Okay, I decided to update this because it hasn't been updated in FOREVER, but don't expect to be updated again for awhile.
It's like 10.5 pages, reaaaally close to 4,000 words. ENJOY!
Unbeta'd, and I don't own anything :)
Also: on the Laguz thing, go look on the Fire Emblem wiki for more info~
"Prince Marth!" a man yelled loudly, throwing open the solid door leading to said prince's room. It hit the brick wall next to it with a loud bang. "Quick! We must flee the castle!"
The now fourteen-year-old teen's blue eyes flew open. "What is it, Jagen?" he exclaimed, quickly pulling on a tunic, his shoulder and chest armor, and his cape. He rushed over to the foot of his bed and reached inside a trunk, pulling out the sword and shield from Hyrule and the bow and quiver from Angel Land.
The paladin's expression grew pained. Jagen was a highly experienced paladin, his family loyal to the royal family for many generations. "The castle," he whispered. "It's under siege. And with the king gone—of all the terrible luck…" As if to emphasize this, several large booms could be heard, shaking the floor and ceiling. It was like a miniature earthquake. Marth froze. Cannons. "Quickly, my prince!"
"Very well!" the blue-haired prince proclaimed, buckling his rapier onto his belt. The shield was already strapped on his arm and the bow and quiver across his back.
"Let's go," Jagen hissed, grabbing the young prince's arm. "We'll use the secret passageway in the throne room!" They quickly ran to the throne room, which was almost directly under Marth's room. There they met Melledeus and Princess Ellis.
"My prince," Melledeus rushed, "we must leave at one!"
Marth turned his gaze towards his sister. "Ellis…!" She looked back from her position in front of the throne, gaze unwavering.
"I am staying, brother," the elder of the two whispered, face somber.
"S-sister! Ellis, please, reconsider…!"
"No." Her voice was final. "What they want is you, Marth. You are the only male heir to the throne. Go." She looked up, blue eyes glittering with tears. "I will stall them long enough for you to escape."
Tears began spilling from Marth's eyes. "Ellis…I…" he hugged her tightly. The booms intensified in strength, dust and small debris falling from the ceiling.
"Go," she whispered once more, resting her forehead against his. "Run. And don't look back, not once." Footsteps and shouts grew close, and the princess pushed her brother away from her. "Go!" she screamed. Marth then did what she told him.
He ran.
Link let a melancholy smile spread softly across his face as he rode through the familiar landscape. Altea and the sea that surrounded it looked stunning.
"It's beautiful, isn't it, girl?" he murmured softly to Epona, idly stroking her mane as she carried him onwards on a worn path to the Altean castle. She neighed, making Link laugh lightly. "Yeah, I know. You want to see Tornac, don't you?" She nickered and he smiled.
Link was now seventeen. It had only been six or so years after celebration, but Link was told by Princess Zelda to visit again. Right after Rusl and Link had gotten back, the only bridge connecting Altea and Hyrule had broken; it had fallen down the huge chasm that housed the great Zora's River. Either country had no idea what had happened to the other for six years, so the princess decided it was time to catch up. It had only now gotten repaired. Jeovani, the man who was cursed by Poes, was actually the person who paid for it, since he apparently had no use for his large sum of money.
The blonde Hylian grinned a little upon seeing the castle, immediately feeling a wave of nostalgia. He remembered the last time he came here…he was so shy and timid. Link blushed. What was he thinking? He was still shy and timid, just not to the extreme as he was before. He bit his lip as he thought of Marth. Was he like he was before? Did he turn nicer? Or did he turn meaner? Did he like wolves? Link winced a little at the thought. Probably not after that werewolf incident. The blonde fingered the left side of his neck gently. He still had a pale scar left over from then. His slender fingers slid down to wrap around a delicate metal chain. On it was a small fragment of the shadow crystal Midna used on him. He briefly wondered if he should tell Marth. He probably would end up doing so, but—
"Oi, you, on the horse!" Link turned around on Epona, halting her. He glanced around before looking at the man who called out. He was already near huge walls surrounding the castle, on the left side of a large gate. Huh. Time goes by fast when you're daydreaming.
