
"Mother."
The princess' voice grabbed their attention as she stood at the edge of the room with Talo and Luda's little ones behind her.
"I see something."
Zelda's eyes narrowed as she slowly rose.
No words were said. No sounds were made. Zelda stared at her daughter's face and she could see the anguish in the way her lips quivered. She could see the apprehension in the way her brow tensed. Shad glanced between the two. Ren watched them from the entryway. A split second later, amongst the bitter silence that overtook them, they could hear crying. It was Talo... he was sobbing.
Zelda closed her eyes and released a heavy breath. She could not see what her daughter could, she did not know what fate befell his wife and child, but she knew it was not good.
The princess fell to her knees, the sights and feelings overwhelming her. Ren went to her side and knew it best to say nothing, he simply wanted to be a reassuring presence for her. She held a hand to her throbbing head, but smiled up where she knew Ren to be nonetheless.
Shad interlaced his fingers and placed his chin atop them as he, too, closed his eyes. The fate of good people was too often that of pain. Kina and Orielle glanced between them all, simply confused and longing to know what was going on.
There was nothing but quiet uncertainty for a long time before the sound of a door opening upstairs was heard. They looked up to see Renado descending the steps at a snail's pace with a wet rag in his hands, wiping them clean. They all stared at him with deep concern, but none were brave enough to utter a word. The shaman stood at the bottom of the staircase and mustered the courage to look at his friends for an eternity. He breathed deep, and released ever deeper. He was searching for the words, but none wanted to be found.
"Grandpa?" Kina's timid voice finally spoke up, and it wrangled with the older man's heart. It tugged and tugged and he fought with every ounce of himself not to break down.
Emeline knew what he was going to say. She need not hear the news, nor did the children. She had more to mention, more to tell about what she saw, but now was not the time. The princess enticed the girls to once again play with their toys in the next room over. Kina knew it was a distraction, but took it nonetheless, and Orielle was blissfully unaware.
With his granddaughters out of earshot, Renado hung his head. Zelda went to him and wrapped a compassionate hand around his wrist. He looked up at her, and with sad eyes she said nothing. He felt her peace wash over him and at last he spoke.
"The baby did not make it," the healer muttered with a weakness they had never heard.
Zelda closed her eyes. She could feel his pain so strongly. Shad looked on in sorrow, barely able to imagine such agony as he loved his daughter with every fiber of his being and could not fathom life without her. Ren sighed, but more than the despair of his loved ones he felt anger. This was Viscen's fault, no one else's. This was no divine will of the goddesses. No cause from illness or chance or even bad luck. This was the doing of the wicked king. The king who now had his father in his clutches. Now, more than ever, he wanted to chase after him. He wanted to be the hero - he should have been! He should have done more... He didn't even know if he was capable of helping, he just... needed to do something.
When the only words spoken were those internally, Renado continued.
"Luda... will survive," he whispered with eyes red as fire, "But Talo..." he trailed off for some time that abandoned them all. When he resumed, a thousand years had passed, "I worry how Talo will cope."
"I'll talk to him," a voice they'd temporarily forgotten about spoke from the top of the stairs. They turned to see Colin leaning against the banister. He'd been sitting alone in the room at the end of the hall, taking some time to himself to gather his thoughts. So much had happened in the past few days that he wasn't sure his mind was fully processing it all. That was when he heard the crying, and he felt it in the pit of his stomach.
Renado stared at him, the misery in the man's usually warm, brown eyes sending a cold chill down Colin's back. He hated to see his loved ones in pain. He hated to feel their agony thick in the air. He hated... all of it. They gazed at one another for several moments before Renado at last nodded, and nothing more. Colin reciprocated, and ducked back into the darkness of the hallway.
The shaman knew the children from the twilight all had a deep bond. It was a dark time, and they all connected in those disparaging days. They brought each other up, helped one another see the light when it was utterly swallowed. They related and understood each other in a way that Colin could perhaps spark something in him that Renado could not.
