Chapter Six
Link smiled as he walked alongside Tetra. It had been so long since they had seen each other yet nothing had changed. She gave a wink towards him as he chuckled. The sun's rays poked through the forest as the two walked onwards. He could smell the crisp sea air as he entered a clearing.
In the distance lay the bridge. He couldn't help but grin as he looked over the edge. Outset Island lay below him. He loved his old home dearly and he couldn't help but shed a tear at the sight of childhood nostalgia.
"Hoy! Big Brother," he heard his sister call out. He looked across the bridge at the sight of his sister. She was waving at him, one hand behind her back. Flocks of seagulls flew around her. He laughed and smiled back at her, raising his hand back at her. She carried on giggling as she made her way across the bridge.
Suddenly Link gulped and felt sick, yelling, "Go back!" She ignored her as he sprinted across the bridge. An ominous shadow blocked out the sun. He charged forward in desperation as he heard the giant bird screech. He heard his sister cry out and felt the bird's talon strike him in the face. He screamed as he was thrown off the bridge. He could hear his sister calling out brother as he fell rapidly towards the unforgiving waves below.
He thudded onto the tavern floor, woken from his nightmare. His eyes jolted open, sweat running down his forehead. It was just a dream.
He scrunched his fingers into tight fists as he whispered to himself over and over, "It's in the past. It'll never happen again." He sobbed quietly and shakily, the blanket partly on his lap. He took in deep breaths and glanced up at the window. The sun was starting to rise. It would be morning before he knew it.
He got dressed and left the room. He rubbed his eyes and stared around the empty chairs. Nobody else was awake at this time. He scratched his hair, recalling what had happened last night. He peered towards the door where they had taken the girl.
He edged the door open slowly and gazed in. At the edge of the bed, his eyes closed and resting on the mattress, his knees on the floor, was Dark Link. The blanket had been thrown on top of Dark awkwardly and the pillow was on the floor. The window was open, the wind blowing into the room. The girl was sat on the window sill, her eyes wide open and staring out towards the greenery.
Why hadn't she fled? If she was his prisoner, why didn't she jump out of the window and run for freedom?
"Dark... are you awake?" Link spoke softly. Dark didn't move from his position. The girl turned and looked over at Link. Immediately she got down from the windowsill. Her eyes seemed to shine and her smile grew. She strode towards his and before he knew what was going on, her arms were wrapped around him tightly. He edged back slightly, watching her expression. Her eyes closed and a tear drifted down her cheek. Her chest rose and relaxed as though she was letting out a sigh yet not a single sound was heard.
"What are you..." Link didn't know how to finish his sentence. She let go of her embrace, bringing her left hand to her eye and wiping away the tear. Link noticed it again, the single triangle and the marks that ran down her wrist and part of her arm. She smiled sweetly as she turned on her heels and skipped back to the window. She sat on the windowsill once more, the breeze blowing into her dark hair.
Dark Link murmured and opened his eyes slowly. Link tensed as the demon slowly got to his feet, stretching out his right hand and cupping his left.
"Morning," Dark spoke, not looking up at either Link or the girl. The lady peeked over her shoulder at Dark and nodded.
"Looks like that fairy really lifted her spirits," Link told Dark. The monster nodded in agreement.
"Shame it didn't bring her voice," he spoke as he walked away from the bed and past Link. "Aural!" The lady got off of the windowsill and walked quickly to Dark's side. So her name was Aural? He'd never heard of the name before.
The tavern was quiet. Word had got around that a monster had been sleeping there. Dark and Aural had sat in the corner. The few people that were in the cafe wouldn't sit near the two. Aryll laid out food for them. Dark immediately began to wolf it down, glaring at Link's sister.
"So your name's Aural?" Link asked the girl. Dark coughed and started laughing, sending the rest of the tavern silent. He smirked, realising that even those that didn't know his reputation in the past were afraid of him.
"I don't know her name so for ironies sake I've been calling her Aural," he sneered as he picked up a slap of bacon with his fingers. "You can't hear anything she does." The lady smiled and nodded in agreement. Dark's grin faded as he watched her nod in agreement. Why did she react so calmly when he patronised her?
"Do you mind me calling you Aural as you can't say your name?" Aryll asked her. Aural nodded and smiled sweetly as she picked up the glass and took a drink. Aryll smiled, telling her how relieved she was that Aural had recovered so quickly. The one sided conversation carried on as all four ate. Link and Dark remained quiet, keeping an eye on each other and on occasion the others. Aryll kept asking if Aural was alright, if she needed anything else, if she wanted extra food. Aural nodded and shook her head to each answer as she finished her meal.
"Oh dear, we've finished our plates," Aryll said to no one in particular, "I'll just take them to the kitchen." Link nodded as she gathered the plates and left. Aural was licking her fingertips. Her hand was on show. The dark triangle and the marks were clearly on display.
"Do you mind me asking what that mark is?" Link asked Aural. She stopped and frowned slightly. He wondered if he had said something offensive or too personal. She placed her right hand over her left, covering the dark triangle and some of the marks.
"It's none of your concern," Dark told him gruffly as he got up from the table. "We're leaving Aural." She got up from her seat, her eyes full of anxiety.
"Now wait up," Link protested, "I overheard you saying that you needed me." Dark let out a strong exhale. So the hero had been eves dropping had he? How dare an inferior listen in on his words?
The guests got up from their seats in a panic as Dark glared at them. They opened the door leading outside. Aural stood at the table. He knew she wouldn't follow. They needed Link. Dark may not have known why but Aural did. She knew what was transpiring. He felt his sleeve being tugged. Aural gazed up at him. She could not speak but she knew what she wanted. Dark sighed angrily and sat back down at the table.
