Sorry it took so long, but it's finally done! I had some seriously bad writer's block, but it's gone now and I back in full writing mode! So, read and review, favourite and comment, with constructive criticism-no flaming!-and most importantly, enjoy!
-Jack Knights
PS: I actually rewrote the escape like three, four times easy, eventually settling with this; it's not perfect, but it's the better of the three, considering that the first would've taken another three four chapters to write out, with all the new characters and settings and escape route. I may rewrite just the initial escape later, if I have the time. That is all.
It was nightfall before she stopped, at the point of collapse, her limit reached as she finally gave into exhaustion. She'd been running for days, only stopping every once in a while to drink from her dwindling supply of water. The only time she'd taken a break to rest her feet, the Bulbins' were upon her in minutes. Since then, fear made her continue despite her various aches and pains. On the border of blacking out, someone came across her; she had already given up by that point, so it hardly mattered if they killed her now.
Luckily for her, it was a blessing in disguise.
"Whoa, almost stepped on you there," said a young male. "Hey, are you OK?"
She rolled her eyes upwards, trying to see the man. Her throat was dry and sore, her tongue swollen from lack of water. When she didn't answer, he bent down, tilting his head to look at her. She only saw flashes of him; long blonde hair and white skin, covered in dark blue clothing.
"Let's get you up," he said, putting a hand around her middle and lifting her. Her arms hung loosely, swinging, but she grasped the cloth-wrapped bundle tightly in her fist. He went to take it from her and she tried to bat him away. "Don't worry, I'm not going to steal it."
She didn't know if it was her addled mind, but she believed him. He gently took it from her, tying on his back. He then picked her up in his arms and began jogging. Her lolled to one side and she saw an orange flare on the horizon. The Bulbins... they've caught up with me again. She turned her head to look up at the young man, realizing he was barely a man at all. And now this youth's life will be cut short because of me... He caught her looking at him and smirked.
"Don't worry about them," he muttered, indicating the Bulbins. "They're as much after me as they are you."
Doubt that... she chided in her mind. He suddenly ducked left, lithely scaling a cliffside without using his hands. Even on the border of unconsciousness she realized that it must have been a feat for him. Once they were high up enough and half hidden under an overhang, lay her down, using the bundle she'd been carrying as pillow.
"Rest easy," he said, sitting across from her. "I doubt they'd be able to get up here without making a ruckus. I'll keep a lookout while you sleep."
"Thank you, stranger," she managed, her voice small and hoarse. He went over to her, lifting her head slightly as he tipped a canteen against her lips. The water stung and burned on it's way down, but it soothed her throat and she felt immensely better.
"Name's Sheik," he introduced himself.
" Felicia," she muttered, the black borders around her vision growing. She heard him say something, but she could neither keep herself awake nor work up the strength to care. Lenna let herself go into the darkness, drifting easily into dreamless sleep.
They reached the entrance, which was congested with people trying to leave, the noise of the Oocca's squawk-language raising the noise level to new heights. Humans tried to force their way through, getting angrier with each passing second. Link shrugged, shaking his head when Trex inquired with a look from a bench, were they'd sat Jaz down to rest, while he waited in line at the exit. What could possibly be taking them so long? Why can't we just leave?
There was a loud screech, followed by several shouts and the lights flickering. There was a chorus of discontent going through the crowd as the lights dimmed. They flared back to life and there was a collective sigh of relief ushered by the commuters. This was almost instantly replaced by more shouts and Link frowned at the noise. So there's power shortages here in this sector too? A loud buzz broke through the crowd's shouts and Link strained to hear.
"The exit is closed, please make your ways back to you homesteads in an organized manner," said a loud and oddly mechanic voice. said a loud and oddly mechanic voice. Link spied a very large Oocca talking into a megaphone, which was made of metal. "Please return to your homes in an orderly fashion. There will be an announcement later today," he added as several guards man-handled the people back. Link watched as the door began to close, gritting his teeth. He ran back to Trex and Jaz, who was rubbing her temples.
"Come on, we got to go now!" he said, tugging on Jaz's hand. She stood, swaying slightly, using the bench for support. "They're going to close the gates, and Goddesses know when they'll open them again."