"Me?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. The man snorted. He was shirtless, with many scars across his slightly tanned flesh, wearing some plain brown pants and brown leather boots. He looked a bit unkempt—his pants were extremely dusty and his reddish-brown hair was rather shaggy. The man was working on something, apparently fixing part of the wall that had been damaged.
"Yeah, you," the man sneered. "You filthy Laguz. Why don't you get off that poor beast? It does rank higher than you, after all!" Some other men working around him laughed and stopped what they were doing. This looked interesting to them. "Why are you here, of all places? Don't you have a master?"
Link blinked rapidly. "Excuse me? I-I'm here to see Marth." What on Farore's green earth was a Laguz? He frowned and dismounted Epona. He didn't want her getting hurt if there was a scuffle.
The man smirked and backed Link against the wall, placing his arms on either side of the Hylian. He was rather intimidating, more than half a foot taller than the blonde, probably standing over six feet tall. "You and your kind need to be taught their place," he spat. "Calling the prince something so casual! What are you? A mutt, a dragon?" He grinned before he uttered the next one. "…Or a little pussy?" he jeered. The men around him began to taunt and laugh.
"If you don't mind, I would like you to move," Link said calmly. "I don't want to have to fight you, but I will."
The man snorted. "What, a little fairy like you fight? Leave the fighting to real men, boy. You need to be taught your place. My bed," he drawled, leaning his face down towards Link's. The other men started laughing again.
"I'll tear your throat out," Link growled. He often didn't get mad, but this was just getting ridiculous. He pushed the hulking man away with all of his might. The man backed off a little, but he didn't stumble, much to Link's disappointment.
"So you like to bite, eh?" the man mocked, smirking once more. "I like fighters like you. They're great in bed. Nice 'n wild." Link was very tempted to pull out his sword.
"McNar," a deep, cold voice rang out. All of the men turned and froze.
"G-General Ike!" the man now known as McNar stuttered.
"Ike?" Link whispered, shocked. "A general…" Ike's gaze turned to Link, his eyes widening. He then turned towards McNar, eyes now narrowing.
"What did you do to him?" he growled. "Did you hurt him?"
"I-I'm so sorry, General!" the man cried out. "I didn't know he was your concubine!" At this, Link turned beat red. Concubine…? (A/N: a concubine is like…a mistress, basically. Here: "a woman who is the lover of a wealthy married man but with the social status of a subordinate form of wife, often kept in a separate home, especially in imperial China.")
"He is not my concubine," Ike growled. "Link is my friend."
The man's expression turned into one of disgust. "Friend? This Laguz?" Ike's brows knitted together.
"He's not a Laguz. He's a Hylian."
McNar's eyes widened considerably and he paled. "A Hylian…? Shit!" he turned towards Link and bowed his head. "I'm so sorry! Please, forgive me!" Man, first with that angel, Pit, and now with this Hylian…He shivered. Ike was beyond furious when he made fun of the brunette and thought he was a heron Laguz.
The blonde smiled. So there was a grudge against this race called the Laguz, huh? "You're forgiven," he said softly.
"Back to work, everyone!" Ike barked sharply. "Come on, Link," he said, sounding considerably warmer. "I'm sorry about that. Marth would die if he knew you were here." Link grabbed Epona's reins and made his way towards the stables, Ike leading the way. "He was actually thinking about postponing the reconstruction of the castle to visit Hyrule."
Link blinked in surprise. "Really? Why is the castle being rebuilt?" He looked around and saw, just like outside the walls, various crews working on repairing the castle. When they approached the workers, they'd often give Link a curious glance before saluting Ike, which he returned with a nod.
