So, erm, terrible filler chapter is terrible... yeah, not much to say... -_-
HUGE THANKS to ultima-owner, doomsbane, Nerdwen (x2!) and Guest for reviewing!
Edit 4-2-15: Didn't change this chapter all that much, actually. I considered cutting it out altogether, but... eh, well, please let me know what you think.
The kids' names were Runde and Brando, and they called themselves the Thief Lords. Both were about Dark's age, and they were also brothers. That was all we needed to know. Just by hearing their personalities described to us we could tell that they may have had some talent, but most of their "fabulous heists" were either flukes or due to the complete and utter unreliability of the Hyrulian Guard.
(Besides… the Thief Lords? Really? Granted, the Terrible Three wasn't that much better, but still- at least we hadn't been presumptuous enough to name ourselves.)
Honestly, the Resistance could've done a better job than those guards, and they consisted of a barkeep, girl soldier, aged warrior, unknown swordsman, scholar, and my brothers and I. Just goes to show what we thought of those two.
Anyway, this challenge did pique our interest, and since we had time to kill, we figured why not. So we arranged a meeting with Runde and Bando. Or rather, we dropped in unannounced and observed their reactions. Okay, so maybe we freaked them out a little. By accident. Or maybe it was accidentally on purpose.
So sue us, we were bored. Though the sight of their faces when Dark snuck up on them from the shadows, eyes gleaming as he literally melted right out of a solid wall... it was hilarious. I swear I nearly cracked a rib from laughing so hard. I don't think I've ever heard such girly screams come from the throats of two guys.
Actually, scratch that. I've heard them from the Hyrulian Guards, though at the time they were slightly distorted by the metal helmets.
"What the h***! What the f*** do you a**holes think you're doin', scaring the s*** out of us like that?!" screeched one of them (I think it was Runde).
Vaati raised an eyebrow while I tried to stop snickering. "Whoa," he said, sounding slightly impressed. "You guys cuss worse than sailors. Where'd ya learn all those?"
The pair fumed for another minute, then calmed down enough to look at us closely. "Say, aren't those guys who disappeared not long ago? The Terrible Three, or somethin' like that?"
Dark nodded, his demeanor suddenly changing from lighthearted and joking to dark (pun intended) and serious. His expression flipped completely around, going from contorted in laughter to sinister and intimidating. The abrupt contrast was startling, like if a jester suddenly stopped juggling and started stabbing audience members instead.
Vaati and I had nicknamed it his Evil Demon Spirit of Darkness face. It never failed to scare the s*** out of its victims, and a few over the years had even soiled themselves. I think it was the eyes that did it, though it could also be the way he always stayed half in the shadows and deliberately made himself eerily transparent.
"Yes, we did disappear for a while. But now we're back, and according to our sources," here Dark leaned forward and frowned menacingly, "a couple of certain someones have believed that they're brave enough to challenge us. Now, I don't know what you boys can do to make you believe that you're good enough to go up against us, but remember- we are the top dogs in the thievery business around here, eh?"
The brothers now looked thoroughly terrified, but Brando seemed to gain new courage at this. A flash of anger passed through his eyes, and he straightened up from his slightly hunched over position. "Not anymore, ya aren't," he sneered. "Yer just washed-up old pickpockets now. We're the real deal 'round these parts. Go back to whatever hole ya've been hidin' in now, before we run ya out of town!"
I scoffed at this. Clearly the guy was bluffing; I could see it in his body language. Besides, our adventuring with Link had only served to make us stronger. There was no way these two idiots could defeat us. "Big words from a little guy, Brando. But can 'ya live up 'em? C'mon, I dare ya. Or are ya too scared?"
Now Runde bristled at the insult and took a threatening step forward, getting right up in my face. "Listen here, ya little punk," he snarled. "We're only warnin' you once. Get out, or get yer a** kicked."
I bared my teeth in a feral grin, showing off pointed canines. The older teen's eyes widened and his stumbled back, gasping in surprise. "Demons! The rumors are true!"