Colin stood at the doorway. His palm rested upon the handle but he did not yet move. He could hear quiet sniffles and he could feel the heaviness on the other side. After a deep breath, he turned the knob and slowly pushed the door open. He peered inside and entered quietly. Upon closing the door behind him, Talo glanced up at him. As soon as he realized it was his brother he quickly looked away.
"What are you doing here..." he tried to sound strong through uncontrollable breaths, but his despair hung over him like storm clouds.
He sat in a chair at his wife's bedside. She lay motionless beneath a warm blanket, her hair damp with sweat and her lips just barely parted. Her chest rose and fell weakly and she had dark bruising around her neck, but she was holding on. Talo was slumped over a bundle in his lap, his head drooped low. His body shook with the whimpers he was doing his best to silence.
Colin's heart broke in half. He had no idea how to remedy this kind of pain. In truth, there was no remedy, but he had hoped to alleviate it at least minutely. Now... he didn't think he could. This was the same boy from the forest that had teased him relentlessly in their youth. He was foolish to the point of bravery, he was bossy to the point of strength, and he was brutally honest and cared fiercely for those close to him. Colin rarely saw him falter, even as he grew out of his phase of wanting nothing more than to be the toughest kid in the village. Well, actually, he only grew to wanting to be the toughest man in the village. Were the circumstances different, he would have laughed at that thought.
Talo never cried. He never broke down. He was always strong and optimistic. Hearing of Ilia's death the other day was the first time Colin had seen something really get to him... but this? He... didn't know if there was a coming back from this.
The younger of the two had no idea how long he'd been standing there. His thoughts consumed him. His heart wrest control over his body. He simply watched for an uncountable number of heartbeats. When his brother's hushed sobbing amongst the silence became too much to take, he at last spoke, but he couldn't think of much to say.
"I'm sorry..." Colin whispered.
Talo didn't look up – he couldn't. He looked down at the form in his arms. It didn't move or make a sound. The father shook his head in doubt; he couldn't believe this had happened.
"It's a boy," Talo choked out, the tears free flowing beneath his bangs that he used to conceal his weakness from his brother.
Colin hung his head. He knew that was all his dear friend wanted: a little boy to teach and play with. A little boy to watch grow and pass his wisdom onto. Now he was here, but he was gone.
"I'm so..." Colin murmured again, shaking his head as he wished he had more to say, "so sorry Talo..."
"I just... I," Talo stuttered, "I don't know what to do," he looked up at his little brother then, and Colin held his breath at his bloodshot eyes. They implored him for help. They begged him for a resolution he just didn't have. They pleaded for relinquishment, for abatement, for comfort.
The blond young man stared at him with despondent eyes and no words, so he continued.
"My chest aches like I've never felt. I feel like I could throw up from the knot in my stomach. I-I want to scream but my throat is on fire," his breath stifled in his airway, still struggling with controlling himself through the emotions, "I want to escape my body but I'm trapped. It hurts too much, it hurts too much..."
Talo closed his eyes and Colin's heart hurt just the same.
He looked down at his boy who would never look back up at him. He prayed to the goddesses, but he knew it would do no good. He was gone, his little light snuffed out before it even got to shine.
"I don't know what to do, Colin..." he whispered again, "What am I supposed to tell her when she's better..." he squinted back up at his brother with a sob, "I don't know if I can be strong for her... What am I supposed to do?"
Colin froze. Words sat on his tongue, his mouth open, but they wouldn't leave. His mind ran over all the literature he knew. All the terms and vocabulary, all the syllables and verses granted by the deities themselves. None seemed fitting, none seemed worthy enough. Talo stared at him, his bruised face and his sunken eyes and his pallid skin and, and, and goddesses... This was a pain he could not relate to.
He glanced down at the blanketed form on his brother's lap. The child he had to watch be brought into this world without a beating heart. The boy he clutched to in hopes of holding firmly enough that life could return to him. The son he would both meet and bury in the same day.
Colin looked away at the thought. His eyes stung and his heart beat fast. It punched the inside of his chest as if wanting to escape. None of this was okay. None of this should have happened. No one should have to go through such suffering.