"And you're willing to help?" Dark questioned the hero. They stared at each other. Link wasn't sure. Why would he help them? What were they even after and why was Aural a part of it?
"It depends why you need my help," Link confirmed. Aryll walked back into the room and sat back down at the table next to Aural.
Dark scorned, "It's a long story." Dark pulled out three scrolls from his tunic and placed them on the table. He untied the ribbon from one of them and rolled it out. Link and Aryll stared. The parchment was covered in strange language neither of them understood. In the centre was the triforce.
"I can't read that," Aryll said. Link nodded in agreement. Dark ignored them as he untied a second parchment and rolled it out next to it. It was written in black ink and in modern language. A rough sketch of the triforce was drawn in the centre. The three shards were labelled but in the centre was a fourth label.
"The fourth shard?" Link questioned before shaking his head, "There's only three. That's why it's called the triforce." Dark Link shook his head in disagreement, his hand spread across all four triangles. Aural watched in silence. She wasn't disagreeing with her captor.
"The relic is more complicated than you can imagine," Dark told them harshly. "And the legends have been corrupted and lied to us." Link glanced over the newer parchment and began to read what was written. The handwriting was sloppy and in note form but he could roughly make it out.
Power, Wisdom and Courage are needed to seal away the darkness.
The fourth shard must be contained by the three shards of the Goddesses.
It will consume the oldest piece.
"The three goddesses came to a place of pure chaos, controlled by something fierce and spiteful," Dark spoke out, "They sealed the entity away and cast their own spirits into three shards to contain it."
"That's not the story I heard," Aryll spoke out. "The three goddesses descended and cultivated the land to create Hyrule."
"It's the same legend," Dark explained, annoyed he had been interrupted. "They descended to chaos. Did it never cross your mind what chaos was or how it was rid of?" Link nodded instinctively. That did add up in some way. Aural edged out of her seat and stood up.
"Did it ever cross your minds why the Goddesses happened to leave behind a powerful relic, powerful enough to grant the bearer immense power?"
"But the triforce has been wished upon already," Link objected, "it's already gone." As he said this, Aural was staring at the ceiling. Her eyes were fixated on something but as Link glanced up he saw nothing.
"Has it?" Dark Link queried him. The demon noticed Link's gaze and turned to watch Aural. Her attention didn't draw away.
"Why are you staring at the ceiling?" Dark questioned her. She didn't make a movement or sound. He snarled as he was ignored.
"Do you know how difficult it was to extract this information?" he turned his attention back to Link. "She is the only one that understands what is written. She doesn't know how to write in modern language and she can't tell me what is written. It took me months to work out those three points."
"You're relying on one girl?" Link questioned his motive. Dark nodded. He realised how pathetic it sounded. He hated himself more than he had done before. What a pathetic whim. He was following an impulse, a single impulse.
It will consume the oldest piece.
Dark gulped unnervingly. He had made a shady guess what that one sentence had meant. The chaos that lived between the three shards would destroy the oldest bearer of the triforce. He had calculated and recalculated within his mind who would be the oldest and the only answer had been his master. He couldn't allow the hero to know his intentions were to save his master though.
Aryll stood up, becoming unnerved by Aural's wondering eyes. The girl kept leaning back and forth on her heels, her head tilting in slow circles. Her eyes were spinning quicker and quicker, as though she was watching something descend from the sky. The two men turned their attention to Aural. Her eyes were widening as her eyes kept rolling.
Suddenly they could hear people screaming from outside. Their screaming was drowned by a shrill shriek. Link's hairs stood on end as his memories recalled the cry.
"No... it's not possible. I killed it!" Link whimpered. The wood shattered from above as giant talons ripped into the roof, pulling away the ceiling. Aural edged back sharply as the wood was thrown to one side. A pair of giant eyes glared into the remains of the tavern, its talons resting on the sides.
The helmaroc king was nothing but a skeleton entwined by shadows. It lowered its skull, two giant lights where its eyes were peered at Dark Link. They turned red with rage at the sight of him. Without hesitation, the shadow pulled out his bow, pulled an arrow taunt and fired it at the bird. It shattered one of its eyes and it flew back in pain.
All four people fled the tavern and ran towards the forest. The trees would be too dense for the bird to get them at. Link kept close to Aryll, trying to hold back tears. He had to keep reminding himself that the bird wasn't after his sister. He couldn't shake the thought off though.
Dark Link turned and went to pull the bow taunt again. His broken hand finally gave in though, snapping under the pressure he had been putting on it. He howled out in pain, the arrow falling to the floor as the carried on running towards the forest. Aryll managed to get into the forest first. Link and Aural followed shortly afterwards.
The bird screeched, its giant beak colliding into Dark Link. He dropped his bow and arrow and cried out as the bird picked him up and flew up high. He could feel the bird clamping down on him tightly, intent on snapping him in two. He desperately tried to free his arm but they were firmly secured.
Aryll watched in horror from the forest as the shadow wailed in pain. The bird began to fly high. Beneath its talons, lying on the floor was the shadow's bow and arrow. She took a deep breath and ran out from within the forest.
"No!" Link called out as he grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back into the forest. She struggled against her brother but he refused to let her go. Aural stood behind the siblings, tears flowing down her eyes.
Dark Link's eyes grew dark as he managed to pull a bomb out. He lit it and waited for it to explode. It blew up in the bird's beak, cracking it and inflicting pain onto Dark. It screeched and threw Dark Link sharply. Dark Link soared across the sky and past the forest. Link and Aryll watched in horror, not knowing where he had landed. The bird cried out in pain and flew away with great haste.