Author's note: I'm sorry if this took so long to update, and I won't bother you with cheap excuses except this one: to really express what someone feels inside themselves takes time, practice, and a good dictionary. Well, I have taken my time, you can never get enough practice, and the good dictionary was so damn expensive I had to dig deep into the pockets of my mind to get the right words back out.
I don't know if you understood what I just said, but if you didn't that's okay. It was, after all, just a cheap excuse :D
Chapter 53 – Destroying Darkness; Kill or Cure
''I think I found the counter-curse.''
It was a simple reply, but its effect wore heavily on the others standing in the room. There was a gasp from Rusl, a single, short note from Ashei, and a long, relieved sigh from Auru. Midna's head shot up from where she had been staring at her unconscious companion worriedly, her tears of terror still streaming down her face, but now they morphed to the waters of disbelief, shock, and the first, hesitant trickles of happiness.
Auru's voice stuttered to life. ''H-how … I mean … what –''
But he was cut off by a sudden, faint moan from the bleeding youth lying on the hard floor in between them. Instantly, Renado shook awake from his daze and his healer's mind clicked into action as he gasped out a quick curse before pressing the soaked cloth onto the stab wound once more. ''Not now.'' was all he answered.
Link was not responding as he called softly to him, and the cut on his chest continued bleeding alarmingly, which showed that it was dangerously deep. But Renado could see his chest move up and down slowly, indicating that he was, at the very least, alive. It showed just how close it had been, for Link could really have stabbed himself to death had the healer not torn the weapon out of his body quickly enough. Only a few more pushes, and Link would have pierced his own heart.
Carefully, Auru and Rusl carried him to the bed while Renado ran downstairs to fetch a bowl of water and more towels. On the way back up, he saw how the children glanced out of their room though the door a crack open, looking fearfully at him.
''Shad!'' he called while he ascended the stairs. The bespectacled head poked through the remains of the smashed door and turned to him. His red hair covered most of his face, but from afar Renado could see that he was as white as snow.
''Please, take the children, Ilia and Luda to the sanctuary, and ask a Goron to fetch their two leaders as quickly as possible.''
Shad looked more than relieved to get the musty air of horror and injury in Link's room behind himself, but he waited nonetheless for the healer to come up the stairs to ask. ''Why do you want the Gorons here?''
The shaman glanced briefly at him, ducked into the hole that was now the door, and said quietly. ''I just have a feeling that we'll need them.''
From downstairs, loud shouts and cries arose as soon as Shad ushered the children outside, but Renado tried to ignore their innocent protests. He had no idea if his counter-curse would work, and if it did, what Link's reaction would be. To him it was too big a risk to let the children witness whatever would happen in that room in the next hour. They had already seen and heard way more than they should have at their tender age, and Renado was determined to finally stop this trauma once and for all.
As he sat to work cleansing Link's stab wound with his trusted iodine tincture, the remaining members of the Resistance Group gathered around him, Auru on a chair, Rusl sitting down on the bed, and Ashei staying on her two feet while stepping from one to the other. She was fumbling with the hilt of her sword nervously, always casting a furtive glance to the concentrated healer, then throwing her look up to the ceiling, her lips constantly tortured by her teeth and tongue. She saw how Auru had closed his eyes, sending a quiet prayer to the Goddesses for the unconscious Hero lying half naked in bed, watched Rusl caress his adoptive son's cold and bloodied hand with his own, roughened ones, followed Midna's sunset eyes how they trailed after every movement Renado performed with his reddening cloth. This silence between them, this inaction, drove her crazy.
''Damn it!'' she burst out loudly, and everyone jumped in fright. ''Are you going to tell us what your brilliant counter-curse is, or are you going to sit there forever and –''
''Shshshsh!'' Auru and Renado hissed in unison, and she flinched back while shutting her mouth again, folding her arms in irritation.
''Yes, yes, I know!'' she whispered. ''I'm sorry, I didn't mean to shout like this. I'm not as skilled with being quiet as you are, beg pardon!''
Renado leaned over Link's lightly breathing form to grab a rolled-up bandage lying on the bedside-table, and nodded to her with a faint, but understanding smile.
That move did nothing in appeasing Ashei's mood; it only inflamed it more. ''So if it's not demanding too much of you, may I please ask what your plan is?''
This time, she noticed how Auru's look joined her in staring expectantly at Renado, soon accompanied by Rusl and Midna's gazes. Renado lifted his dark eyes and found himself faced by their united looks filled with desperate curiosity, impossible to neglect. He huffed out a forced sigh before looking down at Link's closed eyes once more, and on his face reflected a helplessness Ashei had not, in the slightest, expected from someone who had just had a eureka moment barely a few minutes ago. He knew the counter-curse, right …?
''It's … well I hope I'm right, but I cannot say for sure.''
''Oh please, Renado!'' she said, trying to sound friendly. ''If anyone in Hyrule's history has the wit to find the true salvation of the Dolor Mortis Curse, then it's you! And besides, you –''
''Ashei!'' Auru's voice cut her off sharply, and she turned to him in surprise. He was looking at her with hard eyes, and she huffed out.
''What did I say now?!''
''Shut up.''
''For Din's sake –!''
''Shut up!'' the old Hylian repeated loudly, and this finally sealed her revolting lips for good. She blew out an offended breath and threw her hand into the air, but it was only then that she noticed something about the healer sitting opposite her across the bed.
Did … did Renado … shiver over there?
The Kakarikan had resumed wiping Link's constantly flowing blood away, but his hand was trembling violently above the Hero's bare chest. She looked at his face, and saw a countenance of such utterly forced determination there that her arms covered with goose-flesh. Though barely knowing him, she understood that this was nothing like him.
''I have no idea if what I say is true, but what Link said to me a few minutes ago just … just makes it the only plausible explanation.'' the shaman said in a slightly unsteady voice.
''He said that It was inside him.'' Rusl tried hesitantly, and Renado nodded. His voice took on a firmer tone again, and his shaking hand calmed down a little.
''I can't believe that it hasn't occurred to me before. You remember how we treated the first form of Link's Curse, right? At that time It was smiting the longest cut, and we poured the Light Water on the wound to defeat It.''
Auru nodded. ''Yes. Normally that must have healed him, for Light always draws Darkness away.''
''Exactly. But what we didn't expect was that the Curse had a second form. It acted … well, like an actual infection on the wound, a spell that bred germ-like magic which then moved into Link's body and poisoned him.''
Ashei made a hesitant ''Er …'', but relapsed to silence again, waiting for the shaman to continue.
''You don't understand what happened?'' Renado asked. ''It acts like a venom that entered Link's blood-system and lets him hear and see things that don't exist, like a hallucinogenic, or certain drugs. It has the same effect! You remember what that book told us? All the people infested by that Curse killed themselves in the end, and no one understood why. What they didn't know was that the Curse was not defeated yet, but merely deeper inside.''
