A Journey Worth the Soul

Chapter 14

A Journey in the Dark


"Well, here we are." The lights flickered to life as the five smashers walked into the room, the reek of old boxes and mildew filling the air. "So, what are we looking for, besides Link, down here? Marth was watching Zelda as she walked around the edges of the room, her eyes closed, looking to be deep in thought.

"I am not quite sure…"she grumbled, replying to Marth's question. "I know Link was taken this way, but, I just don't know where he went from here."

"Great," Bowser grumbled. "So I've gone from upstairs, to the basement, back upstairs, then back even further downstairs, all so you could tell me that you have no idea what you are looking for." The hissing of metal sounded, as Bowser felt a steel edge pressed against his throat, with Marth glaring at him. "Would you like to insult the princess again?"

"Marth please, we don't need that here." A soft hand placed itself on his shoulder, as he turned to look into Peach's face.

"Yeah, so put that sword away, bucko," Bowser grumbled, tapping the blade with his finger trying to push it away from his neck. Marth shook his head, sheathing his blade while Bowser let out a quick gasp of air. Marth began walking over to Zelda's side, as she ran her gloved hand over the grimy walls.

"Can I help in any way, Princess?" Zelda turned, shaking her head as she did. "No, this is something only I can do…something only I can feel." Noticing Marth's confusion, she continued. "Each bearer of the triforce can feel the presence of another wielder of the triforce when they are close enough to them. It is how the previous Zelda, my great, great grandmother, disguised as Sheik was able to always find Link wherever he went. She could sense his presence."

"Why didn't he ever figure out who she was then if he, wielding the triforce of courage, could sense the triforce in her?"

Zelda laughed softly. "It is a skill that one needs to hone before they can really know how to use it. Link, who later became my great, great grandfather, never unlocked that capability within himself until later, far into their marriage." She sighed, allowing her hand to fall away from the wall. "As the bearer of the triforce of wisdom, I have always had the knowledge of how to use this power, yet, as Link's spirit grows weaker, it becomes harder for me to find him."

She felt Marth place his hand upon her golden shoulder plate. "We will find him. I promise."

Zelda smiled as she began again running her hand across the wall, the mark of the triforce on her hand pulsating ever so softly as Marth walked alongside her, looking for anything that seemed out of place. Making their way around the room, they reached the far edge before Zelda stopped, her eyes fluttering open quickly as she turned to face the wall.

"It's this way," she spoke, rubbing her fingers against the wall which was remarkably cleaner than the rest of the room.

"What do you mean it is this-a way," Mario asked from the opposite end of the room, dropping what looked to be a golden statue of a poke ball into a dirty, mold ridden box.

"I can feel his spirit better here than anywhere else in the room," she replied, turning to Marth. "I know this is the way we need to go."

"Then make way, I'm hungry and the only way I'm getting back to the kitchen is if we find Link!"

Thundering footsteps shook the ground as Marth quickly grabbed Zelda and jumped away from the wall, just as Bowser crashed into it at full speed. Pieces of cinderblock, rock and dust flew into the air, creating a hazy covering over the two smashers on the floor.

"Are you alright?" Marth asked as he looked over at Zelda who lay next to him on the ground. She waved her hand in the air between them, coughing slightly on the dust. "Yes, thank you." Zelda lay on the ground as the dust began to settle, her mind distracted by everything going on that day. With everyone distracted by Bowser hopping around, holding a hurt hand, she reached down and applied more magic onto her wound, hoping nobody would spot the slight action of hers. Marth glanced at her, lowering his head as he pushed himself off the ground.

"Putting a band-aid on a broken bone isn't going to fix anything," he said as he offered his hand to the Hylian Princess. She gratefully took his hand, feeling his strength supplement her own as he helped her up.

