Author's Notes: While I originally meant to start this way sooner, I've been busy finishing up an audition piece for an OCT, going to a convention, and doing lots of schoolwork. However, school is over now and I've got lots of time to write! This story will be finished very soon.
Disclaimer: I don't own Link or anything else from the games. Nintendo has the honor to own it. I also don't own the quote. However, I own Celestria as well as my OCs.
"We look forward to the time when the power of love will replace the love of power."
- William E. Gladstone
Chapter 19: Power or Love
"You need more than power in life." Veiviser muttered with a frown. He raised a hand, beginning to tick off each and every item he found to be more important than power, "Food, water, a home, friends, mouthwatering food…"
Kamaria interrupted, "You said food twice."
Veiviser gave her a pointed look and replied, "That's because it's really important… Now where was I?" The boy paused, staring at the five fingers he had raised. Then he excitedly yelped, "Right! Mouthwatering food, family to come home to, and love. They're all more important than power."
Midna's laughter trailed off, her glowing teal eyes focusing on the group. She did not look particularly happy to have Veiviser point out the flaws in her desire for power. In fact, her eyes narrowed.
"Impertinent fool!" She hissed. "You will die."
Before Veiviser could ask what impertinent meant, Midna charged towards him, her blade raised to slice him in half.
"Out of the way." Kamaria grabbed Veiviser's arm and yanked him down to the ground. It was just in time too as Midna's sword sliced through the air where Veiviser had been standing.
Veiviser gulped, running a nervous hand through his orange hair. "I don't like this." He stated, staring up at Midna.
"Midna, what's happening to you?" Link had pushed himself up, his cerulean eyes watching Midna. His arms supported him.
The Twili stared back at him. Her once warm eyes were now cold hollows of icy teal. She said passionately, "Power. I'm stronger than I ever was. It's the one thing that I never had enough of and now I have it."
Link shook his head. "No. This isn't you. Power doesn't complete a person."
"Shows what you know." Midna pointed the glowing sword towards Link. "Have a taste."
Vaschel and Morgana both got between Midna and Link. "Sorry, but we don't want you to do that." Both had drawn their weapons; Vaschel a sword and Morgana a long spear with a curved blade at the end.
"You really think you stand a chance? Where even Gavin failed?" Midna laughed at the ridiculousness of the suggestion before sneering, "But if you really want to test it…"
She stepped towards them, swinging the Twi Blade at Morgana. The woman quickly raised the spear up to meet the sword. There was a brief halt before the blade glowed brightly and the spear broke. Morgana jumped backwards, the broken pieces of her weapon clattering to the ground.
Meanwhile, Vaschel had gone towards Midna's weaker side, stabbing his sword towards her exposed belly. The sword had barely cut into Midna before she twirled away from Vaschel's weapon. Where Vaschel had cut her, a small line of glowing teal blood dripped out.
"Even her blood is full of the magic." Vaschel shook his head, just as Midna charged forwards and swung the Twi Blade at him.
Quickly Vaschel moved out of the way, a neat sidestep. He attempted a blow towards Midna, but she dodged and continued her offensive attack. Vaschel was left with nothing to do, but dodge her blade and keep his own sword safe from harm.
Veiviser was following the battle intently. "This is ridiculous. He has to worry about his sword and he can't get any hits in."
He rubbed the arm he had injured earlier, wishing that he hadn't hurt it fighting the assassins. Maybe then he could be in on the battle… But what could he really do? He had a club, a club that grew spikes, but he wasn't much of a fighter.
"Vei…" Kamaria pressed a hand against Veiviser's arm, her purple eyes clearly troubled but shining with resolution. "Can you help me up?"
"So we can escape?" Veiviser asked. He didn't want to leave his friends, but he also didn't want Kamaria to stay near here for any longer than necessary. The way he saw it, he could help his best friend get somewhere safe and then return.
"No. I want to try fighting, but I can't stand on my own."
"Are you crazy?" Kamaria scowled at Veiviser as the boy continued to rant. "Your leg is a bloody mess, you can't get up or walk, and you want to fight a superpowered Midna? Well, I'm not going to let you! In fact, I think I'll carry you out of here myself."
Now it was Kamaria's turn to get angry. "Vei, cut it out and look at this logically."
"I am being logical." Veiviser grumbled, but the fury of his outburst had left him.
