Hello and welcome back, this is chapter four, hope that you all enjoy.
The Timeless Shadow
"People protect what they love." – Jacques Yves Cousteau
Chapter 04: Protected
Lilia sat quietly on the stair way to the mansion. She was contemplating on how the spring had come and seemed as if it would love to stay, but she knew better than that. In five more months snow will come again, everything will become impenetrable and she would get stuck in this place once more. Somehow she hasn't thought about truly leaving, she felt accepted here.
A dog's head hitting her hand made her realize she had stopped petting him again. Link loved the attention he got from the female in his wolf form, since he suddenly began to grow a tendency of growing shy around her. She smiled looking down at him; he truly did like getting petted. For him her small hands around his head felt like a much needed massage. Everything here was good and even the memories they had created along the way had become great. She remembered when she first petted him like this; he had forgotten that in this form she could listen to his thoughts.
'Don't laugh.' He already knew what she was thinking but chuckled mentally at the memory.
She stifled a small laugh but he had heard it, "I just can't help it Link."
'I'll bite you if you keep laughing.' He said while grinning but she couldn't see it in this form.
"Nice one Link, then you'll have something to laugh at." She told him, while petting him a little more.
Suddenly their fun and teasing had stopped abruptly. Lilia looked out towards the cave; Link didn't notice the change in mood and hit her hand once more with his head. He didn't receive the reaction he had wanted but then noticed the change in mood and how she had gotten up to get a better look. He changed over to his human form and stood behind her. With his trained eyes he tried his best to get sight of what had intrigued the teenage female in front of him.
"What is it?" He asked holding back his desire to grab her and pull her closer to him.
"That's my father's flag." She signaled towards the cave in which Link couldn't see anything.
"There's nothing there Lily." He said while grabbing her shoulders, afraid that she would leave his side.
"You can't see it? It's brown with two rapiers crossed over a green and red shield." She said as she looked away towards the cave, clearly making the difference of the darkness and the flag.
"I can't see it." He stated as he looked once more.
"You might not see it Link, but I do." She told him, but by the time she had said that he started to see the group of men far off in the distance, the flag she had described him becoming clearly visible. It was the same detail as the one that decorated the mansion in multiple places, the same as that woman used to wear. "Let me go." She finally commanded him, resentment evident in her voice.
He didn't notice he was holding her in place, not that he would have wished for her to leave. She was already in the mood to run away, but he couldn't bear having her leave his side, not now. However, with Link being a great hero he was not one to hold someone he cared for captive, even if his unconscious told him otherwise.
Eventually he let go of her shoulders and watched as she ran, being careful in case she tripped on the way, the wet grass feeling different under her boots. Halfway to her destination she stopped and stared at the man she used to call father. That older man had quickly turned the march to an upright halt, he saw his daughter standing alone on top of that hill. He didn't know what to do, not being part of her life for seven years made him unable to predict her actions. She was an unpredictable force, controlled by her emotions and ruled by her fear.
'She was never meant to be this special.' The girl father thought with a hint of sadness while observing closely for her next move.
Lilia, feeling the hostility from her father's comrades, looked down. The distance was the proof of how much she was wanted by them. However, her brown boots suddenly became really interesting in her mind. She never noticed the man in green move in behind her. He was glaring with his ocean eyes towards the group of armed men. He, unlike the female, would never be scared of such a sight, for him it was pitiful comparing it to the army Zelda commanded back in his days. 'Back in my days…' He thought as he looked down at the teenager, her eyes once more on the group of men. 'I'm beginning to think like an old man.' He thought once more as he stared where the young female was looking at. In his dark blue eyes they were truly noting, he had faced far worse before in his past, some of those fears that even today wouldn't die.
The army taking notice of the tall male behind the girl started their march out again. The father was pissed, 'how could she leave her people for such a monster, didn't her mother taught her some honor?' He wasn't about to forgive her and commanded the men to move, the sound of their feet on the grass boomed around the now spring filled mountain. She grew startle and slightly scared of the dark aura she could perceive from the men, even with the long distance separating them. Backing away in fear she hit something hard and warm. She looked behind herself and strained a bit her neck to finally be able to stare at the glaring face of Link.
Her father saw her examining the cursed face of what appeared to be a young male and then the Hero of Time broke up in a warm smile; him staring back at her, his smile reassuring. She smiled back at him lightly and allowed him to place his arm around her protectively; protecting her like a dog would do to their owner. This simple act brought to her a strange feeling in her belly; she looked down and knitted her brows together, the strange feeling coming back when she stared at his face.
