T+ (16 and up.)
Sorry that it took so long to update! I had to do a ton of things, and my internet was patchy and even dead in some parts. This chapter is going to be strange for a lot of you, but awesome still. I have dropped a boatload of hints into this chapter, can you find them all? But that's one of the tricks I have hidden up my sleeve. Enough talk for now, on to war! Ahem, I mean, the next chapter.
Chapter 4: Harbingers
Half a world away from Hyrule…
The dark cloaked figure eyed the bar from a ways off, into the forest cover. The bar was short yet plump, the cloaked figure guessed around sixty feet at the sides, but no more than one story, which was nearly twenty feet tall. An orange glow pulsed from within, the bedrooms actively being used and the bar itself being quite full. The figure's cloak blended in with the shadows, allowing him to survey the structure with ease. The bar's pointed roof could make for a tough infiltration spot and tough exfiltration. The figure almost regretted the casualties that would be caused by the surrounding battle, but knew what had to be done.
The figure carried a hammer slung over his back, one edge flattened and one sharp. It was a dusty brown, once bronze, with strange gems inset on the edges. It was nearly twice the height of a full grown man, the gems giving the massive piece of metal an ethereal feel. However, the cloaked figure was not the size of a normal man, nearing ten feet tall himself. The form-fitting plate that lay on the figure's skin writhed and twisted in the moonlight, color draining from the armor and hiding away into the robe, powerful muscles underneath the armor trying to laze around. At the figure's hip lay a sword nearly four feet long, the size of an average child, which was a thin yellow. The sword's smoky pommel blended in with the black sheath, and nobody would have guessed that a golden sword was strapped there. The volatile enchantments made it hard to control when exposed to anything but the precisely crafted sheath, which kept it at a temperature where the energy wouldn't go haywire. Out of the figure's right boot, a short dagger hung. It was wrapped to the figure via a small belt that was tied around in a ropelike fashion, colors matching that of where the gold sword resided. The dagger's blade was a sickly green color, complexly enchanted. On the other hip of the figure a scepter was attached. This scepter was made of wood, handle pointing like a fork, with four edges. A purplish stone lay in the middle of the four pillars, glowing softly. Below the figure's hammer, a hand crossbow that could melt metal and stone lay, followed by thirty bolts.
In short, the cloaked figure was armed to the teeth.
The cloaked figure's target would be dead, and the title would be open for any willing guard: Commander.
The cloaked figure's target was Thommond Estucias, esteemed commander of the Fythos guards. The title came with an estate, personal barracks, and specially crafted equipment. A title that somebody wanted badly, but the cloaked figure didn't care about whom. It was tradition in Fythos for the nobles to have their own personal guards, and the Guard Commander was counted among them. The figure's intelligence had pointed him to a two-in-one bar, where Estucias had in fact entered. His sites were set in the room he had resided in, and didn't need his detection scepter to know that the Guard Commander had brought company.
It was a matter of precision, which the cloaked figure excelled at.
Despite the armor, the figure moved silently to the wall where Estucias was busy. Figuring that a crossbow bolt would be too loud, the figure unsheathed his glowing green dagger. It pulsed in response to his touch, glowing as he reached for the burning red bolts which were heated to an incredible degree. He broke the bolt's metal over the dagger, adding the enchantment to the blade, which drank it in like a hungry vampire. The figure put the blade to a stone, and sawed lightly, making an indent.
The Guard Commander in fact had two partners.
The figure rummaged through a pouch on his cloak to find exactly what he was looking for. A purple-black slip of parchment, with yellow runes edged in red, and a small slab of stone of the exact kind that made the bar, and a thin string. The figure placed the slip of paper on the bottom of the cut he made, topped by the stone. The figure lightly poked a hole through the paper with his dagger, and tied one end of the string around it. He dragged the string out as far as it would go, nearly twelve meters, before gripping the end with his hand. The figure simply thought of hatred and the string sparked. The figured placed it down carefully, ignoring the burn, and unsheathed his hammer.
The flame hissed, tearing up the string. The figure hefted his hammer, waiting in a peculiar position.
When the flame reached the slip of paper, it blew up.
