"We had planned to train in water-based environments, so we were trying to think of a good spot."
As Vio explained this, Blue remembered how, although Green wanted to train along the Zora River, Red preferred to stay closer to the town and suggested training in the fountain in Hyrule Town Square. Blue almost laughed at the memory of Red's determined expression as he was arguing over the ridiculous idea, but Vio's monotonous tone as he told the depressing story quickly sapped Blue of the small joy.
"There were a lot of good places to train," Vio continued, "but we couldn't seem to reach a unanimous decision."
Green remembered that Red had been the only person who thought the river was a bad place to train. Red said something about how he had a weird feeling in his stomach about going too far away from town. I dismissed it as mere excitement about the seasonal fair preparations. Green recalled. The realization that his dismissal of Red's instinct could be the reason that the Links were congregated in the foyer of the Sage's hospital now, left Green's entire body feeling heavier, but he couldn't let Blue see his despair, there was no telling how it would affect this strange, different Blue.
"Since we couldn't reach an agreement over which place to train on, I suggested we train a little at the archers' range to warm up before water training. All of the locations that we had weeded the suggestions down to were either far away or dangerous for bystanders, so everyone agreed that it would be best to do some light, preliminary training to make sure that we were prepared for something to go wrong,"
At this, Blue gave a low, dark chuckle. Something had gone wrong. Blue thought And I sure as Din wasn't prepared for it, nor do I think anything could have prepared me for… this. Besides, nobody actually agreed with you, Vio. You just argued the same point over and over again in a different way until everyone went along with your plan just to shut you up. Vio, who had accurately guessed his clone's thoughts, resisted the urge to shrug, roll his eyes, or glare at the boy in blue, mostly because Blue seemed to be getting a little of his spirit back.
"Unfortunately, the archers' range was temporarily closed due to the seasonal fair, so, instead, we moved into the forest to try to find a good tree we could shoot at." Vio explained, "However, during shooting practice, Green thought he heard a sound in the surrounding forestry, so we stopped. After about 2 minutes, we still didn't hear anything, but Green thought it would be best to pack up and get ready to move to the river, so, despite the objections of Red and Blue, Green and I packed up all of the equipment and weapons."
That, Blue reflected, had been our first mistake.
"After all of our items had been packed, a loud shout erupted from the surrounding woods."
That battle cry currently haunted Green, Blue, and Vio, but they would never admit that, especially not now. Not with the news poor Zelda was about to hear, and the pain and horror all of the people in the room were about to live, whether again or not.
"Sword-wielding Goblins fell from the treetops surrounding us. Luckily, Red and Blue had their swords equipped already, and were able to cover Green and I as we fished our swords from the equipment bags. We weren't that far from the town, and since the majority of the Goblins were appearing from the trees opposite the direction of the town, I assumed that they were originally on their way to attack Hyrule. I shouted at Red to run back to town to warn the watchmen and ask you to send some of the guards to help us," Princess Zelda, upon being introduced as a minor character in the non-fiction, stiffened a little as Vio continued, "Red complied with my order and began to fight his way towards town. After about 30 seconds of fighting off the ambush, we heard a familiar scream."
Blue violently shuddered. The scream had been heart wrenching to him. It had been high-pitched and lasted for about 5 seconds, Blue recollected, slightly surprised at how he could accurately describe the scream. After all, he had only heard that scream once before, and yet Blue had instantly been able to recognize the owner. The only other time Blue had heard Red scream like that was in a previous fight, when Gufuu had grabbed Red and was reeling him in, in an attempt to eat him. It was the scream Red only used when he was in extreme danger.
Green showed no change at the mention of the scream. He couldn't allow himself to. Not when Blue had such a powerful reaction to it. For some reason, Blue, who had always been the group's source of determination, needed someone to be strong for him, so Green, naturally, assumed the role. But that's not to say that the scream didn't ring out in Green's ears, and haunt, if not fuel, his regrets. It had been Green's idea to pack up all the weapons. They would have been better prepared for the attack if Vio had his bow, if Blue had his hammer, if Red had his fire rod. The slingshot might only stun enemies, but it still could've helped. But no, Green had decided to pack everything when he should've known better.