She thought back to the day for when this had become a routine, they would casually talk and most of the time ending up in a fight. Yet as always he would curse her for her young age and naïve self, soon after she would begin to ignore him. It would last for a day, she hiding and him thinking how to fix what he had said, but it always came to the same ending. She would sit at dawn in the same spot every day, her eyes starring dreamily at the sun set, ignoring the fight, he would join her. Both of them staring away to the view the setting sun offered them, he would look at her, his eyes appearing green due to the orange glow and hers color similar to honey, he would grin at her and she would end up shaking her head, her shoulder length her moving softly.
Soon enough a small smile would grace her lips and her head would rest on his shoulder, his arm moving unconsciously to her shoulder. She would usually breathe in and close her eyes, opening them once she freed the breath she had taken in. He would look down on her and ask her: "Peace?" Yet every time she answered something different, the last time that happened leaving a bitter taste in him.
"We're friends; it's okay if we fight." She told him as she got up from her spot, but soon enough doubling over to leave a soft kiss on his cheek. "Come, let's eat I'm starving." She told him as she began to move once more to the mansion, yet she never once noted his sour expression at her comment.
By the time she had gotten out of her day dream she saw the huge group of armed men a few feet before her. Her dad as the leader stood there while glaring at the man who stood behind her. He hadn't always been the kindest man but he wasn't the worst one possible. He was a big man, someone who would easily scare any enemies; his eyes were small compared to his face, his head beginning to show hair loss, making him look easily ten years older. But he wasn't as old as he appeared to be, his age still five years short of his forties, and soon enough he began to talk, his loud voice creating a small echo to his surroundings.
"Give me my daughter, Link." Link glared at his command and held her closer to him, her eyes staring between both men. The father of the girl was raged, if he were to become a monster at that moment he would have been a dragon baring its teeth at them, that's how Lilia imagined it to be.
"What if I don't? Or what? You plan on taking her away so you could punish her in that dark room?" Link glared at the man with passion, he wasn't planning on letting go of her. Yet she shivered lightly, the thought of that room making her take a weak hold on Link's chest, her body moving closer to him in search of protection.
"What I do with her has nothing to do with you. Now if you pardon me I have my daughter to take back." The huge man said, while at the same time moving forward to retrieve his daughter.
Yet Link's sharp reaction had surprised the humans surrounding them. As quickly as possible he had hidden the girl behind him and took a knife out and pointed it at the man throat. He wasn't lying when he meant that he would protect the girl with his life, even if he couldn't die he still knew he could harm people. His instincts had kicked in but he wasn't ready for the girl to come to him and pull his arm down, the knife no longer pointing at the large man, but instead at the grass.
"Don't, it's not worth it." She never left his side or her hold on his arm but looked towards her father and then spoke. "Bo, take your people and leave." She said as she called her father by his name. "Neither you nor Layla could have stopped this from happening."
"You imprudent girl, can't you see me and your mom were just trying to protect you? And here you are feeding yourself to the wolf." He came over to her menacingly, ignoring the presence of the man who she was still attached to.
"Don't call her my mom!" She yelled, yet when she saw him move closer she opened her mouth once more. "Don't touch me!" She screamed in fear, holding tightly the arm of the blonde.
The man didn't listen to the frightened girl screams and took hold of her arm. His grip was strong and made her hiss in pain. He was adamant; he wasn't planning on getting out of this place without the girl in his arms. But the now cold Link put his hand on the arm that was holding the girl. He wasn't about to let this man do something against Lilia's wish. Link had his pride and knew not to push people against their own will.
"She said don't touch her." Link's voice was cool and cold, no emotion traced in it. His grip on the man tightened showing that he wasn't playing, the knife he once held at the man's throat readily at his side.
"If this is how you're going to play then, my friends…" He began, the last part being referred to the group of men that came with him. "Let us show this Hylian the power of human masses." He said to the men behind him giving a loud and booming laugh to the air, yet this time he did let go of his daughter's arm.
The men began to move around them. Link felt lost, no matter how much they would try to hit him he will never die but he couldn't risk having the girl on his arm to get hurt. By the time they all surrounded them fully Lilia was a river of tears and fears. She didn't want to leave Link's side, she was truly happy with a friend like him at her side. One of the things she truly didn't want to admit but said it in her roar of tears was the three simple words that soon after she said them began to haunt her mind.
"I love you." She murmured, tears rolling down her cheek, she beginning to believe she was about to die.