''But where does this lead us?'' Rusl's quivering voice rang out in between them. ''Should the Light Water, which entered his blood-system through the wound, not have healed him as we applied it?''
Renado shook his head. ''I think that the first form of this Curse was only preparation. The book said – and Link confirmed it – that it caused very serious pain to its victim. I presume it dug into Link's body using the weakness that was his wound, forming roots of some kind which, in the end, consumed Link entirely. By pouring the Light Water to the cut only, we killed merely the source, but not the entire Curse. And even if we applied it again, I don't think it would work. It is an infection, the roots run through Link's entire body, and now it is acting from the inside. We defeated It by pouring the water on Link's flesh and skin, and It moved from his body to his mind, to his inside. Now, in order to drive this evil spirit from Link's mind, the Light has to act –''
''From the inside …'' Auru finished, looking baffled.
''Wait a moment, that means that, if it has to act from inside, Link has to …'' Ashei started, sounding hesitant.
Renado nodded. ''He has to drink the Light Water.''
Amidst them, Rusl shouted out. ''What?! You can't make him drink it! It could kill him!''
''Rusl, it's pure Life, it won't kill him.'' Ashei said, tapping lightly on his shoulder.
The blacksmith turned to her. ''It's pure Light! What if he doesn't abide it, or it's too much energy for his body to withstand?''
He turned to the healer once more, his eyes the effigy of desperation itself. Fearfully he searched in the dark irises of his old friend for an answer, but the Kakarikan could offer none. ''I … that's where I hit a wall.'' Renado answered, looking down in shame. ''I have no idea if Link will survive this treatment or not.''
''Oh Farore help us …'' the blacksmith moaned and buried his eyes in one of his rough palms, taking in a shaking breath.
The silence following was that of a cemetery by nightfall. Even Ashei had turned quiet and was standing as still as a rock behind them, her look topped by pursed brows brooding on the floor. Midna had become even smaller than before as she sat surrounded by the taller humans on the bed, her look still not leaving Renado's movements as he carefully wrapped the bandage around Link's chest. He had to lift the youth's torso minimally to pass the long strap of cloth underneath him, and every time he pushed with his strong hands, Link gave an almost imperceptible twitch of his brows, still trapped in a deep unconsciousness but nonetheless present enough to feel the pain it caused him. She witnessed it every time, and her heart cringed inwardly upon seeing it. Would this suffering ever end?
''I'm going to try it.'' Auru suddenly said sternly, and Renado's hands stopped in mid-air.
''What?'' His look was plastered on him as if his old Hylian friend had just turned into a dove.
''If my old heart can handle it, then Link's will too.''
Renado's eyes widened, and Midna understood only now what Auru meant.
''Auru, wait …'' the shaman started, but the older man stopped him.
''If it really has to be kill or cure, then it is not Link who will die today. I won't allow it.''
''Don't be stupid, Auru!'' Ashei shouted at him, and this time no one shushed her. ''Link would never want you to die for him. He wouldn't want anyone to die for him!''
''But we don't have a choice, Ashei!'' Auru shouted back, and for the first time, Midna witnessed how much power his lungs and chords actually held. It was not loudness that shook them to the core, but the sheer emotion his old and crackling voice held within its depths as he spoke to them. ''I know perfectly well that Link wouldn't want anyone to put their life on the line for his sake, but – ''
''Auru!'' Renado suddenly cut him off. He had stood up from his seat and was walking towards the white-haired man with his head bent low.
''No, Renado, I won't allow this to happen!'' Auru also stood up to face his life-long friend, but his voice was shaking now. ''If we can't help Link with the Light, then at least he'd have a second chance to get rid of the Curse by another way.''
''I know, Auru.'' Renado answered and placed a hand on his shoulder. He looked sad but respectful, and somehow Midna didn't like this look on his face. It was the look he always wore when he had to deliver bad news to someone. She had already become quite familiar with it over the days they were now dreading for Link's life.
''The problem is, I cannot think of anything else to defeat it. And the second problem … we don't have that much Light any more.'' he said, looking deeply into Auru's eyes. A silent, understanding glance flashed between the two, then Auru lowered his head and heaved a quaking breath.
Midna's eyes were solely fixed on the two men standing before each other and staring at the ground in unison. They were all trapped, every single one of them, but Renado the most. Either they dared the leap with the Light Water and accepted the risk of harming Link with it, or they tried to figure out a cure where the result was not as unclear. But thinking on it, she didn't really see much of a choice; Renado's reasoning seemed more than plausible, and she would trust him even if her life depended on it, but this was about something far more complicated. If she died, she knew not many would grieve. But if Link died because Renado had made a mistake, he'd have the fate of all of Hyrule shattered under his hands, not counting the blame he'd receive both from Link's loved ones and from himself. It was just as Auru had named it; kill or cure.
But she knew more about magic than all of them together. And there was one other important thing to keep in mind.
''Renado, the Light Spirits would not have given me their Light if they knew it would do anything else than cure Link.'' she said quietly, and all eyes set on her. ''When Link and I collected the Tears of Light for them, every time Link seemed rejuvenated by their presence, strengthened and healed from his sores. And you saw what they did with his other wounds when we applied them.''
Renado nodded, his irises glistening. ''They let all his cuts scar over in mere seconds.''
''Exactly.'' she answered. ''And though I know there might be a risk of him getting hurt while drinking it, it sure is the only option we've got left, no?''
The Kakarikan took in a shaking breath before speaking. ''I would not know how else to cure him. I'm at my wits' end.''
Standing up, Midna jumped off the cot and balled her fist while advancing on the two older men. ''Then by the Goddesses, let's do it! I've had enough of seeing my companion suffer from this horrible curse! It's time to break it once and for all!''
As if on cue, a loud boom suddenly resounded from downstairs as the door was thrown open and heavy feet crashed inside. ''WHERE'S THE LITTLE HUMAN WHO NEEDS OUR HELP?!'' Darbus' bellow shook the walls of the entire inn.
Everyone in the room exchanged brief, determined nods, and the shaman announced. ''My friends, it's time to break a curse.''
0
There was no way their stony friends could come up to the first floor composed only of simple planks that would squeak in pain underneath a Goron's rock foot, so they decided to move the whole sick room to the ground floor. Link's unconscious form was carefully placed on top of the big round table, cushioned with every woollen blanket and pillow they could find in the inn. His bare chest was heaving in effort while beads of sweat were glistening on his forehead from high fever. As the two rock-men laid their blue gazes on his reddened cheeks, even the oversized patriarch's countenance turned shocked.
''What happened to him?'' he asked in a voice that was so soft it barely shook his chords, and everyone turned to him in surprise. Clearly they had never heard a Goron talk that quietly.