"I know, Marth. I know. I will have Doctor Mario look at it more carefully once we get back, but for now, this is all I can do." Marth gave her a disapproving look before he turned to look at the wall Bowser had crashed into. She sighed, trying to hold back the pain and stress of the day as she herself glanced at the wall. With the dust settled, a second wall behind the first was revealed behind bits of broken mortar and brick. Marth chipped away at pieces of mortar with his sword, Falchion, revealing a large crest etched into the wall. Zelda recognized it instantly, the sacred crest of the Triforce.

"So how do we get through this wall," Marth asked, stepping back to get a clearer picture of the Hylian symbol. "It seems like Bowser didn't even make a dent in this wall."

"You're telling me!" Bowser roared from behind him. "That wall is solid. I nearly broke my hand just hitting it."

"Brute force alone won't get you through this door." Everyone turned to face Zelda who placed her hand tenderly against the picture of the triforce. A soft glow began emanating from the piece of the triforce on her hand, creating a similar reaction with a matching piece on the door. A loud creak broke the silence of the room as the wall began rising from the floor, revealing a long passageway behind it. Marth grinned as Zelda walked through the gateway and into the corridor behind. They were one step closer to finding Link, which for him, meant he was one step closer to getting back to Shiida.

-O-

"Does anyone have any duct tape!"

Pit was glaring at the tiny mole creature known as Resetti, plugging his ears in an effort to drown out the moles ceaseless badgering. The creature simply would not stop talking, and all efforts to quiet him had failed in the past hour.

"We're just going to have to live with him," Lyn stated, patting the angel on the back. "I know he is annoying, but, there isn't anything we can do right now. Besides him, though, how are you doing?"

"Doing fine besides him," the angel responded. "Whatever Doctor did to my wing is making it feel better than new." The angel flexed his wings with a smile, turning this way and that to show off how well it had healed. "If only he could have fixed up Shiida already. I don't know what is going on with her…"

Lyn lowered her head, sighing heavily as the weight of Pit's words echoed in her mind. She had just gotten back from visiting the hospital, only to find that, despite the Doctors best efforts, Shiida was still barely alive. Lyn knew it was the young woman's unbeatable spirit that kept her going, but, even her willpower alone wouldn't be able to keep her going much longer without a miracle happening. She closed her eyes, rubbing her head as she contemplated how badly the woman was injured. She felt a hand on her shoulder, looking up into the eyes of Malon next to her.

"It will be alright," the redhead stated. "Shiida is a strong girl; she'll make it through this."

"I really hope so," replied Lyn. "She and Marth have been together for years, and from what I've heard have seriously been considering marriage as of late." Malon nodded as Lyn continued. "I guess kind of off that topic, how are you doing with the ole flirt back in Hyrule. I missed the wedding, but, what have you two been up to?"

A smile spread across Malon's face, clearing up much of the sadness that had just been there. "He is everything I have ever hoped for in a man," Malon replied, giggling slightly. "My personal knight in shining armor; with a tongue for poetry" she added a finger placed to her lips as her eyes attained a dreamy glaze to them.

"He does seem to have a way with words," Lyn laughed. "The first time I met him, Kent whacked him across the back of his head each time he would try and flirt with me. I guess he hasn't learned his lesson yet."

"Oh, he's learned now," Malon laughed. "The only woman he looks at now is me."Both women laughed while Pit got a confused look on his face.

"Wait, Lyn. How do you know Malon's husband?"

"You mean Sain?" Lyn chuckled. "I met him before I even met my grandfather. He served my grandfather as a knight in our land before heading out into the world for adventure. He ended up in Hyrule of all places and saved Miss Malon here from a pack of bokoblins …"

"Not that I needed his help," Malon interrupted. "I only needed help because I was so taken aback when I saw him that I let my guard down." She smiled, "then as they say, the rest is history."

A knocking sound interrupted the threesome, as they all turned their heads to face the noise.

"Who would be at the door this time of night?"

"Beats me," replied Toon Link, sitting down next to Pit as he eyed the doors. "I thought Ganondorf was supposed to be watching the front doors as well. He isn't there."