The world in which Link now stood froze. He wondered what happened to his cold and fiery feeling, since he now felt warm and fuzzy inside. 'She loves me? How can that be possible? No, no this is a joke it can't be possible, she's just scared to death.' He thought as she looked down on her, her body shivering and her face extremely pale, she looked pitiful. 'She's your extreme opposite.' He thought as he remembered Zelda commanding the men in battle. 'Damn it!' He cursed in his mind as he noticed the men had surrounded them. "Damn teenagers." He muttered under his breath but left the thought run away as he remembered his surroundings.
One of the bravest of the men surrounding him, leapt up to attack him. He simply picked up the girl warping both arms on her, her body becoming stiff with his touch, once he had a good hold on her he side stepped the attack. The increase in movement made her scream lightly and grab hold of Link's green tunic, hiding her face to his chest. The man attacking stopping his movement due to her scream; her father would surely have his head now. He was mean to the teenager but he was also over protective of her, the teenager being his only daughter.
"Calm down I'm here." Link whispered in the ear of the weeping girl, her body shivering in his arms. "Calm down," he repeated, "you're safe with me." He kept going, not just calming her down but trying to console her.
"Get your hands of my daughter before I kill you!" Bo, the big and grumpy father of Lilia, screamed at the blonde holding her. "You beast! You hurt her, she screamed of pain!" He bellowed once more but this time getting in strike position.
"Just go." She whispered, her voice muffled by the green vest of the Hero of Time. "Leave me alone!"
At hearing her words Link felt hurt, his hold on her shoulders weakening, his eyes no longer on the man prepared for battle. 'One minute she says she loves me and the next she's telling me to leave. I can't really get her.' He thought as began to let go of her shoulders, his feet moving shyly away from her.
"Not you." She ordered, her hands tightening her hold on him, this time her father heard. "Him!" She said louder this time, her hand pointing at the large man she knew as her father.
"Wait, what!" He yelled his sword moving down as he tried to listen to what she had said.
"She wants you to leave." Link said as he glared at the man, his arms once more holding her.
"Lilia, you can't stay here." He told her as he moved closer, him growing accustomed to the sight of the man holding his daughter. "You know your family history." Her father looked around nervously and without giving any sign other than his vicious eyes; the men sheathing their weapons placed their weapons on the floor. "Let us reason." He tried again to win his daughter over; she had her mother's temper after all.
"The only reason left is for you all to leave." Lilia screamed this time, giving in to her childlike tantrum.
"My little flower, please reason, night will get to us and we will die if we are out there."Her father tried again to reason but her glare was enough to make him seal his lips, tear trails being visible in her cheeks.
The up roar in the men around them startled the leader of the group. He had come to pick up his daughter but now the men that had volunteered were planning on going back on their word. They just didn't think it was fair for them to suffer thanks to the stuck up attitude of a mere child. They had nowhere to go and the sun was setting in a few hours making any place dangerous. All of them tried to reason with the girl but at the same time some were protesting against the father of Lilia. Some went farther away and began to set up camp without Bo's permission.
"Everyone calm down." Link's calm voice appeared from behind the girl. "Lily, go back to the mansion, it's not safe for you to stay here." He continued as he turned the teenager over and held her shoulders, the way he spoke to her similar to how he would speak to a young child.
"But..." He silenced her with a single motion of his hand. He had in his past life held his own grudges but none of them had gone to this point.
"Go, if you want to camp out with us then do it. But don't forget to change to something warmer, oh and you could bring them some blankets." He said kindly while pushing her to go to the mansion.
"Will you be here?" She asked him shyly, her big eyes staring up at him, the sun beginning to go down behind them.
"Yes." He replied courtly as he stared down at her. The father of Lilia looking at them from afar, his eyes showing a pang of sadness in them, 'I came too late…' he thought as he saw his daughter move away quietly.
Inside a room in the palace Nick sat there waiting to see his children. He was nervous; his children were something he had been waiting for since the day of his marriage to a wonderful woman. Even if he had been late at the age of forty one to begin fathering children he didn't mind, he wanted to make sure that he was making the right decision. It was that the reason that being part of the royal family meant fathering children by the age of fifteen but he hadn't been planning on following the tradition set by his ancestors.