At that, he knew what to say.
"It's okay to not know what to do," he turned back to his lifelong friend, curiosity the faintest glimmer in his weary irises, "It's okay to not be strong. This..." he sighed, "This is not something you should have ever had to learn to cope with. Never. It's okay to break down."
Talo blinked as the tears continued to fall down his cheeks.
Colin glanced at Luda, remembering how strong she had been during the twilight as well. She was always the one at her father's side helping the sick and wounded get back on their feet – helping Link get back on his feet. She was a powerhouse, and he was sure that was one thing that had not changed in all their years apart. But even the strong fall down from time to time.
"She'll be broken, too, Talo. She'll need you just like you need her," he took a deep breath then and shook his head in disbelief, "None of this should have happened to you. None of this..." he exhaled slowly, "It's just... It's alright... It's not alright, but it'll be alright. Take your time and just... let it out. You deserve to know it's okay to feel the way you feel."
Talo's brows drew together, the inner corners lifted and his lips trembled. His mouth forced open and his eyes shut tight, the floodgates at last given permission to open – or perhaps he had simply lost the strength to keep them shut any longer. He openly bawled and Colin's breath seized in his lungs. Talo clutched one hand to his unconscious wife's and the other pulled his lifeless son closer to his chest. He sobbed unapologetically, and Colin felt it would be best to let him mourn in peace.
The blond Ordonian went to his brother, placed a hand on his shoulder and simply held it for a minute. Neither said a word. Talo did not look up at him or acknowledge the gesture. He felt it as he wept, and that was enough. Colin took his leave, closing the door softly behind him as he did so.
He stood with his back to the door, closing his eyes and breathing deep. He wiped his hands down his face and just inhaled and exhaled. He continuously found himself dumbfounded by the lives he and his loved ones led. Were they doomed to always endure such hardship? Perhaps it was the fate of all who were close to the hero – but Colin wouldn't think like that.
The young man made his way downstairs, the crying of his brother behind him growing more distant as the sound of those talking on the first floor replaced it. They had all congregated around the table beside the door to the kitchen, and they were discussing something important.
Kina and Orielle sat at the front desk, each with a book and doll respectively, waiting should anyone need to check into the inn, as ordered by their grandfather. He was eager to keep them out of the gloomy matters as long as possible. Ren stood near the table, leaning against the wall, while Zelda, Shad, Emeline, and Renado sat around it. Colin approached and stood by them.
They all turned to look at him, expecting some sort of explanation.
"It's awful," he admitted, referring to Talo, "but... they'll be alright in time, I hope."
Renado gave a forlorn smile, "Yes... It is a level of pain I was not aware existed. I pray that he and Luda will learn to endure however they can..."
"And you, Sir Renado," Zelda said, placing a soft hand on top of his, "This is no easy feat for you either. You must take time to mourn as well."
The shaman reciprocated the gesture, "I will, Your Majesty, I will. The wellbeing of all concerns me – I had to ensure you all were alright after those events just the same."
"Ah, just a bit of a nick for me," Shad chimed in motioning to his neck, "I thank my lucky stars that Link always seems to get me out of trouble," he chuckled.
"I'm worried," Ren added, crossing his arms over his chest, "I wanna go after him. Who knows what will happen?"
Emeline cleared her throat, "I believe I do."
Ren's eyes went wide, dropping his arms and standing up straight, "You do?"
"Well, I believe I may know what is happening, not exactly what will happen," she corrected, trying to explain, "I can see intentions... so I know what may take place, but I suppose that does not make it guaranteed."
Ren furrowed his brow, "I don't understand."
"She means she can see what they plan to do, dear boy," Shad elaborated, "Meaning, for example... say our dear hero had the plan to escape, she can see that as his intention, but it is not guaranteed to take place. Is that correct, Your Highness?"
The princess nodded, "Yes, sir."
Ren was silent as he pondered. Instead, Colin spoke up, "Okay... so what do they 'intend'?"
