HUGE THANKS to grandshadowseal, ultima-owner, HyruleHearts1123, and ggrg for reviewing!
To grandshadowseal: Eh, not really. There's no specific reason that I write from Shadow's point of view. It's just that I like his character, and also he's kinda my favorite. Has been ever since I read the Four Sword manga. Man, I loved his dynamic with Vio and the Links! I'm glad you like Shaide. I wanted them to make a Sheikah friend, and Vaati seems like the kind of person who would go on for hours about his magic and stuff.
To ggrg: Meeting with Zelda? Oops, I completely forgot that happened... *sweatdrop*. It's been a long time since I've played the game, so some of the details might slip my mind. Sorry!
Anyway, enjoy the chapter, everyone! Please feel free to leave a review or PM me with any constructive criticism, and let me know what you liked or didn't like! It really helps me figure out how to improve.
Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda, etc etc. I feel like I should just put one mass disclaimer on my profile or on the first chapter of this fic or something... save myself the trouble of writing this out every single time. Hm.
"So," Vaati murmured as we gazed down at the lush, fertile valley that lay sprawling before us, "this is the Valley of Shadows." Arching a brow at the clear greenery and spring-esque weather, he turned to Shaide and enquired, "Some sort of weather control?"
The teen merely smirked, and beckoned us on. "Oh, you'll see."
Vaati quirked an eyebrow, cogs already began to spin and turn within his mind as we continued forwards along the narrow, rocky, trail. I could see his fingers twitching at his sides, and his eyes were subtly but efficiently scanning the area with practiced ease as they took in every last detail.
Then, almost a quarter of the way down the slopes, I felt it. There was a sort of ripple, as magical power pulsed through us. My own magic almost wanted to flare in response, but no- this power felt familiar, it was safe, it was-
Dark stopped in his tracks as a wave of sapphire blue seemed to suddenly bounce out, racing along some invisible path through the air as it traced the outline of what we realized was actually a giant, translucent, magical dome that covered the entire valley. All of it. Like the ripples that spread from a stone thrown into a pond, they raced across the dome's surface for a second or two before dissipating into thin air.
Once more, the barrier was invisible- but that one echo had been enough. We had seen what the dome was constructed of, and that piqued my curiosity more than anything else.
Runes.
Runes. Powerful, powerful things, runes. But very difficult to learn, and even more difficult to use. One wrong stroke and the whole thing could blow sky-high, with a scale of destruction that ranged from scorching your table to taking out the entire building, depending on what combination you were working on at the time.
So was it really any surprise that my brothers and I were fascinated by them?
"Ah," Dark murmured, eyes wide with surprise and… longing, almost. "So that's what Sheikah magic feels like."
Our guides had paused as well, and somehow I sensed more than saw them regarding us curiously. Three pairs of crimson gazed out, filled with… something. Interest?
"Strange…" Shaide whispered to himself, tilting his head a few degrees to the side in an almost cat-like fashion. "Your power resonated with the wards. Why?"
We just sort of exchanged looks and shrugged, unsure. But the tendrils of power that we could still feel coiling through the air and the earth distracted us. If I closed my eyes, reached out… really felt it, a well of strength and protection woven into the ancient wards…
"Whoever created these was a master," Vaati breathed reverently as he brushed his fingertips along the edge of the barrier. It only took a tiny trickle of his magic to make it light up again, a glowing aura of azure that gleamed beneath his palm to reveal the intricate spellcraft that made it all work. "Oh, Farore. I haven't seen such beautiful arrays in decades. Not since-"
The Wind Mage abruptly cut himself off, mouth twisting in a sad grimace. Then he seemed to shake off whatever memory had surfaced and continued, leaning in close as he examined the magical dome. Brilliant flashes of sapphire and cerulean illuminated the very framework of the dome, which consisted of hundreds of thousands of interlocking glyphs. The elegantly created shapes seemed to pulse in time to an invisible beat, gleaming like blue fire in the air.
One of the adults shifted his weight a bit, clearing his throat pointedly. "We should get going," he told us, though it seemed aimed more at Vaati than anyone else.