''It's a long story.'' Renado said while rearranging the pillows underneath Link's sweaty head. ''To make it short, we have to rid him of a demon. I do not know what will happen, which is why we might need your assistance.''
Gor Coron, his arms folded as usual, nodded thoughtfully. ''Whatever you need, Renado. For the Hero who saved our tribe and our patriarch, we will do everything in our might.''
The healer nodded his thanks to him, but his mind was quickly set back on his patient. Ever since they had decided on their final treatment, Link's head was gently moving from left to right as if in a deep, feverish dream, with his brow slightly pursed and weak breaths escaping his chapped lips in fits and starts. The Curse knew their plan, and somehow Renado was glad that It betrayed Itself through Link's reactions. As if It was afraid …
Suddenly he felt immensely glad to have the two Gorons with him in the room. Their bulky presence alone was more than reassuring to him. He had always liked Gorons.
He had stored the Light in the inn's kitchen out of the children's reach, and upon bringing the water skin with its precious content into the main room, he noticed Link's weak struggles intensify minimally. Auru, Ashei and Rusl had taken up stance next to the table where Link laid, Midna on a chair at his head and the two Gorons at his feet. They were all waiting for him to give the starting signal.
''Are we all settled then?'' he asked, looking at them in turns. His own heart was now pounding frantically in his chest as he approached them slowly, the water skin clutched tightly in his big hands. Auru and Rusl's gazes were similar to his own, a silent prayer that they were right with their theory but still having the fear of a tragedy like a black spot in their vision. Ashei looked more determined than ever, but even through her fierce expression, Renado spotted the shadow of fear cross her countenance at the sight of the brown water skin. The two Gorons eyed it confusedly, their rocky eyebrows pursed in question. As the shaman popped the cork open and the rays of gold issued out into the orange glow of the candles, their eyes grew wide with fascination. He smiled to them weakly in reassurance, and Cor Goron nodded once, his look becoming stern again.
Only Midna wasn't looking at him. Her gaze was almost fitfully fixed on her companion, twitching at every little move he performed as if she feared he would disappear at any moment if she dared lift her eyes away from him. The healer approached her carefully with the water skin in his arms, searching for her attention. All he needed was a last glance from her to tell him she was ready, to make sure he had her permission to do whatever he thought would cure her partner. Desperately he tried to smother that guilty thought from his mind, but he just couldn't help it; he needed her to make the first step, just tell him that he could start now. The more he tried to take the initiative and just begin with the treatment, the more his entire body blocked his movements further. He gritted his teeth and huffed out inaudibly.
Please, Midna. Just tell me to begin, he thought desperately, trying to conceal his rampaging feelings from his face. Just tell me I'm right and that everything will be okay. Now it's me who is in need of your help. Just tell me to begin …
He saw from the corner of his eyes how one of her tiny hands gently cupped Link's cheek; the anchor holding her rooted to her companion's body. With a last stroke of her thumb over his feverish skin, she looked up at him with her big, red-and-yellow eyes glistening brightly. For a moment she held his gaze unmoving, then her long pointy ears twitched once as her lips arched upwards into a minuscule smile, nearly imperceptible through the dark veil of worry that covered her from head to toe. But he saw it, discerned it through the haze of fear, and that was all he needed.
With a deep inhale, he nodded. ''All right, then let's begin.''
0
His hands shook as he approached the water skin to Link's mouth, and for a moment they were surprised that it would perhaps even work without any trouble either from the Curse or Link, but the moment the bottle's mouth touched Link's lips, the youth suddenly began to thrash about violently with his eyes open wide, screaming out in a deafening volume. Renado was frightened by the sudden move and screech even though he had expected such a reaction, and the water skin was propelled out of his hands by one of Link's arms. Had Auru not been there to catch it, the precious Light inside would have been lost to them. That was exactly what the Curse had wanted, but Renado would not give up that easily.
''Damn!'' Rusl hissed behind clenched teeth as the colour drained from his face in one quick flush, sweat breaking out on his forehead. He was staring at Link's slumping, now heavily panting form on the table, before quickly turning to Renado. The shaman's brow was crumpled with deep creases as his brain worked like a machine, his look darting over to Auru, who was holding the water skin in both arms as if fearing it might jump out of them on its own, before turning his gaze to Gor Coron at Link's feet. The Goron's blue eyes were fixed unblinkingly on Link, and Renado could see as clear as daylight that the rock man had difficulties in believing what he just saw. It was Darbus, standing next to the Elder almost two heads taller, who broke the sickening silence between them, addressing Link directly.
''Little human, this is medicine that will cure you! You should really take what Renado gives you!''
''He's not himself any more.'' Renado answered to the patriarch, and Darbus looked at him in confusion. ''The Curse inside him controls his mind, with which I assume It also controls his body. There is no point trying to reason with him, we will never reach him.''
''And how do you plan on giving him the Light Water then?'' Ashei asked in a voice that was not her own. It was both challenging as well as deeply loaded with worry, a combination that didn't fit her in the slightest.
Auru looked up at her, but Renado kept his eyes locked on the two Gorons among them. Brow still creased, his teeth toyed with his lower lip while he examined the taller of the two, Darbus shifting uneasily on his feet as he felt the shaman's gaze planted on him. The room around them grew silent except for Link's laboured breathing and the fireplace in the background giving a few crackling pops. Auru inhaled once, so did Ashei, before the heavy peace was suddenly broken by Renado's voice.
''There's just no other way.'' he said darkly, turning around while grabbing a blanket from their heap of squashy ammunition and spreading it out on the ground.
''What?'' Auru and Midna asked in unison, and Ashei stepped around the table to see what the shaman was doing.
''What do you mean, Renado?'' she asked, her voice quivering in confusion and rising fear of what might come next. Instead of answering her, however, the shaman turned to Darbus and touched his muscular forearm with his smaller hand.
''Darbus, I need your Goron strength now. Will you take Link into your arms and sit down with him? Support him, but don't squeeze him too hard, and keep your arms away from his chest. He has an injury there that should not be touched.''
Looking down at the Kakarikan healer, Darbus nodded with a resolute frown before stepping over to the table. Briefly he examined Link's heavily breathing body intently, as if making an inward plan about where he could best lift him without hurting him, then gently gliding his bulky arms underneath him. Link gave a quiet moan as he was being taken up, but gave no other reaction. He just laid in the Goron's arms limply with one arm hanging down, the other tucked in between his heaving chest and Darbus' huge belly. With a strained grunt the rock man let himself plummet down on his rear end on the blanket, holding Link now almost vertically upwards in his lap.