Emeline's forehead wrinkled as she concentrated, tapping once again into her mind's eye just to see if anything had changed since she last peered across the void.
"Well, the hero certainly has no plans to escape that I can see. He will refuse to pick up the Master Sword for father, and if it comes to violence, he will fight them all."
"Them all?" Ren blurted, "That's-That's crazy!"
"Oh, young chap, not quite at all," Shad stated matter-of-factly, "Your father could incapacitate the lot of those soldiers with one arm behind his back!"
The boy looked flabbergasted. He glanced between each of them in turn, all seemingly agreeing – Colin even nodded with a proud grin. He knew all the stories of his father besting monsters and demons and anything that dare try to take him down, it was still just hard to relate the childhood tales to reality.
"And what about the king?" Renado questioned.
"Father's light swirls in darkness and malicious objectives," Emeline thought aloud, her eyes visibly moving beneath closed lids, "I believe he plans to arrest the hero should he disobey him."
"Arrest him?" Ren parroted, his voice laden with fear.
Zelda's face was stern, knowing her husband well, "He means to throw him in the dungeon beneath the castle."
Emeline simply nodded.
Ren's jaw hung open a moment before any words managed to form, "We-We have to go get him then!"
"I'm afraid that is not an option," the queen replied blandly.
Ren huffed in agitation at everyone's do-nothing response to everything, "Why not?"
"We have discussed this," Zelda lectured, "If we so blatantly approach them, Viscen will use us against Link to get him to do what he wants. He will threaten our very lives to get the hero to do his bidding, and to protect us, Link would do it."
Ren's face contorted in frustration, "Are we supposed to just sit here and let this happen then?"
"We may be able to help Link, we just have to be smart," Renado said, gesturing with open palms, "Or perhaps he already has a plan of his own. After all, he has managed to keep himself alive and out of trouble – mostly – all these years."
"Agreed, sir!" Shad added with a finger in the air, "I do believe our dear hero already has a plan devised for himself. He is a master of the blade and of survival. He reads his every adversary and knows how to get himself out of sticky situations. However," he reached for his glasses but came up empty-handed, "I concur that we should have a strategy of our own in place should the fair princess see an outcome most unfavorable."
"So... should Link need saving we will be ready," Zelda reiterated with a straight face.
"Indeed," Shad confirmed.
"But what can we do?" Colin asked, stepping closer, "If the king's plan succeeds and he throws Link in the dungeon, how are we supposed to get him out? Storming the castle sounds pretty impossible."
An idea sparked in Ren's mind and he went silent. He crossed an arm over his chest and held his chin up with the other. He still listened, but only vaguely, instead entertaining his thought.
"Thus my concern," Renado uttered.
"Perhaps the queen or princess may be able to gain entry?" Shad ventured.
Zelda shook her head, "Viscen believes us to be dead. He mentioned something before he tossed me from the waterfall about his people pitying their widower king. He said they would hate the hero for murdering me..." she trailed off, deep in thought.
"Hmm..." Shad rested his hand across his mouth, wracking his brain just the same.
"That is deeply troubling..." the shaman said with concern in his tired eyes.
"I could sneak in," Ren suddenly whispered to himself.
They turned to him in a flash.
"What?" Colin asked, taken aback at what he thought he heard.
The boy emoted excitedly, his arms enhancing his every word, "There would be no 'storming the castle.' That would never work. I can sneak in and find him!"
They glanced between one another, but Zelda's gaze was focused on the son of her dear friend.
"I imagine he would be left unattended from time to time..." she explored the idea.
Ren nodded, "I can wait and watch, figure out where he is and where the guards patrol most."
"That is quite the concept, old boy," Shad surmised, "It is risky, but it may work."
"Father has a lot of guards," Emeline added, "It would require the utmost care and cunning."
"I can do it," Ren beamed, "I snuck into my dad's house all the time when I was little. I know I can do it."
Renado smiled a frail and fearful smile, but a proud one just as well, "You have your father's bravery, my boy. I pray the goddesses will be with you no matter what path ends up before us."