The lavender-haired hylian ignored him, utterly captivated by what he was seeing. "Oh, wow. They linked this pentagonal array with the lines here and here… ah, so that's where the climate control bit comes in. And this trinity- oh, that's an old one. Never seen it used like this before, though… Farore, this brings back memories. Hah, I remember this one! I think I used it when I made the Oocca, but why is it here…? Unless they want- or what they did works too, I suppose. Still, this is meant to mix and combine, so I'm not sure-"
I rolled my eyes, letting out a small sigh of resignation. Admittedly, I was interested in the stuff as well, but I didn't quite have the same knowledge or passion for it as my brother did. I didn't quite have the patience, either, truth be told. Runes were a very difficult branch of magic to learn, if only due to its complexity, the sheer number of runes out there, and the rather annoying tendency to cause much painful destruction if drawn incorrectly.
Dark chuckled, shaking his head wearily. "Eh, good luck getting him away from that now. He's found something that interests him, and now he's not gonna let go until he's done."
"Which is… how long?" Link asked, eyeing Vaati with two parts confusion and one part slight amusement. It looked as if he was trying to gauge just how long Vaati was going to stay wrapped up in his studies so he could hole up somewhere with the appropriate amount of supplies.
Which wasn't actually an overreaction. We had essentially done just that a few years ago, when Vaati had decided to camp out for a week in the library of some noble who had been out visiting family or whatever. The servants never even noticed that we were stealing their bread. Or their jewels. Well, technically the noble's jewels, but it was close enough.
"Based on how absorbed he is, anywhere from an hour to a week," I replied with a small sigh.
Shaide bit back a groan. "Seriously?"
"Seriously."
In the end, we managed to pry Vaati away from the wards in a record-breaking twenty minutes after the three Sheikah promised him that he could talk to the wardmasters upon entering the valley. Even then, it had taken Dark's vice-grip on his shoulder and a strong reminder of the entire reason we were there in the first place to break him out of the intellectual haze he'd fallen into.
"Really, though. The craftsmanship in it is amazing," Vaati gushed as we made our way down into the valley. "Wow. I haven't seen that sort of quality in decades. The style's a bit strange, but then again, I've never studied the Sheikah style of runic arrays, so I can't really say much. But compared to the stuff I usually work with, this is really cool."
Shaide tilted his head to the side, listening curiously. "Oh? What do you usually work with?"
Vaati grinned, happy to find someone to talk about this stuff with. "Well, normally, I tend to use hevlekti more for combat, actually, not defense- but I can see how you've got it worked into the triangles with ehwul and sitevoap, which I suppose changes the properties to the automatic retaliation thing. 'Offense is the best defense', eh?"
Shaide nodded, and Vaati chattered on. The poor Sheikah tried to get a word in edgewise, but Vaati just plowed right over him. I stifled a chuckle. Clearly, he hadn't yet realized that once the Wind Mage got going, here was no stopping him.
Then, as we continued picking our way carefully down the narrow, winding path, a trio of unknowns seemed to appear out of nowhere before us, openly bristling with weapons as steel gleamed in the sunlight. I felt a bolt of surprise jolt through my spine, and a trio of cherry bombs materialized between my fingers before I could stop myself.
Vaati jumped back, hands flying out as the winds howled and a platoon of miniature twisters sprang up with ferocious howls. The trio promptly vanished again, flickering away in brief flashes of light and smoke before suddenly they were to the side- in the trees- back down onto the path-
"Whoa there, guys. Shadow. Vaati. Calm down," Link ordered, as I realized just who it was who had appeared. Quickly snuffing out the fuses and stuffing the bombs in my pockets as Vaati guiltily dispersed the whirlwinds, I ducked my head sheepishly as the three Sheikah glared from their perches, hanging ten feet up off a jagged stone ridge.
"Oops," I muttered, as Dark- who had drawn his sword, about to attack -had the grace to look appropriately embarrassed and ashamed in equal measures. "Sorry."
The Sheikah detached themselves from the rock face and dropped down, landing silently on their feet like a trio of cats. "State your business," they demanded, red eyes narrowed.