The area that held the rock type disintegrated, becoming victim a miniature black hole which had a taste for that stone. As soon as the hole was done devouring that segment of the wall, the figure tossed his hammer, bladed edge landing with a satisfying chrthink into the Guard Commander's exposed skin. The figure heard the women scream before leaving the room, and the figure entered, head brushing the ceiling. Before checking the body, the figure held up one hand to the door and one to the hole, funneling his energy into the raised palms. The room began to shimmer, than flare blue. The figure could hear the sound of one the employees banging her head on the sudden barrier, the figure guessing that blood was starting to peak from her forehead. The figure turned to the kill.
Estucias was not a handsome man. He had defiant brown hair that streaked grey and blonde. His high cheekbones and slits of brown eyes were anything but human, they looked almost ratlike. His ears were slightly pointed, drooping down near the middle of his face at the lobe. Estucias was plump, yet not utterly so, and on the side of his bed lay his undergarments and a green suit, four pieces also lay in disarray. The center of Estucias' chest was torn off, revealing the clotting blood like a cake. The figure's hammer was in the wall, cracking it. The figure decided that the kill was good and that he would leave the hammer as a necessary precaution, until he heard an unmistakable, almost harmonic voice.
"Killing guards? That's incredibly unlike you, Avatar." The familiar voice of a Face Master interrogated. The Avatar turned his head slightly, and saw the floating face next to the door. The Avatar shrugged.
"I didn't know we were back to titles, Face Master." The Avatar responded. The Face Master shook his…face.
"Between us, I don't know my real name. But, if you want me to call you Nox, then I will." The Face Master's voice was nigh of a whisper. Nox nodded.
"Shouldn't you give yourself a name then?" Nox asked with a quizzical finger. The Face Master… shrugged, he thought.
"Why bother? Nothing defines what I am, but at least you have definition, Ava-I mean Nox." The Face Master was upset.
"I am an Avatar. What my people did defies definition, Face Master. You just need to find yours, for everything-save for what my people did- deserves to be known." Nox assured. The Face Master smiled.
"Are you sure you're the Avatar of Blood? You honestly sound like the Avatar of Truth." The Face Master asked, putting an invisible hand over his non-existent mouth, stroking it like one would stroke a beard.
"The Avatar of Truth is, in short, a complete coward. We should get out of here." Nox tilted his head towards the door, which was being banged open.
"Want me to handle this one?" The Face Master asked, and when looking at a confused Nox, added "I have a new mask I want to try." Nox shrugged.
"Go ahead. I'll meet you at my home. You know where it is, correct?" The Face Master nodded, and pulled out a mask of some odd orange sludge. Nox glimpsed the Face Master's amazing true form in the flash of his friend putting on the mask.
The Face Master was about eight and a half feet tall, with a plated hood that covered all but his face. His armor had people walking about it, going on their daily business around the base of Fort Soth. The Face Master's true face had an indented mouth, and a small nose. The Face Master even possessed wings, skeletal things that protruded from his shoulder blades and waited in a pounce-like position. It was an amazing sight, if only briefly it could be viewed.
What replaced the Face Master was a humanoid pile of orange gloop with no face.
"The children of dust need you," The Face Master pointed at Nox. "I'll be there soon, but prepare to actually help them out, the ones that actually worship what they did." Before Nox could ask why, The Face Master ripped open the door and Nox was gone.
The Face Master saw the Avatar of Blood leave, and prepared for what lay behind the door.
Behind the door were three burly male guards in plate that carried swords and spears. Behind them, there were cowering women. Behind them, there was an old man with spiky white hair on the sides of his head and glasses. The guards were not pleased when they saw the Face Master's form, and not knowing what it was, they backed up. The Face Master backhanded one of the guards, knocking him out and likely, thanks to the helmet, giving him a concussion. One tried to launch his spear into the Face Master's chest, which separated and collapsed around the guard's hands. The guard screamed, allowing the Face Master to gain leverage by pulling back and punching that guard upside the head. He dropped just fast enough for the last guard to throw his spear at the Face Master's head, but the gloop of the face simply grabbed the spear, and turned it around.
"This is what I get for trying to fight a slime." The guard whispered. The Face Master nodded.