He let his deep blue eyes fly over Link's form, checked if he had not wedged in any of his limbs, while laying his thick arm around the youth's shoulders tightly, but not too much so as not to hurt him in any way. A little, rumbling hum escaped the patriarch's throat as he cradled the young, perspiring Hylian in his arms, his eyes glistening intensely. Renado watched in silent wonder how gentle and caring the Goron performed all his movements, as if it was not just an injured patient lying in his arms but a small, helpless child in need of a loving parent to give him comfort, warmth and affection. His other arm moved up to Link's face, muscles flexing, and the healer's eyes widened as he saw how the patriarch began to caress the rosy cheeks of his protégé. Link, too, was reacting to the bigger presence around him with a deep, relaxed inhale, almost burying his face in the crook of the Goron's arm, seeking shelter.
Tears welled up in Renado's eyes as he followed those simple, mutual acts of affection, and it broke his own heart to feel himself approach them slowly, the water skin back in his hands, invading this sudden, bulky peace in which Link now found himself. But it had to be done, and he saw that Darbus knew it too. Gloomily the Goron looked up at him, then nodded while closing his eyes.
''Hold him still.'' Renado heard himself say, then put the bottle once more to Link's lips.
Just like before, a sudden scream erupted from Link as the Light made contact, and his once still body began to thrash and writhe about, desperately trying to get out of the Goron's grip. Darbus, however, tightened his arms around him like vines around a sick tree, immobilizing Link immediately. One of his legs had flown up to drape over the youth's own, stomping legs, but still Renado didn't manage to meet Link's mouth.
''Gor Coron!'' he shouted over the Hero's strained screams, and the Elder dashed forward with his oversized palms outstretched, enclosing Link's entire head with them. The youth gave a choked wail and a desperate twitch with his arms as his head was pinned to the patriarch's arm, but this time he had lost. Without waiting a second longer, Renado tilted the bottle's spout directly over Link's open mouth, momentarily drowning the room in piercing rays of golden light.
The quicksilver-like substance cleaved its way down Link's throat with willing ease, but that only lasted for a second. With a loud, rumbling scream, Link snapped his teeth shut over the bottle's beak, accidentally biting down with full force onto Renado's finger as well. The shaman gave a sharp hiss of pain and tore the water skin along with his finger away, which was now decorated with a white, vicious looking bite-mark. The Goron Elder reacted quickly by squeezing his own finger into Link's mouth to hold it open, his own rock appendage not affected by the youth's teeth in the slightest. Link now gave a fearful, pleading wail as his mouth was held open forcibly, but his voice was cut off by the liquid Light once more flowing into him. It didn't go far this time either, Renado realized in fright as he saw how Link – or the Curse – had forced his throat shut, and some of the precious Light was now flowing back out of his mouth. It didn't matter, however, because with a well-aimed rub over the youth's neck Renado triggered the reflex, causing Link to swallow automatically. Desperately, the Hero struggled against the Gorons' grip, choked and gagged on the Light Water that Renado forced into him, and soon his temples were flooded by a wave of salty tears that collided harshly with Darbus' arm.
''Goddesses …'' Ashei murmured, soon forced to turn away and hide her eyes behind a shaking palm. As Link gave another suffocated cry, she twitched violently and emitted some sort of cry on her own, but her stubbornness stopped her before it could get too loud. Rusl was also weeping by now, but he had less success in hiding it than the bull-headed warrior. As an atrocious scream erupted from Link after his mouth was briefly empty, his surrogate father couldn't stand it any longer.
''Renado, STOP!'' he yelled and darted for the healer who turned his head around in fright, but Auru caught him from behind.
''Don't, Rusl! There's no other way!''
''You're KILLING HIM!'' the blacksmith screeched back, now stomping and kicking at Auru behind him. ''Let me go! STOP, RENADO!''
He was soon drowned out by another deafening scream from Link, and Renado had to set his attention back to him to see how the youth was biting down with all his might on Gor Coron's finger in between his teeth. The Elder gave a few strained grunts as he battled to keep Link's head still, and Renado quickly resumed pouring the sacred water into the boy's mouth. The bottle was almost empty...
''Stop it! You're hurting him, for Din's sake!'' Rusl cried from behind them. Renado forced himself to shut it out. They had almost done it, only a few more sips, and –
Suddenly, a sickening crack could be heard, followed by Gor Coron emitting a booming roar of pain as he tore his hands away, letting Link fold together like a spring that had been pulled apart. Darbus had to squeeze even harder to keep the revolting Hylian under control, but his eyes darted fearfully towards his Elder. The Goron was clutching his stone hand fitfully with his one finger outstretched, and Renado saw in fright how the appendage was missing a big chunk of rock at the joint. A fluid, ochre coloured substance trickled out of it and fell to the wooden floor where it conjured a steaming hiss. Goron blood was highly acidic.
Baffled, Renado turned his head back to Link's screaming, crying and writhing form in the patriarch's arms; the Curse had forced Link's small jaws to close so hard that they had broken apart raw stone! His gum had a nasty cut where the sharp piece of rock from Gor Coron's finger had grazed him, and blood was mixing with the glistening drops of Light coating his chin and lips. It was a miracle that his teeth were still intact …
''That's enough! Darbus, put him back on the table!'' he called while stepping out of the way, popping the cork back onto the water skin and throwing it into a corner. The few sips of Light remaining jingled like a bag of coins as they hit the ground.
The Goron struggled to his feet while keeping the wriggling Link rooted in his arms, but by the time he reached the table that Auru had cleared of the top blankets, the Hylian quieted down to occasional, fitful jerks, his hoarse voice moaning more than screaming. Darbus staggered away again to take up stance next to his bleeding Elder, breathing heavily and flexing his muscles. A strange countenance appeared on his face as he watched Renado calm Link down further; partly scared about what just happened, partly deeply impressed that a young man so much smaller had managed to exhaust him – one of the mightiest Gorons in the entire Province – on this scale. This had never happened among their many wrestling matches back home … he had always been the strongest, the one to throw them all out, and he had known every single time that he was going to win! Had someone asked him now to fight against this small human … he wouldn't have been so sure any more.
''Link! Can you hear me? Are you okay?!'' Rusl was immediately at his son's side trying to wake him, but Link was once again silent and unmoving. His eyes were closed, his breathing short and raspy from the loud screaming. Tears were still rolling over his temples one by one.
''He's not with us, Rusl.'' the healer answered. ''There's no point calling for him.''
''Why isn't he reacting to the Light?'' Ashei asked from behind them while approaching carefully, looking Link over and seeing that not much had changed; sweat was still coating him from head to toe, his cheeks were rosy with fever, and his eyes stayed closed, the tears being the only thing that had changed his appearance. He was giving no indication of being healed, or being worse.
But Renado had also thought of this detail. ''It will likely take some time for the Light to spread in his blood system, just like the Curse took time to weave its roots. Just be patient. And light some more candles, please.''