Kamaria ignored his comment, continuing, "Regular weapons aren't working, but magic might work. At the very least, it'll work better than swords and clubs." She gave him a pointed look. "I just need help standing, but I can still do magic."
"I don't want you to be –"
"Vei, this is an order." Her voice had turned into a regal voice, startling Veiviser. "Help me stand."
Veiviser glanced anxiously towards Vaschel. The man's movements had grown slower and he was just barely managing to sidestep Midna's attacks. Sooner or later he would be forced to use his sword to defend himself and then he would be weaponless. He looked back at Kamaria who was staring at him intently.
Veiviser sighed loudly, "Fine."
Kamaria smiled and placed an arm around Veiviser's shoulders as he helped her up. There was a brief stab of pain from her injured leg, but she simply tightened her jaw and ignored it. Summoning up magic, she sent a bolt towards Midna.
The bolt of magic caught Midna off-guard, sending the Twili several feet through the air. The princess snarled in pain before turning towards Kamaria.
"You shouldn't have done that, little girl." Midna snarled.
She charged towards the pair, giving Kamaria barely enough time to throw up a shield. The Twi Blade hit the shield, bringing a yelp from Kamaria's throat. Even though the shield withstood the initial attack, cracks were rapidly appearing from where the Twi Blade had lodged into the shield.
"Do something." Veiviser hissed in panic.
"I…" Kamaria's voice stuck in her throat as the magical shield shattered. She was sent falling to the floor, Veiviser landing by her side. Her purple eyes stared in Midna with terror.
"Midna, enough."
While everyone had been focused on fighting one another, Link had slowly gotten up. He was standing right by Midna's side now. His arms wrapped around Midna, causing her to jump in alarm.
"Link. Get away before she kills you." Veiviser hissed nervously. So far Midna had done nothing, besides flinch, and he didn't want to jolt her into hurting Link.
"I know what I'm doing." Link's face told a different story, but Veiviser decided to trust the Hylian's judgment.
Midna growled. "Release me."
"Midna, snap out of it. This isn't you." Link whispered into her ear, meanwhile pinning her arms to her side. Staring at Veiviser, he mouthed some words, Get the sword, and glanced down at the Twi Blade for good measure.
Veiviser stared blankly back. He had never been any good at reading lips, but the gesture to the sword was clear enough. However, the problem of removing the sword puzzled Veiviser.
"Of course it's still me, but better. More enlightened. Stronger." Midna's eyes shone brightly.
"What about your friends? Me? Does all this power make us replaceable?" Link continued to watch Veiviser, wondering what was taking the boy so long. Again, he mouthed Get the sword to him, just in case the boy hadn't understood his initial message.
"I don't need anyone anymore. Now let me go." The teal glow intensified around Midna, making her skin burning hot to the touch.
Link's jaw tightened, but he continued to hold on. He couldn't let go of her. He couldn't let her become a monster. He loved her too much to allow it to happen, even if it meant getting hurt to do it.
The pain was overbearing now. It dulled Link's senses until all he could see was the teal glow of Midna's magic. Finally his tight jaw slackened and howls of pain escaped.
Veiviser stared in panic before determination filled his gaze. "I'm going in." His trusty club materialized in his hand as he stood up. "Back me up?" The boy asked, glancing at Kamaria. The girl nodded, tightlipped.
With that, Veiviser charged towards Midna, making no sound besides the slap of his feet on the stone floor. A purple glow enveloped his club, help from Kamaria. If Midna hadn't been distracted with getting Link to release her, she would've noticed the boy. However, she was too busy to notice the club as it swung down towards her hand.
There was a sharp cracking sound; Veiviser wasn't sure whether it was his club or the bones in Midna's hand at that moment. Then the Twi Blade slipped from Midna's hand. As Veiviser stared dumbly down at it, he could see the howling faces in the blade fade away.
With all the power gone, Midna's magic left her and she collapsed to the ground, momentarily shocked at the loss. Link fell down along with her, his breathing deep and gasping.
Between his deep breaths, he managed to ask, "Midna, are you okay?"
Veiviser pushed the Twi Blade several feet away from Midna with a wary toe before returning. "That was scary… Let's not do it again." He glanced around at the faces around him: a nervous Morgana, a relieved Vaschel, a fearful Lita (she had been hiding during the battle, but had come out afterward), a smiling Kamaria, a tired Link, a weary Midna.