"Aye." Then the spear was thrown through the guard's chest, killing him instantly. The Face Master left the screaming women to their barkeep, and remembered the hammer when he was in the woods. The Face Master rose a slimy hand, and the hammer flew back, destroying half of the bar's infrastructure. It collapsed with a Shrik-Dawooo, leaving some bedrooms open for forest view.
The Face Master smirked at his work before taking the Slime Mask off and jogging to Nox's home.
"Alright, we need that map of Hyrule. It should be in my house." Link pointed from the brush to his treetop home. Ros and Midna nodded.
"Ready?" Ros asked, taking out his own crossbow. Midna nodded.
"I'll get anyone inside." Midna said, whirling through her mental spellbook for something that wouldn't kill, but knock out. She didn't want to risk another pacification, just in case.
"No, that'll be me." Link whispered grimly, unsheathing his sword. Ros' eyes widened.
"You're known as a hero here, Link. I am but a soldier, so I will handle it." Ros was not happy. Link nodded.
"So be it. Here's my key, I'll cover the six, just in case." Link gave Ros a wooden key. The Knight nodded, and ducked out of the brush and climbed up the ladder and unlocked the door. Midna and Link followed suite.
"That was probably all commando-like for nothing." Midna shrugged. Link smiled sheepishly and tried to clean up some things.
"I honestly didn't remember what bad state this thing was in." Link waved away cobwebs and dust. Ros stood by the small window, crossbow at the ready.
"Link, it's fine, honestly," Midna gave her signature laugh, the one that she gave when they first met. "It's not lik-" Midna tripped over a raised piece of floorboard, and her head landed on an upturned nail. Link rushed to her side, pulling the nail out and yelling at Ros to find some water and towels. Midna's milky white head now had orange blood running down it.
"Damn it…" Link whispered. "How the hell did she even-" Link turned around, and saw that the raised piece of floor was gone.
Midna awoke, laying down, in the burning street of an absolutely enormous city. The ground and the sky were both red, and the buildings were crumbling and a burning red. Buildings crumbled without end, flames touching the sky and smoke clouding the air above her. Midna got to her feet slowly, gazing at the hellish landscape around her. She thought that this was the Twili hell, were every Twili went when they died.
But she hadn't died. She had fallen on a nail. That didn't cause death, and she felt something wiping her forehead.
"Where am I, then?" Midna asked nobody in particular, then heard screaming and the sounds of battle she was all too familiar with. She ran to the sounds, and gasped at the sight.
Two armies met in the streets. One was partially made of large beings that she knew were Raethieds, other infant sized with claws for hands, others thin like paper that had a cloud of darkness surround them, handing out the innards of the poor sap that joined the creature. At the head of the army was the shadow that had destroyed Hyrule, and a seven-foot tall creature with a purple, heart shaped mask as a face. At the head of the other army, there were many different people, and the soldiers were made of what appeared to be Hylians and other strange people. Link spearheaded the army, next to him was a woman in white robes with a bow and a stone humanoid creature. A flying creature also stood next to them, as did a tall person with a greatsword and someone with a faceplate and a chainmail hood. One of the Raethieds reached for the robed archer, but was ended by the stone creature flipping it on the backside and stepping square in the thing's face. They nodded at each other, and continued the fight. Midna watched the carnage, and did not see the creature that stood beside her.
"This is your future, harbingers of what's to come," The creature made Midna jump. Midna turned around, and gazed upon an average height being of shiny metal. Small orbs danced around it, zapping it and producing other things. It had no face, only a bubble. It was as blank as Midna could've possibly guessed something could be. "One of many possible ones." Midna watched in horror as the masked creature approached Link, who was busy fighting off one of the thin creatures. She saw the metal clank and spark in what felt like slowed time as the masked thing approached.
"Who are you?" Midna asked, one eye on Link and the other on the featureless metal creature. She realized that Link looked aged, grays appearing in his hair and features hardened and veins more pronounced. "Why are you showing this to me, if this is only a possible future?" Midna asked suddenly, feeling the Triforce of Wisdom burning. The creature turned to her.
"My name is not important at this time period," The metal creature answered. "However, I show you this to know that this is a cause of your selfishness." Midna became infuriated.