Midna, who had stayed back the entire time of the treatment, felt his gaze set on her, and she nodded silently. While the three members of the Resistance Group talked in hushed voices to each other, asking questions, voicing calming words, or just mumbling an old prayer to the Goddesses, she walked around the room to find some unlit candles. Her look kept flying back to Link on the table, searching for a new reaction to indicate that something was happening, that the two forces inside him were meeting in a desperate battle for the upper hand on his being, but all she saw was her sleeping … unconscious? … companion lying half naked amidst the others. As she had gathered three additional candles as well as one of the colourful Light of Hopes that she placed on the kids' table – a smaller version of the round table for child company – she realized that her aching heart would not find any relief while watching her lover, so she turned her attention to Renado instead.
He was sitting on a chair next to Link's left arm, one hand tucked in his lap, the other connected to the Hylian's wrist and his pulse. As Midna saw this, her stomach churned as suddenly as Renado pressed harder on the Hero's vein, and she felt as if she would vomit. It took her entire will-power to keep the bile inside.
Somehow, she knew that Link was lying on his deathbed. It was not even a thought, a fear, a risk … it was a certainty crashing down upon her that Link's heart would stop any moment now. How could they have done this? Feeding him something that was sustaining the entire world with Light?! The Spirits said it would heal him, but they had never said anything about drinking. Was it even possible to drink Light? How could they have done this? How could she have allowed this?!
Her legs became weak as the blood rushed out of her face.
''Oh sweet Goddesses help us …'' she whispered, grabbing for the leg of the table to hold her upright.
Next to her, Renado turned his head and looked down at her. ''Midna? Are you all right?''
The room turned quiet as Midna looked up at him, and she noticed that everyone – except the Gorons, of course, who were sitting cross-legged a distance away – had pulled a chair closer and had taken up stance around the table, keeping their eyes locked on their youngest friend, son, companion in their middle.
What a stupid question! It was such a STUPID QUESTION!
''NO! Nothing's all right!'' she burst out louder than she had intended. She almost expected Renado to quiet her down in annoyance, like he had done before with Ashei, but he just looked down at her with his one hand on Link's wrist. She needn't even continue, for in his eyes she saw that he knew how she felt. He was every bit as scared as she was.
But she just had to get it out.
''How can you even ask such a stupid thing? Do I look as if I'm feeling all right? Nothing's all right, for Din's sake! We killed him, don't you understand?! He's going to die right here on this fu– … this stupid table, his heart will stop, I just know it! How could I let you do that to him?! I can't even be angry with you, because it's all my fault! Damn, I just … and what are YOU staring at, you stupid bitch?!''
Ashei's mouth clapped open as she bolted up from her seat at once, but Auru held her back with a firm grip on her arm.
Without paying attention to the offended warrior or the others staring at her, Midna grabbed the glowing Light of Hope on the kids' table and smashed it against the nearest wall with a desperate scream, sending shards of glass crackling against the window panes nearby. The inmates behind her shouted out in fright, but she didn't hear it. Finally her legs gave way, and she plummeted to her knees, sobbing out violently.
A shadow was cast over her from above, but she didn't look up to see Renado kneel down in front of her and winding his big, long arms around her small form. The warmth of his woollen gown radiated out to her and wrapped her into a sudden, more than welcomed feeling of security that she desperately grasped for, crying into his arm. Her right knee brushed against a shard of glass from the broken Light of Hope, and she cried only more.
Time seemed to be frozen in place around her, so she had no idea how long she stayed in Renado's arms. Eventually she heard him move a little, turn his head to the gathering behind him, exchange a few words, but she just couldn't budge. His arm supported her, for without it she knew she would only fall to the cold, unforgiving ground where the shards of broken Hope lay scattered around her. She knew that if she fell now, she would never get back up again.
''Midna, it is not over yet.'' Renado's warm voice purred against her chest. ''Do not give up Hope when there is still a light burning.''
Slowly she lifted her tear-soaked face and met his gentle brown eyes. His lips were not smiling; the situation was too tense for that. But in his eyes she could see the flame of the Light of Hope she had smashed, and which had resurrected in his determined gaze to shine brighter than ever before. Her eyes widened in the glow of his stare, Hope washing over her once more.
He could not tell her if everything would be all right, if Link would see another sunrise, because he just could not know. But of one thing he seemed sure; he was not ready to give up on Link yet, and that was the only thing she needed to know. She finally accepted it, for she knew that they had done all they could. Everything else, Link's kill or cure – the destruction of the Dolor Mortis Curse or Its triumph – she had to put it all in the hands of the Goddesses now.
She was just getting to her feet when Ashei called for Renado.
''You should have a look at him, I think.'' Her voice sounded alarmed.
Immediately, the shaman was at Link's side, and the Gorons also stood up from their spot on the ground to approach cautiously. The Elder had wrapped a white kitchen towel around his finger, and his acidic blood had already burned multiple holes into the fabric. He didn't notice it however as he came nearer. Everyone in the room froze at the same time, stared on in pure bewilderment as an incredible scenario played out before them.
With his eyes tightly closed, his head moving slightly on the pillow, Link emitted a few quiet moans while one hand clapped on his heaving chest, which had begun to glow a deep scarlet as if his heart was on fire. The liquid Light inside him was ferociously pumped through his arteries, blazing crimson that flowed along his torso and down his arms until his fingertips shone like flames, running back to divert into his legs, back up his neck and finally into his head. The moment it reached his eyes, he opened his glistening mouth in a louder wail while his hands flew up to his temples. At the rim of his closed lids, a thin line of red-hot light appeared, and he cried out again.
''I've never seen something like that before …'' Auru breathed, almost fascinated, his questioning look darting to Renado for guidance. But the shaman was as flabbergasted as the rest of them. Soon he shook himself as if out of a daze and grasped for Link's wrist again, a deep frown on his face as he counted silently. Soon, Link started grunting in discomfort, and the healer's eyes turned to Darbus.
The patriarch grunted in affirmation and stretched out his hands towards Link, prepared for anything more serious than what the youth was displaying at that moment.
And as if on cue, Link tensed up, gritting his teeth hard, and a pained moan rang out from him as he began to writhe about again. Quick shapes of moving light danced on the ceiling from his illuminated body, and Darbus carefully wrapped his huge hands around him again. Emitting wails that sounded almost like protests, Link wriggled in his grip fruitlessly, banging his feet on the table with dull thumps. Renado quickly waved the patriarch to heave Link away from the hard wood, fearing he might break something. Being in the state that he was, Link could do anything …
It was just as the big Goron sat down on the ground again that Link screamed out loud and suddenly tore his eyes open, his head bending back to stare at the ceiling. His sockets were shining white with Light, so bright that they all had to squint to look at them. Darbus turned him around so that Link's back was against his belly, just in time ere the youth started to thrash and kick again.
''Damn, is this ever going to end?!'' Ashei cried out in despair, wiping at her eyes furiously. She had plummeted to her knees and was trying desperately not to look at the youth being tortured from his own inside, but somehow this scene in front of them was frightening as well as mesmerizing. You just couldn't look away.