Ren grinned in a profound level of self-confidence he had not felt in ages. Colin, however, was not amused.
"Wait... are you guys serious?"
They looked at him confusedly.
"We can't just send Ren in there by himself. Into the castle dungeon where the guy that just tried to kill the queen and princess, Shad, and possibly Link as well will be? Am I missing something?" Colin exhorted, unbridled doubt taking hold.
"I can do it, Uncle Colin," Ren said plainly.
He stared into the eyes of the young man he looked up to his whole life. Colin stared back into the eyes of the boy he'd sworn to protect his whole life. He was always overprotective of Ren, but even more so since Ilia died. He felt it was his responsibility to make sure he was okay. Since they left home, it definitely fell on his shoulders to keep him safe. If something were to happen to him... it would be his fault. He wouldn't be able to live with himself.
He could see the determination in his eyes, but in his heart it felt wrong.
"This is crazy, Ren..." Colin beseeched, his voice nearly inaudible.
Ren's gaze didn't falter, "I can do it."
He saw Link then. He didn't see the little nephew he worried over. He didn't see the tiny kid that tripped and cried over a scrape. He saw the courage of his big brother in Ren's eyes. His indomitable will to do whatever it took to right the wrongs of the world. Perhaps it would be wrong of him to stand in the way of the boy's newfound purpose. It scared him, but everything Link did scared him, too.
Colin breathed deep before whispering, "Okay, Ren... Okay."
His uncle believing in him made Ren's heart soar. He felt a strength then that he hadn't felt in... maybe ever. There was no guarantee any of these planned events would even take place. Link could outsmart the king on the way to the sword. For Din's sake, he could, realistically, even kill them all if he wanted to. No one had any idea what would happen, but the idea that if something did go wrong, that he could actually do something about it? That made him feel important.
He wanted to tell his mom. He wanted to talk to her. He wanted to run up and hug her and say, 'I'm gonna do something worthwhile!' But he couldn't. She was gone, and it was a hole he would harbor the rest of his life. He looked up, pretending he could see the heavens. He closed his eyes and said only in his mind, 'I love you, mom.'
Some hours later as the sky grew dark and the temperature dropped, the hero trudged forward, ever followed by the king's caravan of soldiers towards Zora's Domain. This was of no real threat to him, as he knew he could either escape or disable everyone in an instant if he wanted to. However, neither of those would be wise ideas, unfortunately. Escaping would only ensure that Viscen would return to Kakariko and harm any number of his loved ones for information on Link's whereabouts. Ending them all would paint him the villain, regicide a title he could not bear. No, he had to play along, and he could do that.
He would not, however, permit him the sword, nor would he use it for him. He couldn't. That was where he was still trying to fill in the blanks of what he could do to get out of this. His mind ran the entire way to the domain, but he was unable to concentrate. He worried about Talo and Luda, about Shad and the queen, about the princess and his son. He had too many lives to fret over, too many people whose fates depended on him. His shoulders were burdened heavily by the weight, and it reminded him of the twilight. If only he had her to help him now.
They reached the domain in an amount of time that felt quick to the hero as he'd been lost in his mind the whole way. The king and his men dismounted their steeds as they reached the stairs. Viscen pointed his sword at the hero's back, forcing him to ascend and he did so.
He continued to think, and think, and think. He listened to every word that was uttered, every nuance and every action. He saw the way the third soldier down held his blade too loose. He heard about the sixth soldier's weak knee. He noticed the fourth soldier was left handed and the fifth wielded a bow. The tenth struggled to get up the steps and the eleventh looked exceptionally strong. The second was the most nervous and the first was the most confident. He saw the way the seventh soldier down held his blade too tight. He heard about the twelfth soldier's daughter back home and how the eighth was about to get married. He didn't want to kill these men, but he would fight them if it came to it.
They reached the top, the loud rushing of the water flooding their ears. There lay the blade of evil's bane, still patiently waiting right where its master left it. The corner of Link's mouth tugged up just a hair at the sight, but a quick shove at his back snapped him out of it.