Ike's lips twitched in a frown. "You mean you don't know?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow. When Link shook his head and explained that the bridge had been broken, which meant no travel in between countries, the general sighed. "The castle got attacked and was under siege a year after the celebration." He turned around and snorted when Link choked. "Relax," he drawled. "Everyone's fine. Well…except the king. He passed on, as well as many brave soldiers. But Marth, his sister, and the princesses of all of the neighboring kingdoms are all okay." They both then entered the stables.
"Wow…" the Hylian commented as he led Epona in a stall. He grinned as he heard a familiar neigh. Tornac was in the stall beside her. "So much can change in six years…" He began to unsaddle her and take off her bridle.
"Yeah…" Ike replied idly, taking in Link's figure. The blonde had gotten a little taller—about 5'5" or 5'6"—but he was still pretty short. That didn't mean that he was lacking in his features—not by a long shot. Link's eyes were still as exotic and feral as the day he left, if not more so. He was now wearing what he had described to Roy, Marth, Pit and he as the mighty Hero's clothing, but with chain mail and a different sword. He smirked a little to himself when he spotted the earrings Marth had given him.
"Alright!" the Hylian proclaimed. "Let's go!" The bluenette's lips twitched in a small smile.
"Follow me," Ike called over his shoulder, taking long strides to the door. "You know, you should really catch up with Marth, Roy, Pit and I." For some unknown reason, the Crimean General turned a bit pink at the mention of the angel's name. Link grinned.
"Yeah, especially you, General," Link teased, a playful smile on his lips. Ike rolled his eyes as he entered the castle. They were now in a small antechamber with a doorway on each of the walls. The walls were decorated by pictures of Marth's ancestors, if the common blue hair was anything to go by. Over the door straight across from them was the Hero Anri. He had long, elegant cerulean hair that matched his eyes. He looked a lot like Marth.
"This just has the most famous rulers of Altea," Ike commented, seeing Link's curious gaze. "There is a hallway with paintings of every member of the royal family around here somewhere…" He shook his head. "Come. The throne room is right up ahead, which is where Marth should be." They both entered the larger chamber and Link gasped. It was beautiful—it could rival the throne room of Princess Zelda's. In fact, it was rather similar to the throne room of Hyrule, if not a direct copy. The main difference was that instead of the main throne having the goddesses, it had an intimidating dragon on the top, and there was a slightly smaller, somewhat less elaborate throne, which was presumably the queen's. It was still breathtaking. There were some people in the room working on it, one of the most notable being Pit.
"Link!" the angel cried from his place near the ceiling. He was examining a large crack but glided down and gave the Hylian a large hug, tackling him to the floor. His exclamation made many of the workers, which was only about ten or so, look up from their work and chuckle. They were used to the overexcited, if not somewhat cocky and over eccentric, angel. "I'm soooo glad to see you again!"
Link let out a musical laugh, giving the angel a radiant smile. "I'm happy to see you too, Pit!"
"Hey, Link, what about me?" Roy whined, jogging up to the blonde.
"I missed you too, Roy," he sniggered.
"…And what of me, Link?" an amused voice said. Link looked over, only to see Marth.
"Marth!" Link cried out. Pit crawled off of the poor green-clad teen and Marth helped the Hylian up.
"It's great to see you again, Link," Marth said softly, and it was. To his eyes, Link had only gotten more gorgeous, more beautiful, and oh-so-more tempting. He smiled and hugged the blonde, the other's head fitting perfectly under his own. The bluenette briefly noticed that Link was wearing his mother's earrings and his smiled widened. He pulled away and raised an eyebrow. "What's up with the necklace?"
Link flushed. "Er…well…" He fiddled with the chain a little, looking down. "I'd like to, um, tell you guys, but, uh, maybe somewhere more private?"