"We'll have to skirt around those soldiers, then hope that they don't get us before we can reach the gates," Jaz observed, bag in hand. Trex nodded, ready. "Let's go!"
They ran for it, with Link taking the lead, followed by Jaz and Trex. One of the soldiers spotted him and before he could alert the others, Link rammed his fist into the man's stomach as he dashed by, dodging another soldier attempt to tackle him. The gates loomed before him, half closed. He made it with time to spare, turned to see Jaz struggling with the guards as Trex activated her rocket-power boots and soar over them.
Jaz ducked under one of the soldiers arms, just as another grabbed her bag by the shoulder strap. She unbuckled the pack, shoving back at the guard, making a made dash for the doors. Just as she made it, one of Trex's boots sputtered and blew, black smoke rising from the soles. Jaz reached Link as he watched Trex fall to the ground, soldiers already waiting for her. Link made to run back to help her, but Jaz grabbed his arm.
"You can't go back! The doors are almost closed and there are way too many of them for you to take on alone," she said desperately, tugging on his hand. "Let's go before they decide to send someone after us."
Link watched as Trex stretched out a hand, trying in vain to reach them. She shouted something to them just as one of the soldiers subdued her and the doors closed on the scene, blocking her from view. He swore, punching into the rock wall with his metal fist. I can't do anything right! Yet another person brought down because of my incompetence.
"Link!" Jaz said, pulling on him again. He snapped to, realizing she was right and the two of them were off, leaving The Fallen City behind and never looking back.
"Thank you, for rescuing me," Felicia said, holding out her hand to Sheik. He shook it, looking amused. "Now, if you don't mind, I'll be on my way," she added tersely, turning heel and walking briskly away.
"Hey, hold on for a minute!" Sheik said, jogging to catch up with her. "Where're you headed?"
"Saria," she said too quickly; Sheik realized she was lying but let it be.
"Oh wow, I'm headed that way too!" he said, trying to sound congenial; her face told him he'd come off as cheesy. "Honest, I really am. We should travel together, for your—"
"For my what? For my protection?" she cut in, looking insulted. "I can manage if more of those monsters show up again."
"I was going to say that," Sheik said seriously. "I was going to say 'for your, and my own, benefit. You've obviously got some skills if you managed to stay out of those idiots grasp while dead on your feet. I need someone to watch my back, and you do to. I know I'd sleep easier if someone was keeping an eye out."
She paused, contemplating what he had said. "Alright, I'll travel with you," she muttered eventually.
"Great, glad to you have you as a traveling companion, Felicia," he said with a grin. They began walking again, chatting idly as they walked, Sheik's big smile never fading. He seems genuinely happy to have a friend, she mused.
Felicia found she couldn't help but smile as well, despite everything.
The wind whipped around them ferociously, bitting at any exposed skin that they hadn't managed to cover up. Link trudged through the snow, his head down, trying to see through the freak snow storm that had hit them around mid-day. It had suddenly appeared, and he and Jaz struggled to clothe themselves quickly without dropping anything in the snow. His map had nearly blown away; thankfully they each carried a copy, just in case something happened.
Like Trex being left behind, he thought bitterly. He nearly slipped on a patch of ice, and turned back to tell Jaz to watch out. But there was no-one there. Link felt panic rise in his throat and he dashed back the way he'd came, trying to follow his already fading footprints. His foot struck something and he tripped, falling face first into the snow. He picked himself up quickly, shaking off the snow. He looked back to see what had tripped him and saw an exposed patch of black cloak.
"Jaz!" he shouted, digging hurriedly through the snow. She was lying on her side, her face covered by a heavy scarf. Her skin was pale and the tips of her ears were blue, as were his exposed fingertips. He shook her awake and she futilely tried to bat him away.
"Lemme sleep..." she murmured, closing her eyes again. Please don't hate me for this, he though as he lifted her into a sitting position. He held her in his metal arm and struck her with his left hand. Her eyes flashed open, flaring angrily. "What the hell is wrong with you?" she half shouted, almost fully awake.