Rusl was the only one refusing to bear witness of his hurting son. He was pressing his palms fiercely on his ears, and Midna already thought if he pressed any harder, he might crush them right into his brain. And there was no doubt that if he had had a second pair of arms, he might have pushed his eyes through his skull for them to fall down behind him.
''Renado! Can't you give him something to calm him down?!'' Auru bellowed over Link's loud shrieks. The shaman shook his head quickly while kneeling down next to Darbus for no apparent reason.
''It's too late for that!'' he shouted back.
It was. Midna was almost sure that it would only worsen Link's state if his body also had to cope with a powerful drug or anaesthetic. Watching Renado stretch out his hands towards her screeching companion and trying to speak calmly to him, she knew that it was too late for anything. The Light was inside Link's body, let him shine and glow as if his blood was on fire, so there was nothing they could do for him except making sure he didn't hurt himself, which Darbus saw to by gently squeezing Link in his huge arms.
This was a battle Link had to wage alone.
Although he wasn't alone, was he? He would never be …
0
His body was on fire! They had put his whole body on fire!
The inferno was raging on through him, consuming him, until he could almost feel his skin melt under the heat. His stomach, his chest, his arms, his legs, his heart!, completely burned by flames. He screamed, but the rushing noise of the Light Water coursing through his every vein drowned out any sound he could have made. He had no idea what was happening, only that it hurt badly. His body had transformed into a battlefield, Light meeting Darkness in a wave of radiances that exploded upon contact, again and again, making his body jerk and twitch. Every cell in his being was fighting for the upper hand on him, some imbued in blackness, some in glowing gold. Like lava it felt, red hot lava smashing against the black walls of the land, slowly but surely breaking it to pieces.
And voices. Thousands of voices echoed in his pulsating head, each its very own battle cry as it stormed off to meet the opposite force. He felt as if his ears had exploded, leaking blood through the drum heads. He could feel it run sluggishly down his neck …
Then suddenly, an image flashed up. A pool of water, the mist floating around him in the pitch-black of night being the only source of light for him to see. A woman was crouching on her knees in front of the murky water, her baby in her hands. With a dull pain in his body he saw … felt … how she thrust the infant into the pond, holding it down forcefully as it wriggled and sputtered.
0
''NO!'' he roared, and everyone flinched back in shock.
0
He could not breathe, the water was shutting any life-saving oxygen out. Bubbles clouded around his head while he screamed desperately, but he could not move. The hands on his neck and shoulders were too strong.
0
''Oh Goddesses he's choking, Renado!'' Auru shouted while jumping towards the struggling youth, bumping hard into Ashei on the floor but not seeming to notice.
''I can't do anything …'' Renado answered in despair. He was trying to approach Link with his hands, but every time he caught a hard blow from the Hero's glowing foot or arm. Darbus did what he could, but he could not paralyse the youth entirely. There was just no way of reaching him.
0
His air was now almost used up. Still turning and pressing against the two arms holding him down, Link felt the water close in on him, the Darkness shroud him in almost … almost protectively … The pain in his body receded to a mere throbbing of the invading Light as he was dandled in growing numbness. He could see the face of his attacker, his mother, holding him underneath the surface, slowly drowning him. But what was that? Her head became clearer the more he sank into stupor, her features morphing from blurry shadows to straight lines composing a beautiful, gentle, fair-skinned face. She was gazing directly at him, and she looked just like he had always imagined her; glistening blue eyes, an elegantly curved nose, long blonde, wavy hair, and the most beautiful of smiles on a pair of thin lips. She looked just like an angel …
''Link … my wonderful little boy …'' her crystalline voice whispered to him.
He opened his mouth to answer, but he could not utter a sound. A few single bubbles drifted out instead, stirring his mother's effigy gently as they rose to the surface.
She let go of his upper arm and slowly put her finger to her lips. ''Hush, my son … don't talk. Save your strength.''
Her hand moved back to him, but now it cupped his floating hair softly and stroked lovingly over it. He felt a new wave of peace overcome him at her touch, and his muscles slackened further.
''You don't have to feel all this pain …'' she said in a voice like silk. ''It's over now, all over. I'm here now, you're safe. Come into my arms, my child … I will take your pain away.''
Slowly her face came nearer, approaching the surface of the water while her hand continued to caress his hair. Link's eyes drooped, head leaning back dreamily while he watched his mother come to him. She had stretched her arms out towards him, and closed her eyes the moment she passed the surface. He felt her warmth radiate out to him as she joined him in the black water, and in her reopening irises he saw himself sinking down into oblivion and peace, with her at his side. Her long thin arms encircled him while her body pressed against his own, pushed him down further. Her whisper echoed in his ears.
''It's all over, my child … your suffering is at an end … you can rest in peace now …
Rest in peace … rest in peace …
0
Darbus' eyes darted fearfully to the slackening figure in his arms, tightening his grip around him as if thinking it was all a ruse. But Renado, who had been able to grasp Link's wrist again with the youth's struggles weakening, made a sudden move towards him and tore the Goron's huge limbs away.
''NO!'' he screamed, catching Link's toppling form in his own arms and lying him down on the ground. ''Auru! Help me!''
The older man darted forward and landed on his knees next to the lifeless Hero, but was frightened by a black form in front of him that was there first.
''Link!'' Midna shrieked and took the youth's head into her hands. ''No Link! Keep fighting! Don't give up!''
0
Rest in peace … rest in – ''Keep fighting!'' – peace …
Sluggishly, his eyes slid open a crack. Something was touching him, something that didn't fit there at all. Or was it a touch? No … more a feeling. A sort of ringing, but without the sound. It came from the deepest, darkest place in his chest where his heart had fallen asleep. Like a dream …
Oddly, this mute ringing formed words, a simple buzzing somehow fitting together, but Link could not grasp their meaning. He closed his eyes again as the very effort of keeping them open was overwhelming, and felt his mother's weight on him grow heavier.
''Do not follow them, my child. The pain is where they are, and no child should suffer the way you did. Let me take care of you, my beloved son …''
He separated his lids just enough to see her blue eyes glistening back at him, and still feeling numb and peaceful, he nodded slowly. Until …
Until he saw something behind her, way up on the other side of the water's surface. It was small and insignificant, surely just a trick of the light, but somehow it caught his attention. That tingling feeling in his chest arose once more, following his gaze and becoming stronger as he made out a little shape standing at the edge of the dark pond. Black, some clouds of misty white and … turquoise …?
Yes, turquoise lines covering it like vines clung to a tree. A pair of red and yellow eyes appeared next, staring down at him intently. The head they belonged to came a little nearer, its body disappearing, and he thought dully that it had crouched down. One of its long arms stretched out to him, and a pleading countenance rose in its irises.
''Keep fighting! Don't give up!'' he heard its muffled voice scream out to him.