"What was that?" Vaschel asked, approaching them slowly.
Midna stared around her before pushing herself up. "I think so." She answered Link's question first before looking over at Vaschel and the others. The same question hung in everyone's eyes.
What was that?
She thought back to when Griff had first handed her the sword. "It has magic in it, powerful and corruptive magic." He had warned her to be careful with it, to not overuse it, before adding that he didn't think anything bad would happen to her. And now this had happened… So much for Griff's warning. She had disregarded it in a time of need, just like she had disregarded Devincha's warning about the amulet.
"Midna…" Link murmured, drawing her away from thoughts of the past. "What happened?"
"The sword has good and bad magic in it." Midna began with a light sigh. "Its power can corrupt. I guess it finally caught up to me."
Everyone was silent for a few moments before Veiviser broke the silence. "I saw faces in the sword. They were scary faces." He glanced at it uncertainly before looking at Midna for an explanation.
The Twili shrugged. "I saw the faces too, but I don't know who they are. They could be the victims who fell to the blade… or they could be the souls of those who got absorbed in the blade's power."
She shivered. Her second guess, which Midna was sure was true though she didn't say so, had been so close to coming true for her. She had been ready to toss everything else out the window, just for the sweet thrill of the power in her veins. If her friends hadn't been able to separate her from the sword… she would surely have ended up like the rest of the faces in the sword.
"Well, we're glad you aren't psycho anymore." Veiviser said slowly, grinning at the end of his statement.
She smiled back at him. "I'm glad I'm back to normal too. Thank you, Vei, for smashing my hand." Midna glanced down at her hand. It was bloody, the bone bent strangely.
Veiviser chuckled. "No problem. I'll gladly break your hand again if necessary."
"And thank you Link." She looked over at the Hylian, eyes going wide as she took in his condition. "We still need to get you back to Hyrule. Where's the amulet?"
Kamaria piped in. "I still have it." She fingered the obsidian star nervously. "Will it work?"
Midna nodded. "It should. Devincha should come around this time." She wasn't sure how destroying Gavin would affect the amulet, but surely it could still work. "Anyway, it's our only chance to save Link."
The Hylian smiled weakly at Midna. "Let's hope there aren't any more Twili stuck in that amulet. Go ahead."
Veiviser helped Kamaria move over to Link and Midna. Once the two princesses had grasped hands, they spoke together, "Azalen, Traque, Galef, Twilides."
This time, the amulet glowed the same blue that Midna remembered from her summoning with Griff. Once the light had gone away, Devincha was left floating there. She was exactly like Midna remembered her: the same flowing red locks, the same blue glow, the same teal markings. However, her honey eyes were currently narrowed in disapproval.
"I thought I told you not to use the amulet again." Devincha's eyes bored into Midna, awaiting an explanation from her descendent.
"It was an emergency." Midna said, gesturing towards Link. "He's sick with something called the Viduata Solis. Ever heard of it?" At the end, her tone turned accusatory.
Devincha shook her head. "Never."
"Well, it comes from being in the Twilight Realm for too long." Midna sighed. "We needed to take him back and the amulet is the only way we know." Besides the ceremony in the book, but by the next eclipse, Link will be dead unless he goes home.
Devincha sighed. "Well, I suppose such a reason is acceptable." Her gaze swept over the ruined throne room. "What did you do about Gavin? I felt a disturbance…"
"I… destroyed him." Midna replied ruefully, thinking about her battle with Gavin. "That's okay, right?"
Devincha shook her head. "It destabilized the amulet."
"Which means?" Veiviser, never one to keep his mouth shut when faced with the unknown, questioned.
Devincha glanced at Veiviser before turning her attention back to Midna. "The amulet will fall apart in a few days. It was meant to house two souls and without Gavin's, it'll cease working. This will be the last time you can summon me."
It wasn't a huge loss, Midna figured. Besides not getting to visit Link whenever, but it's not like she would forever be isolated from him. If she could get the Reise igjennom Virkelig to work, then she would be able to visit Link at every eclipse.
"I see… You're not upset about it?" Midna asked.