From past family experience he knew Markus had tried following the tradition but never once could he father a son nor a daughter. He was what the doctor determined to be infertile. With his first wife he tried for two consecutive years, never once fathering a child with her. Due to that the marriage was annulled, she lost all status as a noble woman and now lives like a commoner with around six children. Soon after annulling the marriage he got himself a second wife, she had been what family members thought to be perfect for him and with her at his side he appeared to be more human. That marriage lasted five years and the story repeated itself, she had been stripped of all titles she had and now works as a servant to the palace. Rumor has it, that it was the only way that she could frequent him at night. A few years after the second annulment Markus married for a third time, she wasn't the marriage type, having bedded different men from the three in line to the throne, to different knights, religious leaders and noble men. With her there was a child born but black curly hair, dark eyes and tanned skin was easily to identify that the child born in that marriage didn't belong to Markus. She was expelled from castle town, taking her child away to the land the father of the child owned.
Due to his elder brother history Nick thought that his fate would be sealed. He thought that he wouldn't see a child bear his blonde hair or his sky blue eyes, but less than six months into the marriage his wife became sick. He took care of her during her faintness but then the doctor decided to speak to him, he thought she must be really ill. But what the doctor told him was that time proved wrong and that he didn't carried the childless fate his brother did.
Breaking away from his dream like memories, Nick awakened fully with a knock on the door. He was in his office, the papers on top of the desk being ignored at the moment. He looked to his right and saw the hidden door that connected to his bedroom open slightly. Standing up he moved quickly towards the heavy door and helped the person on the other side open it. He knew he had left it open, and that was the reason he didn't feel alerted. On the other side of the door he was met face to face with an aged maid around sixty years of age. She smiled at him, it was a difficult labor, lasting twelve hours and taking the best of her and the young mother. Yet she was proud of her, not many women survive such a strenuous labor.
Nick looked down on the woman; she appeared to be tired but a successful look dawned on her face. That had made the prince smile, small wrinkles appearing on the corner of his eyes. The aged woman looked up at him and smiled. With it she said to the prince, "you got a healthy baby boy and a beautiful princess." She said sweetly.
The prince smiled broadened and he moved closer to the door, the woman blushed slightly and backed away. Using his influence the charismatic prince smiled and asked: "May I?"
The woman shuttered, she became nervous and answered the prince with a 'yes', while at the same time she moved aside to allow him to pass. With her permission Nick moved forward and entered his bed chambers. The first part of the room was a small living room, the decoration being golden and maroon. A few book cases stood on the walls surrounding the room and a small table in the middle, surrounded by a collection of different couches. On top of the couch that sat near the exit to the room sat a few slightly bloodied sheets.
He knew the blood was normal during a birth but he had never witnessed one to actually tell how much. It was another thing deep in their tradition, the man couldn't be there to help, and most maids he asked simply stated that he would get in the way of their work. Once more he tried to fight against tradition, as he had done when choosing a wife, but this time every woman, those attending his wife and even his own wife didn't allowed him to be present during the labor.
Everything passed; Nick entered the room for the first time in days. There he saw his wife holding two small bundles in her arms. He smiled some more, his two children in the arms of their mother. Moving closer he stood beside her, she looked up at him and smiled, both were quiet staring at the new comer. Yet both parents looked away from their children and their sight fell on the woman standing near the door that led to their bed chambers. The maid was still there her eyes glowing with excitement.
The young mother laughed at her and said, "oh Nana, would you mind?" The wife of the second prince of Hyrule said as she shooed away the elder woman. Once she left the wife looked up once more towards her husband and told him, "you're such an asshole!"
Nick laughed, knowing his wife was joking with him. Shaking his head at her he looked down at his new born children, pale skin and white blonde hair identified them as his. He smiled, his children, the future rulers. "Which one is my boy?"
"The one on the left," she said as she pushed the male baby up slightly so that Nick would pick him up.
Nick picked the baby carefully in his arms, and looked at its face. It was small, the skin slightly red and big dark eyes looking up at him, its tiny hands holding the sheet that covered him. It was his baby, the third in line to the throne.
"Mia…" he began softly but his wife interrupted him.
"Their eyes should clear up, they tend to change when babies." Mia answered him without knowing his question.
"That wasn't what I was about to ask, but thanks for clearing that up." Nick said as he kept evaluating his son. "So… what shall we name him?"
"How about Mattew?" She said as she looked up at her husband.
"Now that would have to be approved by the high council." A new male voice said the cockiness in it being what identified the owner of the voice.
Quickly Nick's face grew slightly red and he moved the new born back to its mother's arms. Moving towards the new comer he yelled its name with rage, "Kain!"