Our escorts stepped forwards, explaining the situation. Meanwhile, we hung back, observing the conversation and cataloguing reactions. If these ones turned out to be more hostile than our guides…
Luckily, after a few more hushed words that I couldn't quite make out, the three newcomers nodded and vanished in more flashes of light. I wondered if that was some sort of warping technique, like Midna's. Or even like some varieties of monsters, who had the ability of short-ranged teleportation.
"What was that?" Link asked, voice wary. I could see his right hand hovering by his hip, close to the magic pouches that held most of his gear. His left hand was tense, drawn up by his side but not yet high enough to grasp the hilt of his sword.
"Border guards," one of the adult Sheikah replied. "Don't worry. It's none of your concern. They have merely gone to inform the Elders that we are coming."
"Hm. Comforting," I murmured as I let myself relax a bit. "Well, let's hope that they're not like the High Council Elders."
"Ah, yes. That… was a mess," Vaati agreed with a wince. "Perhaps not one of our better plans."
"Gee, ya think?" Dark asked rhetorically, voice dry as the Gerudo desert. "We were lucky their mages were so incompetent, or we really would've made it to the gallows that time."
Shaide tilted his head to the side, regarding us curiously. "Oh? What happened?"
Link echoed the motion, one dirty blond eyebrow raised. "Yeah, what? I haven't heard this one before."
Dark grinned, as the group started moving down the path once more. "Well," he began, "it went like this…"
"...And then he throws the d*** things, and everyone just goes running after them like dogs after a bag of bones. Farore, you should've seen their expressions! It was priceless! I mean, it kinda backfired when we had some trouble fishin' them out, but we got 'em all in the end. I think, anyway."
"Yeah, well, whose idea was it to throw the jewels in the river in the first place? Oh yeah, yours. So if some random kid swimming in the river finds a couple of diamonds or somethin' next summer…"
"Okay, okay, I'll admit, not my best moment. But hey, at least we got enough to set us for a year."
"True."
"Until you spend half of it on books."
"They were rare, ancient tomes! Written in the language of the picori, from-"
Vaati stopped abruptly, jaw snapping shut. Dark paused, looking confused and slightly concerned.
"Uh, Vaati? You okay?"
The Wind Mage opened his mouth, then closed it again. His jaw worked for a moment, and he seemed torn between mirth and sadness. Mirth won out, and he threw back his head in a laugh. "Oh, Farore. Those books!"
I tilted my head to the side, frowning slightly as I sidestepped a boulder and walked over a small gully. Those books? What was so special about the books?
"Wait, what? What about the books?" Link asked, tone puzzled.
Vaati laughed, and shook his head with disbelief. "Farore. The books I bought from that wandering merchant, a couple seasons ago. They weren't even in Hylian, and I could still read them. I thought it was because I'd snitched that dictionary of Picorese from the castle library and few months before, but- now that I think about it, that was on a completely different dialect! That dictionary was Mountain Picorese, and the book was Forest Picorese! Goddesses, I can't believe I didn't notice!"
"And this is significant… how, exactly?" Dark drawled, one eyebrow raised.
Vaati chuckled, and explained, "Because I'm a picori. Or, well, I was, until I got ahold of the Magic Cap and turned myself into a hylian. That's why I have a lower stature than other hylians, actually. I was reading my mother tongue the whole time, and I didn't even know it! Oh, and, now that I think about it, the author..."
"Ezlo," I remembered, only knowing it because the author's name was the only part of the book written in Hylian. Well, that and the title. "Master Craftsman Ezlo. Wait… did you know him?"
"Know him?" Vaati repeated, a sly grin curling about his face. "He was my master. And I was his apprentice. Or… I was for a while, anyway." He drooped a bit, briefly saddened before shaking it off. "That also explains why the writing and the style seemed so familiar," he added. "I have spent hours deciphering those messy things he called notes. I swear, without me to transcribe things, it was a wonder he could even read his own writing at times. Heh, memories…"
"Sounds like he was a good man," Link remarked.
Vaati nodded, eyes growing distant, a small smile gracing his lips as he looked up into the sky. "Yeah," he replied softly. "He was." The lavender-haired teen looked back down, holding up his hand as a miniature whirlwind swirled to life in his palm. "I was a terrible apprentice, though. Always talking back, questioning him, and just being a disrespectful brat in general.