"No. It's time my soul was allowed to leave this world. The amulet was meant to be a way to create peace as well as hoard power, but it's been a prison." Devincha looked melancholy for a few moments before looking back at Link. "Now shall I take him back or would you like to say your good-byes?"
They were short on time, but some quick good-byes were necessary. Vaschel and Morgana both kneeled down besides Link.
"We would've liked to see you in action with your sword." Morgana began with a smile.
"But seeing you stand up against Midna in your condition was incredible on its own. We can really see how you became the Hero of Twilight." Vaschel grinned at Link, thumping his shoulder as a friendly gesture.
Link smiled back. "Thanks, you two." He hadn't gotten to know them as well as he would've liked, but they were good people.
"See ya, Link." They echoed before stepping away.
To everyone's surprise, Lita skipped over. She reached out a hand, fingering Link's blonde hair, before pulling back to touch her own blonde hair.
"You lied about being from the Twilight Realm and you tried to take my sister away from me." Link shrugged apologetically. "But I still like you. You're the only person, other than Da-daddy," her voice caught in her throat and she gulped down tears. "Other than Daddy who has yellow hair like me."
Link smiled back at the girl. "Well, it's a fairly common color back in Hyrule." He paused before adding, "Be a good girl and let your sister stay here. The kingdom needs her."
Lita looked like she wanted to protest before nodding, "If you say so, Link. But I'm not letting her live alone."
Kamaria looked at her sister in surprise. "What about Honap? Aren't you going back?"
Lita frowned and shook her head roughly. "I don't wanna go back if you're not coming with Mommy and me. We can stay and live here." She stamped her foot on the floor for good measure.
Kamaria smiled and nodded her head. "I'll make sure you have a nice room." She turned her eyes towards Link. "Good-bye Link. I'm sorry we didn't meet under the best circumstances."
Link shrugged before agreeing, "I don't really meet that many people in nice circumstances." He nudged Midna playfully. "For example, I met Midna in prison."
Midna smiled at the boy. "Those were good times."
"Link." The Hylian looked over at Veiviser who was obviously trying very hard not to cry. "I'm going to miss you a lot."
"I'll miss you too, Vei." He smiled sadly. "But no need to cry. You're going to be alright. Just train hard with that club of yours… And when the time comes, don't hold back the truth."
Veiviser looked confused at the second piece of advice before nodding his head. "Okay Link… But what do you mean by that?"
"You know…" Link glanced quickly at Kamaria, causing the boy to blush heavily.
"Well, good-bye Link." Veiviser said loudly to avoid any more conversation on the topic. "I hope we'll see each other again."
"Definitely."
Link looked over at Midna. She was the last person he wanted to say good-bye to, the last person he wanted to leave. If only fate hadn't been so cruel to tear them apart like this, if only he could survive in this world along with her for the rest of their lives, if only he could back to the days of their adventuring. But things didn't work that way and he would have to settle with living in another realm.
"I love you, Midna." Link leaned over, kissing her on the lips.
She kissed him back, passion feeding into the desperation and love of the kiss. It was a kiss that told them both that their love was true and that being separated was the last thing they wanted. It was a good-bye kiss, a kiss that said 'I'll miss you' and 'I'll see you again if it's the last thing I do'.
There was a gagging sound, but no one made any attempts to pull the lovers apart. Instead eyes were averted, everyone wishing that they could give the two more privacy. However, there wasn't enough time for that.
Eventually Midna pulled away, whispering, "I love you too, Link."
Devincha opened a portal, revealing the Ordon Spring. "It's time to go." She gestured for Link to come.
Link stood with the help of Midna, hobbling towards the portal. "This isn't going to be the last time we kiss." He promised.
"I promise that come next eclipse, I'll come. Look for me at the spring."
"I will." Link smiled a bittersweet smile. "Good-bye Midna."
"Good-bye Link." They shared one final kiss before Link, nodding farewell to the rest of the gathered Twili, stepped through the portal.
The portal sealed, taking Link away from the Twilight Realm to the bright daytime of the Light Realm.
A/N: Whew, I liked how that turned out… There's going to be an epilogue after this. I'd like to take this time to invite all my reviewers and readers to ask any questions they'd like. The questions can be about anything, relating to the story's plot, the characters, or the process of writing this story. At the beginning of the epilogue, I'll answer all the questions in the author's note. Thank you for reading this far.
Twilight Phantom Dragon