Vaati snickered. "Not quite, little man. More like... if anyone's the demon, it'd be Dark over here. Shadow's more of an imp, I'd say. Too playful to be a demon. After, which one is more likely to play with their food before they eat it?"
Dark laughed and shook his head in exasperation. "Boys, however much fun it is to mess with Dumb and Dumber over here, we didn't come to crack jokes," he told us sternly. Then he turned to the challengers and addressed them directly. "We've got better things to do than chat with you two, so I'll say it to ya straight. You challenged us, and we accept that challenge. You two set the rules, just tell us when and where.
"In fact, we'll even give you a fighting chance and give you a few days to prepare, 'kay? Get back to us when you've decided. If we're not present at the moment, leave a message with Telma at the bar. Just watch out for Ashei, though. She ain't got no tolerance for lowlives and packs a mean blade at her hip to back it up."
By this point, the two looked angrier than ever, but came to a screeching halt in confusion at Dark's last few sentences. But before they could ask any questions, the three of us stepped back into the shadows and slipped away, leaving the brothers dumbfounded.
It wasn't until we got back to the Bar that I finally collapsed in laughter. "D-did you see their faces?! When Dark appeared behind them they nearly wet their pants!"
"Yeah, and when you showed off your fangs like that-! Oh, that's just priceless. I wish I'd had one of those pictobox things so I could remember that expression forever," Vaati laughed.
Dark chuckled and ruffled my hair, then leaned over and gave Vaati a noogie. "Well, the intimidation part worked, at any rate. Now all we have to do is sit and wait. Not too hard."
"But it's boring!" I protested. Dark just raised an eyebrow.
"Be patient," he said. "After all, it's a virtue. And one day, being patient may save your life."
A messenger, some scrawny kid who couldn't have been older than ten, showed up a few days later with a message. He said he was to tell us that we were to meet the pair in the Beggar's Circle tonight at midnight, where people of Castle Town's nastier side gathered.
It was a bit like the underworld's version of the town's plaza, basically. And since this challenge was now very public, since they'd pretty much announced it to the world, there was sure to be a lot of people. Perfect. Now we'd get to crush them and save our reputations with plenty of witnesses.
Then something happened that we certainly didn't expect- Link decided that he wanted to tag along as well, and so did the the rest of the Resistance.
Well, that certainly complicated things. Castle Town's underworld had only grown with the recent influx of monsters, and now it was meaner than ever. And none of them would be kind to strangers. Great, now we'd have to protect them as well as beat the stuffing out of whatever test those two wannabes challenge us with. Yay.
But enough complaining. Now we were gonna have to tell everyone else how to act around the piranhas that were Castle Town's underworld.
"Shad! Don't look so nervous. As long as we put up an intimidating front, they'll leave us alone. Our reputation should take care of most of them, but it never hurts to be careful," Vaati hissed out of the corner of his mouth. The only member of the Resistance who was not in attendance was the new guy, who was apparently down south on business. I figured we'd meet him later.
The rest of us were moving in a large pack, with Shad and Telma in the middle as they were the ones with the least battle experience. Auru, Ashei, Link, Dark, Vaati, and I were arranged in a rough circle around them. The young scholar now looked decidedly nervous, trembling with every step and constantly adjusting his glasses.
The trip to the Beggar's Circle was fairly uneventful, except for one foolish kid who tried to pick my pocket. I twisted his arm away without even looking; he was that bad. When we got to the meeting place, standing right smack in the middle were the two brothers. Dark, Vaati and I walked to the front and stood before them.
"Well? What's it gonna be? A duel to the death, or something less overly dramatic?" Dark drawled lazily. Runde just smirked and cast a critical eye over our party.
"So, your little friends decided to tag along, eh? Who are they, your bodyguards? What, were you too scared to face us alone?" he taunted, masking his slight nervousness at the sight of Ashei with her armor and dangerous looking weapons.