"Ah, what a lovely night. Isn't it, gentlemen?" the king began whimsically, his arms outstretched toward the star-filled sky.
His men nodded, but save for a few grunts in agreement they said nothing.
Viscen lowered his gaze from the heavens to the hero, his eccentric grin turning sly. They stared in silence for a moment, each one scrutinizing the other, before he turned at last to what he was after.
He took a few steps toward it, "What a magnificent looking blade!" he feigned appreciation.
Link saw right through it.
"Why, to wield such a powerful weapon would require great strength. Wouldn't you agree, hero?"
His every word was poison. His every pronounced consonant was revolting. He spoke in riddles and everything he uttered was fake and backwards. To the naïve, he must have sounded so poetic and trustworthy. To Link, he sounded like a horrible salesman.
"I suppose so, Your Highness," the hero evened.
Viscen's eyes narrowed for a millisecond before he returned to his droll act.
"Well, we have all traveled quite some distance. Why don't we get right to what we all came to see!" the king bellowed ardently, "Hero, won't you do the honors?"
Link glared at him, and in an instant he replied, "No."
Viscen's smile turned upside down and his eyebrows drew together, "Excuse me?"
Link shook his head, "I said no. I will not do the honors."
The king went silent as the two locked eyes for quite some time. He burst out into nervous laughter before proclaiming, "Oh, silly boy, you will though. You will."
He flicked a quick glance over Link's shoulder at one of his men. Link noticed and reacted in a second flat. As the guard moved to hit the hero from behind, he ducked down low, and the man's overexerted swing sent him tumbling forward. He watched the soldier on the ground rub his elbow where he landed and carry himself in embarrassment back to the ranks.
"If you kill me, you'll never get what you want," Link articulated, curious as to why he would send his men after him knowing that only he could lift the Master Sword.
The king mocked offense, "Oh, hero, hero, hero! No one here wants to kill you. We can all be allies! Sometimes lessons need to be taught firmly, that is all," he smiled evilly.
Link squinted, but said nothing.
"Now, please," Viscen motioned to the sword and the objects of light and twilight respectively, "Let us not keep these poor men waiting. After all, I am sure there is someone you would like to see on the other side of that portal, hmm?"
Link's heart skipped a beat, but he couldn't say anything. He couldn't let this corrupt man know any more than he already did, or indulge what he already did know.
Viscen saw that flash of emotion, but decided it was ammunition better suited for a different time.
"So, what do you say, friend? Shall we open that portal now?" Viscen cooed.
"I am not your friend, and I will not be an assist to whatever evil you wish with the twilight," the hero answered adamantly.
The king scowled and signaled to his men. They all drew their weapons and surrounded Link. The hero stood in the center, arms bound at the wrist in front of him. He didn't look around as the men encompassed him, his gaze never left the king's. The two stared daggers at each other, neither one backing down.
Viscen glanced and Link took action. Soldier number six came at him, but a sweeping kick to the man's leg with the bad knee sent him to the ground in pain. Soldier number three rushed him with his blade held high. Link lunged to the side and hit his sword arm as the soldier's momentum carried him past the hero. His loose grip forced his blade to tumble from his hand, and before he could retrieve it, Link bashed him in the back of the head. He heard soldier number five pull back on his bowstring. He turned on a dime and leapt to the side, letting the arrow soar past. The guard reached for another arrow but Link quickly closed the gap. With hands still bound together he ripped the archer's bow from his grasp and used his leg to help him snap it in half. Soldier number twelve came up behind him to which Link clubbed him with the broken bow. Soldier number one came at him but something else caught him by surprise.
Viscen cut his men's advance off and was in the hero's face in a second flat. He held his blade to Link's neck and stared down into his confident eyes.
"Why do you fight!" the king seethed, spitting in the hero's face as he spoke, "Why do you insist on defying me when you will fail!"
Link looked at him, looked at the grip on his weapon, looked at said weapon pressed to his neck, and lastly at the king's stance and how he held himself. He then knew what he could do.