Vio had to pause at this part of the story to calm his nerves. He could feel his strength drain at the re-living of Red's scream. Vio couldn't help but feel at fault. It had been his idea to do preliminary training outside of town when the archer's range had been closed, despite Red's strange premonition about the horrors marching towards the town. However, Vio didn't allow himself to feel self-pity for very long though, Zelda needed to hear the end of the story, and if anyone was going to tell Zelda what had happened to, technically speaking, 1/4th of her childhood friend, it was going to be another 4th, and if Vio was going to finish the story, it had to be before the doctor finished whatever doctors do in this situation. So Vio, once again, sucked up both air and courage, and continued.
"At the scream, our adrenaline piqued. It took us approximately 35 seconds to mow through the goblins to get to the source of the scream. The scene in front of us when we did, however, was… horrendous is too kind a word, but I can't really think of a better one right now." Vio paused, "Are you sure that you want… all of the details?" He asked Zelda.
Zelda had been fascinated at the story-telling abilities of her friend. Captivated in the purple one's tale, and being the wielder of Wisdom, she almost had no choice but to violently nod. Zelda, despite not sleeping for a week at the vivid depiction Vio implanted in her mind, never once regretted her decision.
Vio sighed, took a deep breath, and looked over to Green. Vio didn't need to say anything. Green covered Blue's ears.
"The first thing I noticed was the blood."
That's all it took to have tears brim Blue's eyes. Green, who realized that Blue could still hear the purple Link, led Blue outside, so that he wouldn't have to hear anymore. Once Blue was safely outside, Vio took a deep breath and continued.
"It wasn't a pool of blood, per se, more like a coat. A coat of blood on the ground surrounding Red, the blood had to be fresh, because it was dark with oxygen, but it was strange to see all of the grass seemingly floating in the coat. Red was kneeling down in pain, facing to, what was then, our left, with his visible arm wrapped around his stomach. He had his head down in pain and was biting his lip for the same reason. A goblin, covered in clothing that appeared to be stained with the red blood of human and the black ash of fallen goblins, towered over him, holding his blood-bathed sword high, and preparing for the final blow. The scene could've been a painting at a museum, Zelda. The trees surrounding the clearing that the hero and the enemy were found in were covered with slashes from swords finishing a long-held vendetta. Some of the pink flowers with yellow-edged petals and pure white centers had fallen to the ground in a circle around the clearing, and the goblin had an evil, malicious smirk and black eyes that sparked with vengeance and hatred as he prepared for the final blow. It was a sight that demanded, and received, terror, wonder, and awe. As you can imagine, the moment that Blue merely glimpsed the scene, he rushed the goblin. Green, not being one to drop a fight, joined him. I ran towards Red, knowing that, despite being the most child-like of our group, Red wouldn't have been defeated if something wasn't wrong. I brought the equipment bag, which also stored our first aid kit, to Red's front in an attempt to help him."
Vio involuntarily paused. Zelda waited patiently for her friend to gather his thoughts; she knew that Vio would try to stall for as long as possible, but she was fine with waiting. Besides, she definitely didn't want to rush a story this powerful
"The first thing I noticed, strangely," Vio commented, "was the paleness of Red's face. It was almost like looking at a white-colored plate in a stained glass window when sunlight shines directly through it, when the only color is the pale, almost translucent yellow of the sun. Red's tunic, surprisingly, didn't appear too damaged. Only drenched. When you wear red, I guess blood doesn't show very easily. The only place Red's tunic seemed to be damaged was his right shoulder." Vio took a deep breath, and chuckled darkly, "I guess I was almost right, about his arm being wrapped around his stomach, but, although Red's left, upper arm angled towards his stomach, where it should have continued, had it been wrapped around Red's stomach that is, it bent at an approximate 90-degree angle towards his other arm, where Red's left hand was clutching the side of his right shoulder. Red's other arm lay on the ground, where the Four Sword, although in a loose grip, somehow continued resting in its owner's hand."
Somewhere outside of the room where the story was being told, someone broke down in tears with his leader hovering over him. The weeping boy wiped his own tear-streaked face with clean hands that felt as red as the only connected hand of the sobbing one's dismembered beloved. In the room immediately adjacent to the foyer of the Sage's hospital, the doctor prepared the words he would use when he faced the patient's loved ones.