"How am I selfish?" She snapped, heart turning to stone as the masked creature's blade plunged into Link's midsection, orange blood spraying the sword. The masked creature put a glass vial under the blood, collecting it. He raised the sword and shouted for the shadow, who was fighting with sixteen tendrils of shadow and two arms. Thirty people were trying to kill him, and as he finished the last one, he caught the vial.
"Because you left the Mirror of Twilight, and because of many other factors," The creature responded, watching as the hooded shadow drank the blood and shouted in joy. "The factors are in place for this to have happened. You leaving let the storm that would've ravaged the sky will rain down onto the world. Because you left the Mirror of Twilight, the Palace of Twilight is destroyed and you will join them in this storm. Because you still cared for the Hylian, the futures of him committing suicide, or the Princess Zelda stealing him, are gone. Because you didn't break the Mirror, his descent into madness will not happen." Midna could not believe these words. She left the Mirror so that Link would come visit. How would she ever care enough for anybody else, enough so that Link would descend into madness from possible rejection? Midna also made note of the creature practically saying that if she had not cared for him the way she did, he would commit suicide. The chances of Zelda doing anything were gone.
"Why is it so dependent on me?" Midna asked in a small voice, watching as the creatures pushed back the others, killing them off.
"Because of you," The creature continued. "Because you cared and were selfish, the chances of this storm passing by were slim to none. This is one of the outcomes of this future. No matter what you decided to do, no storm was as dangerous as this one. Except for the future where Ganondorf survived Link's killing, and you remained an Imp for a while, and actually allied with Ganondorf. That future was somewhat as dangerous as this one, though the outcome was almost always winning," The creature looked her in the eye. "This is the most frequent future, now."
A being ran from the retreating army, half black and half white. Around it was an aura of gold, which vaporized the other creatures. It expelled the aura by Link's corpse, burning the masked creature. The winged shadow took a few steps back as the equal creature collapsed.
"I'm so sorry I couldn't be here sooner," The being sounded young. "I'm so sorry that I did this. Please forgive me." The being's voice cracked up as he raised the back of his right hand, which held two glowing triangles, and the Triforce of Courage was absorbed into the creature. The being took a deep breath, and the full Triforce began to glow. The being took a step towards the hooded shadow and raised a hand, sending it through the buildings before levitating and turning to Midna.
"Go, M-" The metal creature blotted out the future, making them stand on an empty white landscape. Midna tried to wrap her mind around that the pronunciation wasn't the meh that started her name, but muh. Midna guessed that because of the thing's voice, it sounded different from her and Link's pronunciation.
"Why did you do that?" Midna whirled on the metal creature.
"It was powerful enough to know it was being watched," The creature retorted. "You need to prevent what I just let you view at all costs." The creature walked away, getting bigger with every step.
"Wait!" Midna called. The creature turned around, now nearly eighty feet tall. "What do I call you, and what do I do?"
"Call me the Chronographer, and the first thing you have to do is get out alive," The Chronographer pointed upwards. "Your hero's calling you." And then the vision faded.
Midna awoke to Link's worried face less than a foot over hers. Behind him, she saw Ros and his crossbow still pointed out the window. Link's eyes were scanning her forehead for any more traces of blood. When they went downwards to her eyes, Link smiled widely.
"You're okay," Link put a slightly shaking hand to hers. "Come on, we've got to find that map," He choked, helping Midna up. "Then I've got to take a bath, get this blood off of me." Midna remembered that she had given Link the blood by accident when the shadow had taken over the city.
"I do too," Midna murmured, one eye on Link's face, which grew mischievous. "Not together, Link!" She remarked, pointing to the back room which he usually kept his bath things. "You first!" Midna commanded and pointed towards the room, and Link went without an argument. Midna watched as he started it, remembering that his obedience was one of the great things about the Hero of Twilight.
"Look for the map while I'm soaking!" Link called. Midna rolled her eyes. "It should be around the bookshelf somewhere!" Midna's eyes lingered for a small while longer then they should have.
"You know," Ros started when Link was in the bath he made, not moving from his position. "Staring at him like that will get you nowhere." Midna blushed, turning around and watching Ros still stand at the window.