In a flash so rapid Viscen didn't even know what was happening, Link lunged hard off of the king's middle, using that momentum to spring into a backflip. As his legs soared overhead, he kicked the king's blade out of his hands and into the air. Returning to his feet, he watched the weapon fall. In one fluid motion, he caught the sword in his hands, used it to cut his bonds, and turned it onto its owner.
Just barely recovering, Viscen staggered when Link came at him just as he had. His hands now free and a blade at the king's neck, Viscen almost smiled. It was like this was what he wanted. It sent a shiver down Link's spine and it caused him to lose focus. He heard a guard advance from behind and he turned with haste to see soldier number seven springing towards him. He met his strike with a perpendicular guard. He swung the man's sword around and his body went with it as he was the one who gripped too tight. Link stepped aside, allowing the soldier to tumble to the ground of his own accord.
Link whirled back around to Viscen who was ready for him, but he didn't let that on yet. The hero once again pressed the steel to his adversary's neck. His eyes were intent and his jaw was clenched.
"Because I will not fail," he stated, fierce determination a thick accent.
Viscen made no change in posture or in expression. He twitched not a muscle and breathed not a moment out of sync. In a second flat, the king rammed his head against the hero's. He headbutted him with such strength that Link staggered backward. He lowered his sword arm and rushed his free hand to his forehead in a desperate attempt to dull the pain. He grimaced as the dizziness set in. He opened his eyes and saw three pairs of Viscen sauntering toward him. His ears rang and his head throbbed in time with his heart. The king closed the gap and grabbed Link by the collar.
"You will fail," he spat through gritted teeth, "And I will enjoy watching every second of it."
Link did not utter a sound. His brain stung like a million needles were pressing into it over and over again. The multiples of his enemy began to lessen as his vision tried to sort itself out. He stared up at the man that wanted nothing more than to take everything that was dear from him, from Zelda. Anger grew hot in the middle of his chest but he remained composed.
The king clutched tighter at the young man's collar, the fabric digging into the back of his neck, but he did not act fazed. This only irritated Viscen further.
"Why do you not fear me!"
Link almost laughed out loud. In fact, it took every bit of restraint he had to keep himself from doing just that. He kept a straight face, as he was so good at doing, and gave a flat reply.
"I don't fear much these days, Your Majesty."
The king glared down at the annoying roadblock in his path of ultimately ruling all. The hero's eyes were tired, worn-down, exhausted. Still, they remained strong and unwavering. They bore into his own dark irises with a tenacity and a fire he had yet to feel in his life. He did know, however, how to get this hero to respond. It was so easy.
When Viscen's fury dripped glower dissolved into the sly upturn of his lips and the glimmer of mischief in his eyes, Link knew what was coming.
"I imagine you would fear... Oh, let's say..." the king lowered to a whisper, "Burning down that wretched, filthy excuse of a village."
Link's heart sat in his throat. His eyes narrowed and he glared at the wicked man with utter contempt. He watched the devious gleam in his eyes and he just knew he gained such pleasure from this.
"They wouldn't even see it coming," he leaned in closer, only inches between them, "At night... All tucked soundly in their beds... Just a few well-placed arrows alight," he sneered, "They would burn in your honor."
The hero's blood boiled. His pulse quickened and he could hear it so loud in his ears. He never should have returned; all his presence ever did was cause his loved ones heartache. He had no choice. What could he do? He couldn't stop the king and his men from attacking the village. He could try to be there to defend it, to see his friends and family get to safety, but Kakariko was now a bustling town... There was no way he could protect everyone. There was no way he could prevent it.
He had to do what he wanted.
Viscen couldn't see that realization on his prey. Link hid it well – he hid everything well – but rarely did it save him. Just as the king was about to order his troops, the hero spoke up.
"I will do it."
His voice was quiet, but stern. Viscen heard it, but wanted to hear it again.
"What was that, hero?"