Those shouted words crashed through the water and hit him hard. His chest hurt all of a sudden, and he cringed back from the surface further. Another bang on his breast let him moan out and fold together, and he was dimly aware of his mother's figure turn around sharply.
''They're hurting you more! That's all they're doing to you, my son!'' her angry voice echoed inside his head, and she pressed down on him harder. ''Don't go there, or the pain will never end!''
A third strike on his chest came along with another scream from the figure on the shore. ''Don't do that to me Link!''
0
Midna was kneeling beside Link's head, screaming and wailing for him to wake up, while Renado smashed his fist hard on his chest. The pounding just didn't want to come back …
0
There was that buzzing in his chest again, now stronger than before. It seemed to be kindled by the invisible blows he received, like a breath of air on blaze that was to become a flame. And soon, the first bubbles of air oozed out of his lips once more as his lungs filled by themselves. Slowly he felt himself come to a dreamy halt, his body now actually pressing against that of his mother, compensating the weight, becoming stronger, gently pushing her back up instead. She turned to him sharply as she felt him advance on her, a countenance of shock and betrayal on her face.
''Link … what are you doing?!''
Behind her, the burning eyes continued to plead, to call for him, to give him the strength and oxygen he needed to rise back up. He was drawn to them almost magically, and as his brain cleared from the cloud of numbness having enshrouded him before, he tried to understand just what was happening.
I'm going back … back to all the pain. But … why? It would hurt so much …
''Don't go back to them!'' his mother screamed at him, and something ruffled through her angelic face that distorted it, crumpled it with wrinkles; anger. It made her eyes black and unpleasant.
''I'm your mother, I know what's good for you! You have to listen to me, my son!''
But … he thought sluggishly. My mother's … gone. I've never known her …
Just as those thoughts crossed his mind, the woman in front of him disappeared. Instead, a black cloud bulged out of her body, exploding her skin as it rose above him and shrieked madly, opening an even blacker mouth and two hollow eyes. He flinched back in shock as it roared at him.
''You are DEAD, Hero! It's too late! YOU SHALL NEVER RISE FROM THIS GRAVE AGAIN!
And it rushed at him, knocked into him and pushed him back down into the depths of oblivion. He screamed as he saw the lone creature at the edge of the pond trying to grab him, but he was long out of its reach by now. Like a veil lifting from his mind, he finally recognized it, her, Midna …
MIDNA! he screamed at the top of his lungs, and then was cut off by the drowning darkness overcoming him.
0
Tears had been running down Renado's cheeks as he banged his fist down on Link's chest for the hundredth time it seemed, and the last one he performed was accompanied by a shaking sob.
''No … no …'' he muttered, weeping freely now as his body sagged powerlessly. The others in the room were as still as tombs, not able to grasp what was just happening. Link was lying on the ground at Darbus' knees, not breathing, not moving, the powerful glow of the Light Water that had filled him earlier fading with every second. It became dimmer and dimmer, like a flame deprived of oxygen, until it extinguished completely. And Renado did nothing. He just sat there beside him, head bent low, shaking with sobs, his fist still posed on Link's chest from his last strike.
They could simply not believe it. Renado, a doctor, a healer, a magician to some, the best and wisest shaman in all of Hyrule … was giving up on someone for the very first time.
One last surge of rage gripped him, the valve finally bursting, which let his fist crash down on Link's red chest a final time with a shaking roar. ''NO!''
0
The buzzing blaze in Link's chest gave a sizzling spark as the bang thundered through him, kindling it, strengthening it, sustaining it, and this time it was enough. With a booming explosion his heart caught fire, its first pound pumping the Light through its flame and setting it ablaze. Like a fuse attached to a bomb, the fire ran its course through Link's entire body, making him gasp as the heat reached his lungs and filled them to the brim.
The black entity above him gave a screech so loud it let the walls of the pond shake and crumble, but Link was not done with it yet. Roaring out he pushed himself up, ploughed through it and pierced it right in the middle. Light drowned the black around him in waves of gold and white, dissipated it and pushed it back to the last corner of the pool, where it was bombarded fiercely.
He continued upwards through the water, saw how Midna reached for him again, and grabbed her hand as tight as he could. She pulled him up, pulled him out, pulled him back into the pain and suffering he had escaped before. But this time he was sure of himself.
She smiled at him as he emerged with a pained cry, tapped him affectionately on the back and spoke to him in a soft, but powerful voice.
''I know it hurts, Link, but this is just how it goes. It is your choice if you stay on the spot you've fallen on, hurting a little, or if you decide to get back up and fight. I know it hurts more to fight, but eventually the pain will stop, Link. It will stop. But only if you fight!''
Only if I fight, the pain will stop … he thought, and saw how Midna nodded with another bright smile. Only if I fight, the Curse will be broken.
He looked back into the pool where the dark entity of the Dolor Mortis Curse, once in the alluring form of his mother, was now rising out of the water like a cloud of flies, towering above him threateningly. He looked at Midna, saw her resolute gaze reflect his own, and nodded. She was real, and she would always be at his side. His mother never had been. The Curse had interpreted his fake memories of her wrongly. They were just that; fakes. Memories he had created in his own mind. They had never been real.
Midna's memories would always be real.
0
With a sharp scream Link awoke, his body once more glowing up in the brightest hues of gold and white. The people in the room cried out in fright and relief, and Renado jumped out of the way for Darbus to take the youth's body once more into his arms. Link was thrashing and screaming again, but something fundamental about him had changed. The Light making him shine seemed brighter than before, and his screams were not pain-stricken and helpless; they held power in them, sounded as if he carried a huge weight but was determined to make it to his goal with it. They weren't screams of pain any more … but battle cries.
Teeth gritted, he battled against It.
0
With a loud rush, the black cloud dove for his body and disappeared underneath his skin. He cried out and fell to his knees, soon hearing the hissing voice of the Curse claim dominion over his mind once more.
You are such a pathetic fool! See what happens to you when your friends take your fate in their hands? You only get BURNED!
''No! Stop it! They saved me from my own hand! I almost KILLED myself because of You! They saved me!''
To kill you on their own? What friends are they? You should have listened to me, your mind, the one that controls your body, your actions, your entire being! I am You! You cannot run from Yourself!
''No, you're not me! You're nothing but a parasite! You have nothing to do in my body! Get out and let me live again!''
You cannot fight me. I am in control of all of your actions. I am You. That Goron holding you – us – is just a weak lock to break, and I WILL succeed!
''No you won't! You will never impose your foul thoughts on me ever again! I am stronger than you, and I WILL beat you!''
His own voice was like pure oxygen for the inferno raging on in his body. With every word he strengthened it more, helped it break through the black barriers of roots the Curse had woven inside him, slowly but surely making its way to the top of the fortress.
''I have friends that count on me, that need me, and I won't give up on them ever again! You almost did it, but they were there for me and tricked You!''