"And what would you know in regards to Link?" Midna asked, crossing her arms.
"I know something that you probably don't. Link holds his friends and his enemies at a medium range," Ros closed one eye. "The people he really treasures, he either throws them away or holds them to his chest, depending on who they are. For me, it was the former," Ros was as keen as an eagle, still watching anything that moved. "It was no secret I was his favorite student. However, he still would try to toughen me up. Your adventure turned me harder than I was before. How he makes it out… I'm pretty sure it's the latter, with you," Ros whispered. "It was always Midna this, Midna that, for a while, until it died down and he forgot, I suppose." Ros was barely audible. "You don't need anything special to figure out that you inspired him."
"What do you mean 'anything special'?" Midna asked. Ros gazed down from the crossbow, looking at the area of the wood that Midna had tripped on, which was now level.
"Let's forget this conversation ever even happened." Ros looked Midna in the eyes, her flaming eyes battling with his dark green ones.
"Agreed." Midna responded darkly.
"Find the map yet?" Link asked from the bath, and Midna remembered what she was asked to do.
"Not yet!" She said, looking through the bookcase where Link said it should be. Dust covered the once bright spines, some red and some blue and some green and most brown and black. Midna found a slip between two books, and pulled out a slip of parchment. Midna blew on it, revealing a map of Hyrule. "Found it!" She called.
"Good! You and Ros work out a plan, I'll finish up, and then we'll switch." Midna paid Link no mind as she looked towards the map of the landlocked country. Towards the east, there was a port marked 'Synfester'. Midna made a mental marker and looked at the boundaries- there were mountains and a small plain barring them from it.
"Got a plan!" Midna called, and Ros raised an eyebrow. Midna scurried around Link's house, looking for rations.
They had to leave this place.
The Face Master patrolled the halls of Fort Soth, an invisible sentry and guardian. The Face Master counted each torch, numbered each hallway, and found each nook and cranny that was available to them in their new home. It was not like the Face Master despised this home, it was just less… exciting, then the old home. In total there were one-thousand three-hundred and two torches, six hundred fourteen hallways, and over nineteen thousand nooks and crannies.
The Face Master came to the Construction Hall, where the Mask Lord resided, siphoning power every day most times a day. The Mask Lord wore a purple suit as always, and unlike the Face Masters, had a finished version of the face they knew so well. When the Face Master entered the Hall, he saw why. In the slot where the Mask Lord worked for the past three years, there lay a glowing triangle.
"You completed it." The Face Master whispered. The Mask Lord nodded.
"Indeed." He joyfully laughed.
"Who will use it?" The Face Master asked in a laugh.
"One of the Heroes. We just have to wait for them to come for them to obtain their gift." The Mask Lord shrugged. The Face Master's stomach turned to rocks.
"Oh," The disappointment was not hidden. "I suppose they will have use of the masks too, then?" The Face Master asked, crossing his arms. The Mask Lord nodded.
"They are Heroes, after all." The Face Master felt like he was being talked down to, even though he was double the height of the Mask Lord.
"And what if they betray us?" The Face Master asked. The Mask Lord's face darkened.
"Then you'll have to kill them all." The Mask Lord was barely audible. The duo stood in silence for a moment.
"Lunch?" The Face Master asked after a moment of silence.
"Why not?" The Mask Lord shrugged, and the two of them left the room, thinking of honey roasted animals.
"So… Where exactly is this?" Link asked Midna after she got finished bathing, and had shed her scant clothing (which she, for some reason, put into her Vault) for leather and robes. It was extremely tight on her, and nearly as revealing from Link being somewhat shorter than her. The scar that taunted him was still visible, reminding him of the fact that he failed to protect her after Lakebed Temple. They had asked Ros, who was stained with the blood of Illia and Bo, but he declined in favor of watching the door with his crossbow. Midna reached over his shoulder with a sigh and pointed towards the port. Her exposed arm that was frequently used for magic brushing his made a chill run down his spine. Link had never been one to be shy, but the touch of magic could not be resisted, as he had not even a fathom of the training Midna did in regards to magical abilities.