"Actually, they're just some friends who wanted to see the show. I have complete and utter confidence that we'll be able to whip your backsides into next week, no help needed. So let's just get on with it already, I have better things to do that stand around in front of you two worthless pickpockets," Vaati sneered, pretending to examine his nails nonchalantly. I'll admit, Vaati did pull off the pompous I'm-So-Much-Better-Than-You-It's-Not-Even-Funny act quite well.
"Why you-! Well, ya won't be acting all high and mighty when we're through with ya tonight," Bumbo- sorry, Brando -snarled. "We've got a nice little setup here, a race of sorts. And the best part is, it'll be very obvious who's the better thief this time. After all," here his eyes glinted maliciously. "if you lose... you get thrown in the dungeon for trespassing."
No. He was not suggesting what I thought he was suggesting... no way... they wouldn't really be that stupid...
"I challenge you to a race! Whoever can steal the helmet of the captain of the Hyrulian Guards first wins! And we begin... now!"
With that, the pair turned and vanished into the crowd, no doubt heading straight for the barracks. Well, at least he hadn't suggested that we break into the castle like I'd thought he was going going to for a second, but breaking into the barracks was almost as bad. After all, they were located right next to the castle.
"Shadow! Vaati! We need to get there before they do, or our reputations are ruined. Come on, let's go. Ashei, Link, Auru, take care of Shad and Telma. You guys can find your way back to the bar on your own, right?" Dark barked out. Link nodded, and Ashei put a hand on her sword. Then Dark turned and nodded to us, heading for a nearby alley.
Once we were hidden from view in the shadows, Dark told us the plan in short, choppy sentences. "Too crowded, split up. Meet there," he told us.
Then he sank into the ground, and Vaati pulled up his hood and began climbing the wall, no doubt planning on using the rooftops. I melded with the nearby shadows, then flitted through the shadow dimension until I reached the barracks.
From our previous training sessions with one of the soldiers here, we knew that the captain's quarters were the one closest to the castle, in case he needed to get there quickly. Dark was already waiting outside for me, and a second later Vaati leapt down from the rooftops with catlike grace.
Inwardly I grinned. The pale boy hadn't been quite that graceful or agile before our transformation, so this meant that perhaps some of our beast traits were retaining in our natural forms. Good. We would take every advantage we could get.
"Come on. No doubt those two have already scouted the place out, but I haven't seen hide nor hair of them since I got here a minute ago. Which means that we either got here first or they're already in," Dark whispered. Luckily most of them were asleep, with only a couple patrols on night watch.
Sneaking in was so easy it was pathetic. All we really had to do was get past a single patrol, which wasn't that difficult as the soldiers were all talking and chatting to each other as they walked. Once we were inside it was pretty much child's play to get to the captain's quarters. Heck, even a five year old could have done it. They didn't even have any guards inside! Guess they figured they didn't need to, seeing how it was the soldiers' barracks.
The brothers were already inside when we entered, rifling through the captain's things while the man himself snored away on a nearby bed. I resisted the urge to facepalm at the sight. They weren't even trying to be discreet! Though I'll admit, the room probably couldn't get any messier anyway.
"Come on, come on… where is that stupid helmet!?" Runde hissed angrily. Brando frowned and jerked his head towards the still sleeping captain, making a shushing noise. They still hadn't noticed us.
"Dark! I see it," murmured Vaati quietly. Dark followed his gaze and saw the helmet sitting on the desk, hidden by a large pile of various random objects that included, but was not limited to; other pieces of armor, both empty and not so empty liquor bottles, dirty laundry, and various sheets of paper. In fact, it was actually a wonder that Vaati had been able to see it at all. Though he had always had good eyesight.
"Good. Shadow, go grab it. You'll get the easiest, when you've got it, travel through the shadows back to the bar. We'll follow behind," Dark told me. I nodded, then slowly sidled into the room.
Getting to the helmet itself was easy, but the problem would lie in removing it without causing any noise. Since it was also lying under so many pieces of loud jangly metal armor, I figured that the easiest way would be to simply grab it and then melt into a shadow.