"Come on," he said, helping her stand. "We have to find some shelter before we freeze to death."
"Look, my hands are blue," she said suddenly, staring at her fingers as she tried to bend them.
"Stick them in your armpits," he said, throwing his cloak over her as he draped his arm over her shoulder, gripping her to him. "Don't look at me like that; you want to keep them? Then do as I say," he added when she looked at him as if he'd sprouted an extra head. I hope we can get out of this soon... he thought as he stared into the snow. Link looked down at his metal arm and grimaced; it was coated in ice and was becoming stiff. He had no doubt that the skin under it was bluer than Jaz's fingertips.
Something flickered in the distance, an orange glow, for a second and Link focused on the area it had come from, praying it wasn't just his eyes playing tricks on him. It flickered into existence again, brighter and bigger than before and he rushed toward it hurriedly, Jaz complaining under his arm as she tried to keep up with him. The closer he got to it, the more Link could make out of the surrounding landscape. They were nearing a cave, and the orange glow came from within. Through the snow, Link could make out the silhouette of a person, most likely a very tall man, moving about inside.
He shouted for help, but the wind tore his plea from his lips. Link doubled his pace, eager to get out of the storm. They entered the cave, breaching through the howling wind and into sudden deafening silence accompanied by a spreading warmth coming from farther inside. He stepped further inside, the wind howling angry past the entrance of the cave as if screeching at them.
"Hello?" he called out, surprised his voice was so soft and small. "I don't mean to intrude—"
"Nonsense," came a voice he vaguely remembered. "I could never turn away a person into such a terrible rage."
They approached a bend in the cave and Link saw a cloaked figure huddling close to the fire, hands outstretched towards the leaping flames. They were completely cloaked, even their face was complete covered by scarves and tinted goggles. Link hurried Jaz to the fire, thrusting her finger towards the fire, praying she wouldn't have to lose them.
"My word, she's been badly frostbitten," said the person across from them, their voice muffled by the scarves. "I hope she's alright."
"So do I," Link said, rubbing her fingers as best he could with his one hand.
"Would you two stop talking about me as if I'm not here," she said acidly, and Link couldn't help but smile.
"She's fine," he muttered, going back to work on her fingers. After a few minutes she was able to bend them completely and they'd lost their blue tinge. Link lay back against the wall, sighing with relief. He grunted when he bent his metal arm forcibly, the ice encasing it cracking. Jaz looked back at him as the lines on his face deepened when a trickle of blood dripped down the metal.
"Dammit," she said, going over to him. "It froze over, didn't it?"
"Yeah," Link managed as he winced when she lifted his arm and put it on her knees.
"Why didn't you say something sooner?" she said, no exactly reprimanding him, but definitely unhappy. "You should've taken it off when the snow started."
"I didn't know," he said, gasping when she popped off the arm. "Besides, I was too busy trying to keep you awake and out of the snow," he added with a weak smile as exhaustion set in. He was glad to see her blush slightly as she looked over his arm.
"We might have to cut away even more of your arm if this doesn't thaw within the next few minutes," she said eventually, indicating his frozen-over elbow as she rubbed her face to stay awake. "Damn, Trex had the replacement parts, didn't she? I can't do anything about this now, at least not until it defrosts."
"That's fine," he muttered. He eyed the man sitting across from them, who had remained silent through their entire conversation. "Thanks for complete strangers stay with you."
"No problem," they said stiffly. "I think I'm going to get some sleep. If the fire dies down, add some more wood from my pack, if you don't mind."
"Sure," Jaz said through a yawn, nodding as the man lay down, turning his back to them as he wrapped himself in his cloak. "Let's get you as close to the fire as possible," she added quietly to Link. She took off her cloak and laid it on the ground, helping him move onto it. She stripped him of his cloak and sweaters, doing the same for herself. He laid down on his side, blinking wearily.
"We'll have to share our body heat," he said as Jaz laid down next to him, her back to his chest. She scooted closer to him and he put his left arm over her side as he threw his cloak over them. Jaz neither had the energy nor the real desire to push him away and sighed. With their sweaters tucked around them, they both gave into the blessed heat and slept through the raging storm.