Link glared up at him, his fists clenched at his sides as he fought the urge to wring this man's neck. His remaining soldiers that had yet to be fully incapacitated still stood around them, ready to strike at a moment's notice. Were he to end the king's life, he wasn't sure if the guards would attempt to kill him on the spot, take him to be tried by the council, or relish in the victory. They could very well be against the king. They could potentially see right through his deception and only be doing what they must to survive. Or, they could be loyal to the king. They could want to protect him with their lives, and if that were the case, Link could not fight back. He did not want to kill these men. They were normal citizens with lives and families; they did not ask to be dragged into this.
It was a gamble he could not take.
"I will do it," he repeated forcefully.
The king beamed from ear to ear, releasing Link with a slight push, "Excellent. Excellent! See? We can be friends after all."
Link composed himself, straightening out his white shirt and loosening the collar. He said not a word as Viscen dramatized to his men. He didn't care to hear another sound from him. He let him blather on, grabbing the Master Sword, the light arrow, and the shard of the twilight crystal in his hands. He approached the edge of the waterfall and closed his eyes. He thought of Midna. This was the moment he'd longed for for what felt like centuries. He'd devoted his life to this, to returning to her. At last it was about to happen, but not how he had planned it.
Perhaps he could run through the portal before Viscen. Perhaps he could find Midna inside and together they could take out the malevolent king. Maybe, just maybe... he thought... this could work in their favor.
He smiled as he pictured her face. He would see her again at last. He would make this right. His actions were under duress, but he would see to it that they made purchase.
He thrust the mighty blade of evil's bane down into the muddy waters of the domain's magnificent waterfall. He held the arrow of light in his right hand, and the shard of the twilight crystal in his left. He shut his eyes tight and held them for eons. He reached out with his heart, with his mind and his power and every fragment of the piece of courage that flowed through his veins. He concentrated long and hard, reciting the lines of the prophecy to himself. He had long since memorized them, repeating them to himself when his journey got hard.
'One of noble intentions shall combine light and twilight where purest waters flow like time unending into the winding river. The spirit of that which seals away darkest evil will shine upon the stone before time stagnates.'
Noble intentions...
Himself.
Combine light and twilight...
Arrow and crystal.
Purest waters flow...
The Domain.
Seals away darkest evil...
The Master Sword.
Shine upon the stone...
Wait... what stone?
Link's eyes shot open. Nothing was happening.
The objects in his hand made no reaction. The blade shown no purpose. He looked frantically at all the pieces – he messed up.
This wasn't right.
They got it wrong.
They never figured out the last part.
"What are we waiting for?" Viscen blustered behind him, but he didn't hear it.
How could this be? How could he have gotten it so wrong? How could he have been so blinded by the first steps that he completely ignored the remaining?
He glanced back and forth at the puzzle, his eyes surely betraying his heart. This had to be it! But it wasn't... They got it wrong.
Everything he'd done was for nothing.
He was back at square one.
"I said, what are we waiting for!" the king shouted, approaching the hero with haste.
Link's jaw was slack. He forgot to breathe. He felt like the very fabric of his life was yanked out from under his feet. What could he do now? Could he start over again? He didn't know if he had it in him.
"It's wrong..." he whispered.
Viscen stopped and stared. He glared through fuming irises at the back of the twerp's head, at the stupid objects in his hand, at the pretentious blade in the mud.
Nothing was happening.
Did he trick him? Did the hero fool him up until the end? Did he lead him to believe he had the pieces to the puzzle when truly he did not?
A rage overtook the king of Hyrule in that moment. He screamed a guttural scream that shook all those in the vicinity. He took up his own blade and with the pommel he whacked the hero upside the head with all the fury-fueled strength in his body. Link's only sound was a muted groan before he hit the floor.
How dare he trick him in such a humiliating way! How dare he embarrass his king!
He would do the same to him, by the goddesses. He would rot in prison and only see the light of day when he wished to give his citizens a place to focus their malcontent.
How dare he!
How dare he...
A daring truth, a truthful dare.
A big thank you to the following for helping me get this chapter out there!
SonadowKokoro100, Debora, Mandelbrot, Chloe Rose, Lotus Eater, Ivalee, Lee Glerum, Gabby-J
You guys are amazing!