"But I guess… I guess I just wasn't meant for the ground. I had to go up, up into the sky. Though," he snorted in self-deprecation, "I could've chosen a better way to do it, I'll admit. And maybe the whole 'turn everyone to stone' thing wasn't such a great idea, either."
"Hey, at least you admit it," Dark said, clapping a reassuring hand on our brother's shoulder. "Relax. I'm sure he'd understand, if he could see you today. Though… 'turn everyone to stone'? You were weird. Still, I think he'd get it."
Vaati snorted. "Are you kidding? He'd probably bash me over the head with his staff for turning him into a hat, assign me twenty years of chores, and then say something sappy like 'Good job. I'm proud of you', or something like that." Vaati shrugged, though his lips were upturned into a small smile. "That was just the type of person he was."
Shaide did a double-take, almost tripping over a rock in surprise (though he recovered quickly and hid it well). "Sorry, what? You turned your master into a hat?" he asked, head swinging around to stare at Vaati. "Why?"
Vaati coughed into his fist, pale cheeks dusted a very light red with embarrassment. "Erm, well, it's a long story…"
"Do tell," Dark grinned, a mischievous glint in his eye. "Now I'm curious. What was this about turning people into stone and hats?"
"Hat. Singular," Vaati corrected testily. "And it wasn't permanent. They all got turned back to normal eventually."
"'Eventually' being the key word," I snickered. "After, what, months? And that poor Hero. He was the youngest to date, wasn't he? I remember finding a historical account of the time once. He was only ten, y'know. It's a wonder none of your traps killed him."
"Though not for lack of trying, knowing you," Dark laughed. "Alright, now I'm really curious. C'mon, spill."
Vaati sighed. "What is there to tell? I was young, stupid, and impatient, so I stole power that belonged to another, went on a rampage, turned just about the entirety of Castle Town to stone- including the Princess Zelda of the time -and was eventually defeated and sealed away. I believe Shadow knows what happened after that."
"Mm, yeah," I agreed. "Apparently, a century or two of being sealed away turns peoples' brains to mush. Who knew, right? I mean, seriously. You were pretty unhinged. Case in point: the oocca."
Link nodded. "Even insane, you must've had a twisted mind to come up with those."
Vaati frowned, and grumbled, "Don't remind me."
I chuckled. Then a memory floated to the surface of my mind, and I grinned before asking Vaati, "Hey, do you remember the incident with the fire keese, the pudding, and the-"
"NO! Let's never mention that again!" the Wind Mage yelped, clapping a hand over my mouth to stop the rest of my words. I promptly bit down, and he withdrew his palm with a hiss.
Vaati snarled in pain. Dark threw his head back and laughed. I cackled wildly. Link slapped a hand to his forehead, muttering something about crazy thieves.
Meanwhile, Shaide stared at us, expression unfathomable beneath the mask and wrappings. "Goddesses. None of you are even remotely normal, are you?" he asked weakly.
Dark grinned, teeth bared as they seemed to flash brightly in the light. "Oh, did you seriously just notice?"
Link released a put-upon sigh. "Yes," he confided lowly to the Sheikah, "this is what I put up with. It's a wonder I'm not crazy myself yet."
I snorted. "Link, you talk to the imp girl that lives in your shadow, you can turn into a partially-green wolf at will, and you travel with us. What's to say you didn't go crazy a long time ago, and are only just now realizing it?"
The Hero paused. "Oh Goddesses," he said, sounding stunned. "You're right."
The Elders were there to meet us at the bottom.
There were six of them, three old men and three old women, ever-so-slightly stooped and wrinkled with age. Yet, despite the obvious signs of timeworn wear on their features, which were craggy and rough like the mountains they lived in, none held canes or staffs or walking sticks of any sort.
I had to respect them for that. Especially since I could practically hear their joints creaking and popping with each movement, like the wooden puppets in the window of the toy shop. Still, I supposed that a lifetime to keeping fit must've helped somehow. That and magic, which was known to extend the lifespan of its user.