Have you already forgotten that they rejected you?! Somehow its hiss sounded stressed, furious, louder than before.
Their care for you is just an illusion, a trick in your own mind!
''Oh no, their rejection was your trick!'' he bellowed at it and fuelled the fire inside him with new strength. The Light gained ground, rushing through his veins and arteries faster and faster.
NO! It roared, shrinking back to the last, highest corner of his mind where it condensed and pounded so hard on him that he grunted out in pain. The world around him changed again, turned and spun around violently, and he lost balance.
He crashed into what seemed to be dead grass, and an opaque sky was pressing down on him heavily. Blinking, he drew himself up, and his head banged into something squashy above him.
THIS is what will happen to your friends if you come out of this alive! I'm doing you a favour, pathetic brat!
He flinched back upon seeing a human shape over him, hanging from a high pole by the neck. It was a small shape, sallow and swollen by decay, with dark blood still dripping out of a wound on its stomach. Fair hair had grown in a dense patch at its groin, and he gasped out upon seeing it was a woman, a naked woman, much too young. A blast of wind stirred her rotting form so that her head lolled to the front, this time making him shriek.
It was Ilia.
All I'm trying to do is protect you, my son … It was again talking in the silken voice of his mother, but he shook it off with a roar as he turned around.
''NO! You're not real! You've never been real!''
At once the picture changed again, this time showing him the fake mirror in the washing room. It was sprinkled with drops of blood. On his naked chest he could see the gaping wound he had cut himself with Luana's knife, streaming with sickly yellow pus. Maggots were crawling over it and feeding on his measly skin.
Oh, you think I'm just a mere illusion? I think you must mistake me with your pathetic Twili friend, for I'm as real as the reflection in front of you.
He took a frightened step back, felt his foot treadle into something sharp and painful, and looking down he saw the weapon of misery with its blood red hilt and black engraving grinning back up at him. He flinched back, but a second later he felt it heavily in his left palm.
As he looked at it, he saw how the letters decorating it had changed; instead of depicting the name of its former possessor, they read in that ancient tongue which he could decipher all too well: Death is Upon You
You cannot win, Link, It said, now back in its hissing whisper but this time sounding somehow … reasoning, caring … almost loving. He shuddered as it continued, still staring at the knife in his hand. Your mother was right, the pain is where they are, and no child should suffer like you did. You are just that, a child, much too young for this war raging on around you. You have been pulled into it, been battered by it and wounded by it. You are a broken child now, unable to fit back into the life you had before. There is no place for you in this world any more, Link. You will never be happy again.
And slowly … gently … drawing the fading Light out of his left arm, It approached the deadly weapon to the wound on his chest. The flashing blade hummed in longing for its human sheath, and he just stared at it, feeling numb … lost …
You are nothing but a broken child with no future in this world. It is time to end your suffering, for the very … last … time …
0
Link's body slackened in the patriarch's embrace, stopped screaming, took in a long, deep breath that filled his lungs entirely. The others watched on in silent fear, not knowing what would come next. Midna promptly stretched out her hand and snuggled it into Link's own, squeezing it hard.
He had made her a promise, and now she was returning it.
Wherever he went … she would follow.
0
It's time to end your suffering for the very … last … time …
His fist clenched hard around the blade as he bellowed out a deafening roar, bent his arm back as far as he could, and fired the weapon directly into the mirror's glass.
The Curse squealed terribly as the mirror broke into thousands of shards, and Link joined his own screams to Its death cries.
''You're mistaken! I'm no child any more! I'm the Hero of this age, and even though I may be young and feel fear towards the odds set against me, I WILL NEVER BACK AWAY FROM THEM! My friends are Heroes just like I am, and they will ALWAYS be at my side! Together, WE WILL BEAT YOU ONCE AND FOR ALL! NOW CRAWL BACK INTO THE HOLE YOU CAME FROM!
0
Suddenly, a loud, hissing sound rang out in the room, and Link shrieked out. It was squealing terribly, but at the same time accompanied by a low muttering that sounded a bit like the fluttering of insects. The room, even lit by candles, got eerily dark as if the light within it lost all its strength and intensity.
Midna and the others backed away at once as Link began to tense up, the Light inside him finally reaching his eyes that he tore open wide. Still shrieking, he stretched his head in the air and broke free of Darbus' iron grip with one quick move, landing hard on his back but drawing himself almost instantly back up. The Light inside him shone so bright that it drowned out everything around him, letting Auru and Rusl, Darbus and Gor Coron, Ashei, Renado and Midna clap their hands on their eyes with screams of terror.
Then, everything happened at once. At the same time Link disappeared in the shine of the Light, a dark cloud formed above him, screeching madly as it crawled directly out of his eyes. The adults in the room shouted out in horror and backed away. Midna shielded herself with her arms as the ominous cloud came rushing towards her, still shrieking and hissing. Through her limbs she could make out what resembled a face, but it was distorted and deformed in a grotesque manner. Its mouth stood open, as were the hollows of its black eyes. It rushed past her as she fell on her back, then saw another cloud, this time of gold and white chasing after It. The two spells crashed into the big inn door, breaking it to pieces and sending the splinters of broken wood out into the night. With a last shriek from the Curse, everything went quiet once more.
Link was standing in their middle, his arms a little stretched out to the sides, his head bent back with his mouth slightly open. The Light had left him through his eyes just like the Dolor Mortis Curse, and all he could do with them was blink a little in confusion. The breath he had taken in for another scream, resting unused in his lungs, escaped him in a faint wave of warm air and accompanied his eyelids as they … finally … closed.
Then he collapsed.
000
Author's note: I got it … I FINALLY GOT IT! I don't even know if it was a good chapter, if you liked it or hated it, but to be honest with you, I don't care. I'm so incredibly happy that I'm finally done with this horrible, terrible Curse … that I don't even know how to describe the relief I'm feeling right now! I'll be able to sleep again at night, I'll be able to continue the novel now that this is done … oh I'm so happy! So happy! It's as if I beat my own Dolor Mortis Curse!
Yes, I think I actually did. It may have another name in our world, but something I know for sure: I'm through with it. This was the last thing I needed to do for me to be free once more, and at this point let me tell you something:
What Midna said to Link at the imaginary pond (yes, all a hallucination, again …) was actually said to me by a very wise person three years ago, and I never forgot it. It made me change my entire way of living:
''You've fallen hard and it feels as if you've broken a leg. It hurts, but the pain is bearable. As soon as you move, however, it hurts even more. It is your choice if you stay on the spot you've fallen on, hurting a little, or if you decide to get back up and do something about it. Only if you do something, nurse your wound, get help from others, the pain will go away. But for this you have to get back up again.''
And I got up.
See you soon!
DR
PS: this is not the last chapter for DMC, just the last one with that blasted Curse in it (yay!).