Marth smiled in amusement but nodded. "Very well. I guess we'll all go to my room, then." Marth couldn't help but feel déjà vu as he walked to his room. It was the same path he had taken, all of those years ago when the castle was attacked. It was only four years ago, though, not many. He was shaken out of his stupor when they reached his door and he opened it. They all sat down on the silky blue covers of his bed in a circle. (A/N: Er…square? lolol)
Link took a deep breath. "Well, it all started in the spirit Ordonna's spring…"
About forty-five minutes later, Link finished his story. He was stared at by the other four swordsmen. "And, well, that's about it," he laughed awkwardly. The blonde mentally congratulated himself when he didn't cry at the end when he described Midna leaving. Her leaving was one of the most painful things that had ever happened to him. "Well, and then the princess sent for me to deliver a letter. Oh yeah, the letter!" He pulled out a slightly wrinkled scroll out of one of the bags on his belt and handed it to Marth. The ruler of Altea broke the seal and gave it a quick scan, the others talking amongst themselves while he did so.
Prince Marth, ruler of Altea, of the house of Anri:
I have sent Link of Ordon Village as a representative of Hyrule. I wish for you to act as if he were I. I am not able to leave Hyrule during this point of time, due to the rebuilding of Hyrule castle after some unfortunate events. Merchants on the west side of your kingdom have now begun to wander into my own kingdom, for which I am glad. I have invited one of said merchants, and he has informed me of what has happened to Altea. You have my most sincere condolences and it shames me Hyrule could do nothing. As Link may have told you, the bridge was out and we were busy with our own problems.
I have also been informed of your father's fate. He and my father used to meet on friendly terms, and from what I can recall, he was a good man. My father's passing was hard on me as well, but I was even younger than you when I took the crown. As the queen of Hyrule (though I am still called princess and prefer to be), I wish you the best of luck when becoming the king. I would love to go the coronation, as well as Link, I'm sure. And speaking of Link…please help him. He is troubled. Midna was his closest friend, and her leaving was very harsh on him. Seeing you, I hope, has cheered him up. He has become my friend after the battle, and I do not like seeing him be hurt. Please send Link back with a response.
Sincerely,
Princess Zelda
Marth smiled as he finished reading Princess Zelda's elegant handwriting. It was nice to hear from her after all of these years, but then his thoughts turned slightly bitter. The coronation. He hadn't thought of it for a long time. And being king, he would be expected to be wed. Ugh. His advisors would probably want him to marry Caeda, Nyna, or, gods forbid, Zelda. Zelda was one of his best friends when he was little, and he didn't really feel comfortable with that situation at all. There were many princesses in the surrounding lands, but he didn't want to wed any of them. He then absentmindedly looked at Link. The blonde was blushing a little while talking to Pit, brushing back his bangs behind his long, tapered ears, only to have it fall back into place again. The sunlight from the window hit the metallic blue earrings just right, making them glow along with Link's wild eyes. No, not comfortable at all.
Marth flushed a little when he noticed he was staring and got up to write a response on his desk, sitting down at the writing table.
"Hey, Marth," a shy voice asked, breath ghosting across his ear in light puffs. "What did the princess have to say?" Marth flushed even more at the innocent act.
"A-ah, just that she wishes to come and visit after you go back," the bluenette replied, turning his head to look at Link.
"Oh…" the blonde mumbled, looking a bit crestfallen.
"But you're going to go with her!" Marth added hastily. "I bet she'll have you guard her carriage."
Link brightened up. "You think so?" Marth nodded and the Hylian grinned. "Neat! Well, I was wondering if I could stay here a few days to rest and maybe even help rebuild. It that okay with you? I mean, I don't want to intrude or anything…"
"No, that's fine! You can stay and rest, of course!" Marth exclaimed. "It would be wonderful if you wanted to volunteer. Plus, many of the people here haven't ever seen a Hylian—I'm sure that they'd love to have the chance to speak with you.
Link laughed. "I'd love to quench their curiosity! But I must admit, I am rather curious about one thing myself—what are Laguz? I got mistaken for one at the entrance."