"Honored Visitors," the tallest one greeted, her snow-white hair pulled back into a tight bun and her crimson-red eyes bright and clear. "Welcome to the Valley of Shadows."
Link, being the most level-headed and probably most diplomatic (Midna had taught him how to act; even he was still a bit too honest at times), stepped forwards. He and the Elders exchanged greetings, pleasantries, and all that boring stuff that I never bothered to pay attention to. Instead, I observed the people.
At first glance, there didn't seem to be that many around. Sure, there were a few adults, scattered around with red eyes staring straight at us and hair that ranged from sandy brown to pale, platinum blond blowing gently in the wind.
Wind which, I realized, was tinged with streaks of lavender.
Tapping Vaati on the shoulder, I leaned over and quietly muttered, "You might want to rein it in before they freak out."
Vaati blinked, as widening a little as the breezes abruptly died down. "Ah," he whispered. "Oops."
I leaned back a little on my heels, hands hanging palm out at my sides. Usually, I would have put them in my pockets, since it was still cold, but this way it showed I was carrying no weapons.
At any rate, the place seemed rather quiet at first glance. When you looked closer, however…
Knives in the darkness. A bare silhouette, outlined against a backdrop of shadows. Crimson eyes like drops of blood, narrow and suspicious.
They were everywhere. Rooftops. Hidden corners. Trees. Shadows. Flashes and glimpses all around, until I realized-
We were surrounded.
S***.
Instincts flaring, I fought the urge to step back and disappear into the shadows, where I knew I would be nigh invulnerable. Or throw down a bomb and hightail it before they recovered. Then again, perhaps not, as I didn't know how Sheikah magic would affect my abilities. I knew that Dark and I had both been created with an altered variant of a stolen Sheikah spell, after all, and our power had resonated with the wards, so…
No. I can't. Stay calm. Dark would be pissed if I brought down a whole village full of Sheikah on our a**es just because I got a little jumpy.
The wolf in me wanted to growl. The hylian in me wanted to fly away. I did neither, forcing myself to stay calm and wait.
Meanwhile, Link was still talking. Then the Elders began to move towards a larger hall in the center of the clustered buildings that made up the village, beckoning for us to follow. I breathed a soft sigh of relief and obliged, falling into step beside Vaati and just a little behind Dark.
"Y'know what the creepiest part about his whole place is?" Vaati murmured as we walked down the earthen streets, seeing more Sheikah hidden in every nook and cranny with every step. "It's so quiet."
I nodded. It was in such contrast to all the other villages and towns we'd been in, which were all loud and bustling and full of people. Even Kakariko, though populated mainly by the children, usually had a kid or two running around playing some sort of game. Castle Town had obviously been the largest, never a dull moment in the entire place. Whether it was vendors hawking their wares in the market, less-than-legal vendors hawking their less-than-legal wares in the less-than-legal black market, or any other number of other activities, the capital of Hyrule was never quiet.
"Yeah. It's creepy," I agreed.
A hawk circled overhead, it's distinctive hunting cry echoing across the valley. I looked up at it, briefly entertaining the notion of flying up and nabbing it for dinner. My brothers and I had tried to do that once, when we were still living in Castle Town. Truth be told, though, it tasted horrible. Too tough and stringy.
(Besides, if the white band inked with red around its leg was any indication, this bird belonged to somebody in the village. I didn't think they would take too kindly to us eating it.)
A few feet ahead, Link was still talking with the Elders, though I could see that he had one ear tilted towards his shadow, where Midna was undoubtedly coaching him. Dark, just two steps behind, looked around warily. As we approached the hall, which was decorated with elaborate carvings and more runes, he only seemed to get jumpier.
I couldn't blame him, really. We liked knowing where people were, so that we knew where not to turn our backs to. We were also accustomed to being the stealthiest ones in the group, who hid in the darkness and stalked in the night, but this time…
We were in a village full of people who were just like us.
Well, I thought wryly, as Link ascended the steps into the great hall, at least we've always got Midna's insta-warp if we need a quick escape. Or I could, y'know, blow the place to kingdom come, but I don't think Shaide would like that. And Vaati likes Shaide. So if I blow him up too, Vaati's gonna pout.
D***.