A run away Queen and her faithful servant, were seen moving as sneaky as they could around the hidden passage ways of the Castle. The age of the older of the two didn't really slow them down since that woman was still agile for her age. She felt like back in the days in which she had disguised herself as Sheik so that she could guide Link around. Those were truly her days; she missed them and missed dearly being the Princess of Destiny. The few but selected memories of those days seemed to have gotten a sigh from the now withering Queen.
"My Queen is something wrong?" The young Senia was at her side in a flick of a wrist.
"No." Zelda laughed at the young adult's worry. "It's just that I was thinking of the time when I was young."
Senia looked to her side and sighed lightly, she had truly thought something was wrong. "Don't scare me again like that my lady."
Zelda shook her head and continued her stroll. The girl acted too much like her old best friend, she was indeed a descendant from him. Even if throughout the years the memory were kept vivid, he was her most faithful servant and worked for years at her side. That was until her husband decided to begin an expansion of the land belonging to Hyrule. Sheik had decided that it was good for the people of Hyrule but he wasn't about to leave away his people. His passion had become Kakariko village after the death of the Great Impa. It was a great loss but he dealt with it fine, even naming his daughter after Impa, calling her Impaz to mark the difference.
"Hey Senia, how do you believe Impaz is doing?" Zelda asked as she continued her trek around the stairs.
"Oh, you mean mom? Well yea she must be alright… I guess that knowing her she must already be ahead of us." She answered a little distracted just so she can keep a look out for any soldiers.
Silence consumed them again and they left it that way. Zelda was having a little more trouble by the time they had gotten to the unused sewers. She was sweating and cursing due to the pain on her bones but that didn't stop her from continuing. She was a strong woman after all, but the young female next to her seemed not to be fazed by physical action they were both doing. She was as calm and collected as her grandfather was during time like these. The Sheikah qualities never seemingly to stop amazing the aged Zelda.
"Want to stop?" She asked with consideration of the older woman.
"No, let us keep going. There's a hidden part of the sewers in which we could take a break but it's still dangerous in here." She answered stubbornly towards the young adult.
After walking again for a few more minutes in the disgusting and foul smelling water, Zelda had decided to take a much needed break. This small clearing in the middle of the sewers they found was what both females needed. Feeling conscious of their endangered life, the young female stayed alerted. They were still in a danger place and the last thing they both needed was a self-proclaimed safety.
"Senia, we should keep going." The wise Queen told her hand maid, which also served as a bodyguard.
"What? But we should rest a bit more, you need it." The girl said scrubbing her face in worry for her Queen.
"No, this is fine. My son might already know of our escape route and might be even toying with us." Zelda told the dirty blonde before her.
The girl didn't commented anymore; she had a guilty look on her face. She simply got up from the corner and started guiding the old woman towards freedom. She was a smart girl but she didn't deserve to be labeled as a traitor to the crown. After all it wasn't her place to judge her superiors, just like her grandfather had taught her when she then started to demonstrate her true Sheikah techniques. Moving silently and expertly around the sewers she smiled to herself. She barely needed any help but never forgot of the older woman following her.
They were already near the exit, excitement running through their veins. Zelda was happy to see some light at the end of the dark tunnels she had been walking around. It was as if the Gods had heard her call for help and they came to her aid without questioning why. But her happiness was short lived. A few feet before her stood her eldest son, his own blade dripping in some sticky and dark liquid. His face showed amusement, at noticing his mother and even some unmistaken appreciation at her failed intent. He smiled when he saw the girl he had to pay to deliver his mother to him run to his side, her face quelling with guilty.
"Good job Senia, your grandfather must be screaming around in his tomb… Now mother, look what you made me do? I had to kill a High Council member for protecting a traitor to the throne." He said viciously, in his eyes a hint of his insanity being shown.
Zelda didn't spoke to the self-proclaimed King of Hyrule; she was still trying to dissolve the news of what her son had done. Her son had lost his mind, she didn't know what to do, and her own people giving their back to her weren't helping much. 'But why? Markus... what had I done to you? It's not fair, if only... maybe if only I wasn't so worried for Link, none of this would have happened. Senia, I really thought you didn't hate me, but now I see how it is... I'm meant to be all alone.'
Seemingly as if Senia had heard the thoughts of her Queen she opened her red eyes to stare at the deep blue oasis of Zelda's vulnerable expression. She felt mesmerized at how well she was taking it all in, but a change of heart occurred a little too late. Her King and true master had attacked, she was too slow. Last thing that was meant for them was to see blood, pouring from a shoulder wound. The deep grunting of the injured person was heard at last and continuing the sound a thumping of a body as it crashed against the floor.