Marth's expression grew slightly dark. "Ah, well, in Ike's country and the surrounding lands, there are two races—the Beorc, who are human, and the Laguz, who are people who can change into animals. They have distinguishable features, like the wolf Laguz have wolf ears and the heron Laguz have white wings."
"I…oh…" Hell, if Link had wolf ears instead of Hylian ears, he'd fit perfectly into the Laguz description. He wouldn't doubt it if Pit was mistaken for one too. "I don't see why people are prejudiced—Laguz sound pretty neat."
Marth smiled a bit at his friend's naivety. "Some people are just…bigoted fools." Link immediately thought of the Twili and being mistaken for a monster from the Twilight.
"I guess you're right."
Link wiped some sweat with the back of his left hand, panting. He was working outside of the huge wall where he was earlier harassed, half naked—the blonde was wearing his old sumo clothes, which were basically his traditional Ordon clothes but without the shirt. He had gotten many looks—mostly hateful, unnerving, and lustful—but some were curious and interested.
Currently, the blonde was working with McNar's group of people. Their job was to throw the debris of large stone and brick that had shattered by cannon fire into piles, which then was hauled by wagons to Nayru knows where. Marth was very wary about placing Link on this duty because of the hard labor and company, but the Hylian insisted since the work force was the smallest for this job.
Link grunted when he lifted a particularly large slab of the wall, and quickly threw it over to the pile that had formed some ways behind him. Goodness, I'm happy I'm not out of shape, he thought wearily. He then froze when he heard a large bell from somewhere on the castle grounds being hit, followed by the fanfare-like sound of a trumpet. Everything seemed to grow silent for a few seconds, then all hell broke loose. The Hylian saw people from all other work stations scream and run, looking as if they were trying to seek cover, only to bolt into the castle. The men working on the wall with him rushed to find their weapons and shields, and some scrambled to get on their horses, looking fearful but prepared. Everyone who hadn't gone before now filed behind the protective walls of the castle.
"What in blazes is going on?" Link whispered to himself uneasily.
"…Link! LINK!" The hero's keen hearing picked up on Pit's desperate voice.
"Over here!" he yelled, scanning the skies for his friend. Instead he heard galloping, and saw Pit emerge from the wall's gate on Epona. They slid to a stop, and Link ran over to them. "What in the name of Din is going on here?" he exclaimed. The grounds in and around the castle seemed dead silent, as if waiting for something, anything.
"Something's been spotted in the sky," the angel muttered anxiously, sliding off the slightly jittery Epona. "Everyone went into the castle to prepare a counterattack. A Pegasus knight is going up to check it out. I'm not sure what it is, but it's big. We should probably get go—" He was suddenly cut off by someone screaming. It was a horrible, absolutely awful scream, one of pure terror and fear.
A scream someone would give as if they were about to die.
Link tried to search for the source of the screaming, but found it when he saw Pit's line of vision. "Holy mother of Palutena…"
The green-haired Pegasus knight had burst out of the clouds and was now dropping to the ground at breakneck speed, with her faithful mount having its wings and legs tucked in, trying to gather more distance from whatever was behind her. When it too broke through the clouds, Link and Pit gasped.
It was an enormous, dark, scaly dragon. It had to be at least the size of the Twilit Dragon, Argorok, if not larger. It was black, with large ivory spikes poking out from the tip of its head all the way down its spine to its tail, where unlike the Twilit beast, had a menacing-looking club that looked the size of Epona. It reared its large, ugly head open and spewed out a long red flame, barely singeing the knight's hair and her Pegasus's tail.
The Pegasus knight was quickly nearing the ground to the point Link thought that they'd crash before at the last second her steed flared out its feathery wings and glided through the front gate of the wall. The two felt the air rush next to them where the rider and her companion had just missed them. They then heard loud thudding behind them, and next felt the ground shake. The blonde whipped around and froze. Behind them stood the large dragon, eying them with its ruby red gaze.
Pit only uttered one unexpected word.
"Fuck."
TBC
Review~? :)