However, just as I was about to remove it, I was struck with a sudden bout of malicious intent. Quickly changing plans, knowing that my brothers would approve and could get out quite easily on their own, I yanked the helmet out and slid into the shadow of one of the fallen pieces of armor.
Since the helmet was at the very bottom, my act to removing it sent numerous pieces of armor and paper tumbling off the desk and onto the floor. This was very loud in the silence of the room and naturally attracted the attention of not only the two wannabe thieves, but of the captain as well. Of course, by then I was long gone.
"Well, that was easy," I muttered to myself. Quickly moving out the door and giving a thumbs up to both Dark and Vaati, who were waiting outside, I then made my way from shadow to shadow until the barracks were far away.
The two sets of zora armor were ready two days later, and we went to pick them up at the Zora's Domain. Now all we had to do was stock up on supplies and we were good to go.
After we'd soundly defeated the two challengers, they slunk back to their hidey-hole with their tails between their legs. Now instead of furthering their reputation like they'd hoped, they were now an example of why you should never challenge the three best thieves in town.
As for us, well... we were more infamous than ever. And since with Dark's red eyes, my purple hair, and Vaati's pale skin among other things, we were pretty recognizable. So that meant that whenever we went out in public we took to wearing the hoods of our cloaks up all the time, if only to deflect some of the staring and whispering.
Luckily, however, it only took about a day to get everything we needed. A few hours later we were standing on the banks of Lake Hylia, all decked out in zora armor. I'll admit that did did feel very... strange, to say the least. But I soon got used to it. The flippers, however... well, Vaati and I nearly fell over laughing at Dark's epic fail when trying to walk with them. He tripped over a pebble and fell over face-first into the water, thrashing around for a second before he realized that the helmet allowed him to breathe. Now that was cool.
The original plan was to go the very same day, but by the time we'd gotten used to swimming and moving around underwater (read: fooling around and pretty acting like little kids in a swimming hole) it was already nighttime. So instead we camped out on the banks and decided to go in the morning.
The night was fairly uneventful, barring one incident with a curious poe that, for some odd reason, called me "Master" when I told it to go away and leave us alone. And for some reason as well, my brothers and I could all see the poe perfectly well when Link could only see its lantern. I figured it had something to do with our abilities as well, but I wasn't sure. Then again, I was still half-asleep and kind of cranky because I'd gotten woken up, so maybe I had just imagined it.
For some reason, however, the poe's words triggered an odd image of a somewhat different and larger version of the spirit I'd just seen. I knew he was called a "Big Poe," but I didn't know how I knew of it or even what it was exactly. It also brought to mind a cave with carved pillars, and fake tomb and some strange sword that I knew had some sort of significance. But for the life of me I could not figure out what it was. Farore, that was frustrating.
"It's mid morning now, guys. Come on, let's go," Link said eagerly. He'd taken to the swimming like a fish to water, and he'd somehow managed to move in a fashion that looked almost like he'd done it before. Watching him, I suddenly remembered what he reminded me of- a zora. But Link was a hylian... so why did he swim like a zora?
"Is it just me, or does it look like he's done this before?" Dark asked quietly as he watching the other teen swim in front of us. Vaati examined his swimming pattern carefully, and nodded.
"Yeah, he's acting like a zora would. Look, they even use the same technique to hover and spin. What the heck-?"
Our conversation was broken off as the subject of our words crested what looked like a giant tiered crater set in the middle of the lake. I could see the entrance to the temple in the northern wall, and frowned when I noticed a giant rock blocking the entrance. A few zora guards were swimming around, but they just nodded and let us pass when we swam by. Link cheated and used the iron boots to sink to the bottom faster, while the rest of us had to swim against the pull of our natural buoyancy.
"Don't worry, I have water bombs," he told us when I informed him that my bombs would be useless underwater. Then he took out something that looked like a fish with a rock in its mouth and wedged it into the corner between the rock and the doorway, swimming away hastily as it began to sizzle ominously.
A second later... BOOM!
Heads turned in our direction as the shockwave passed through us, sending chunks of demolished stone floated lazily to the bottom. The entrance to the Water Temple was open.