"It's called Synfester. It's the closest port in the wilderness, but still easier to access than any other northern one, the southern ones being in a different country, and the western ones being quite far north. We can reach it from here," Midna pointed on the map to almost the direct location of Link's house. "We just need to cross a few mountains or so and a small plain. Do you have your rupees?" Her voice was in Link's ear. The Hero nodded.
"About five hundred," Link replied, shaking his bag of money. "Do you really think we'll need them?" Link asked. Midna bit her bottom lip.
"The currency that the port might take could be different from here, so…" Midna turned around, and in a few seconds, tossed Ros and Link thick woolen cloaks before adorning herself in one.
"We should get moving." Ros finished. Link and Midna nodded.
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go." Link opened the door to his house, bright sunlight entering the house. To Midna, it looked like Link was bathed in a white light. She smiled softly, absorbing the Hylian's features. A mischievous thought played into her mind, but she quickly dispelled it. It wasn't like Link would feel the same way, but what the Chronographer had said if she had decided to feel differently… Link would possibly commit suicide if she left him.
Was it actually possible for the two of them to…? She shook her head. She wouldn't think of this. Midna decided that she would revisit the subject if the circumstances were right.
But what about getting out alive? Getting out of what alive?
Captain Maera Fiesthey rushed through the Grand Hall of the Insumnios people. Guards with their pointed helmets and swords saluted her, and she nodded back, all in a blur as she attempted to reach the Allmother. The corridor was dark, dimly lit as per the Insumnios fashion. Her helmet extended her senses farther than they would've been, and she could guess that her ETA was in a minute. Her slim yet strong body carried her some ways into the Grand Hall before she had to rely on her armor, which allowed deft movement, to carry for the rest of the way. Her weapons hung at her hips and back, sheathed in the honorable Insumnios fashion. Her Amplifier and her collection of emergency one-shot spells lay in a bag tied around her neck. Her natural spells were potent, but weak enough to be held back by the regal cloak she wore. Maera stopped at the doors, a hundred feet high and made of the finest stones available.
She opened the doors, using the Insumnios in-elven strength, to the Grand Hall with a thud.
The Allmother's throne chamber was nothing short of bafflingly amazing.
Precious gems of all shapes and sizes lay inset into the walls, glowing with a rainbow-like light. The room was shaped like an egg, with a small path leading to the center of the room, which held pool-blue crystals at certain intervals. The center of the room held many of these crystals coalesced into one spot, illuminating the black throne that a creature sat. That creature had fifteen burning orbs of yellow and purple that happened to be closed. The head of the creature was shaped like a Y, most of the eyes being housed on the split of the head. The other part of the head was, unlike other Insumnios (or at least, unlike Maera.) was a beak that could break into hundreds of parts to swallow prey. The creature had sixteen legs, all of which were attached to the throne or to the crystals in some way. The arms of the creature were gigantic Is, ending in a clawed paw of a hand. Maera also knew that this creature neared ninety feet in height.
It was hard to believe that the Insumnios had come from this, that this was the Allmother. The giant beast stirred from her slumber when she heard Maera enter, and whispered at her with level eyes.
"Yes, young one?" The Allmother asked, tilting her head. Maera bowed and went down on one knee.
"O great Allmother, I have knowledge that you may wish to know." Maera announced, her voice loud.
"Then speak it." The Allmother demanded. Maera nodded, and cleared her throat.
"The Winged Tyrant is approaching our homeland." Maera practically shouted.
"I know this, young one." The Allmother cooed. Maera raised her head.
"Allmother?" Maera asked.
"Prepare for war," The Allmother commanded darkly. "For that is what the Tyrant wants." Maera nodded her head reluctantly.
"Yes, Allmother." Maera stood, put her right fist over her face and made it a palm before leaving.
Both of them regretted that it had come once again to this.
I know, short update, but I really wanted this to end here. I'm sorry.
Again, the Storm thing is unintentional. I really wanted to make it clear that this would be the worst thing to come.
If you noticed the Silent Kingdom reference, you get a cookie!
If you noticed the Amalur reference, you get a Castle Windmere!
If you truly want to know what that last part about the Mask Lord is, I'm trying to convey to you readers the sense that the Face Masters and the Mask Lord are all still alive, and that they need food.
Kudos, and as always, reviews appreciated!