"That's odd…" Lyn turned as Luigi got up from one of the couches and began walking towards the door. "I thought he was ordered to watch it." The four watched as Luigi bumbled towards the door, a large shadow on the other side.

"Hey Luigi, can you see anyone through the window?"

"Not-a really," came the reply. "Looks-a like a woman…but, her hair is all-a weird like."

Hair…weird like…woman…Pit's eyes widened as he leapt from the chair, jolting both Lyn and Malon.

"Pit, what's wrong?"

"Luigi!" Pit screamed, ignoring the questions coming from pretty much everyone. "Don't open the door!"

-O-

The passageway seemed to stretch on for miles, with only dim light from candles on either side of the corridor guiding the team of smashers along. The only sounds were of dripping water, and their feet scraping against the hard, stone floor as they made their way further down the hallway. Zelda's again focused her mind on locating Link's, and felt his presence ahead of them before it slipped away from her. That knowledge worried her. His life force was ebbing away at an alarming rate. She hurried her pace as she reached out again, this time locating Shiida's mind, mentally recoiling when a sharp pain brought her to her knees. In an instant, Marth was by her side, wrapping his arm around her shoulders, helping her again to stand. She flashed a grateful smile to the Altean as they once again began trudging down the dark and dank passageway with Marth gently guiding her along.

"Isn't that cute," Peach cooed, squeezing Mario's hand tightly in her own. "They look so cute together. Why can't we be like that?" The plumber smiled at Peach, before swooping her up into his arms, carrying her down the hall.

"You mean-a like this?"

Peach giggled as she placed her arms around Mario's neck. "Exactly."

A low growl came from Bowser's throat as he glared at Mario from behind.

"Why can't I have any luck like that?" Bowser grumbled as he smashed a nearby torch with his hand. "I always treat her nicely when I kidnap her, so why don't I get the same treatment…?"

"Looks like we found something up here."

The three residents of the Mushroom Kingdom made their way to where Marth and Zelda were, standing at the opening of a large room. The room itself was nearly 100 feet square on all sides, with large decorated tiles spread across the floor.

"They look-a like pokeballs," Mario muttered as he glanced at the carvings on the floor. "Whoever built-a this place, must have a fondness for them."

"Or a deep-seated hatred," Bowser snorted as he pointed one out that looked to be severely burned.

"So what are we waiting for?" Peach asked as she looked at the others.

Zelda nodded. She started across the room, making her way across several floor tiles before a large cracking sound split the air. Startled she looked at the tile below her as it split in half, crumbling beneath her. Screaming filled her lungs as she plunged downwards, unable to focus to save herself when a strong hand grabbed her own, stopping her fall.

Dangling several feet below the ground, she glanced up to see Marth holding onto her hand, straining as he began pulling her up.

"I've got you, don't worry Zelda," Marth comforted as he gently pulled her back to safety, both of their breathing coming in ragged gasps. They sat next to each other, staring at the gaping hole in the ground in front of them. Only after several moments did they hear the telltale sound of the pieces of tile hitting the floor far below. Zelda swallowed involuntarily with the sound. That could have been her hitting the ground. She would have died, and Link would have never been found.

Marth watched the trepidation across Zelda's face and placed his hand on her shoulder. "All that counts in that you're alright." She offered him a hesitant smile as he pushed himself off the ground. Offering his hand, Zelda gratefully took it as he helped her up.

"So now what are we going to do?" Peach asked. "We can't risk walking across any more tiles, as we would all fall through."

"You're a-right my Peachy," Mario added. "We are all too small to safely cross at the moment."

All were lost in thought for a moment until Marth began grinning. "You're right Mario, we are all too small." The Altean's eyes fell upon the massive koopa with folded arms behind the plumber. "Except for one of us."

All eyes settled upon Bowser, who unfolding his arms, took a step back. "Hold on just one minute!"

-O-

"Close your eyes, everyone! Now!"

Pit swallowed hard, keeping his eyes closed as a soft hissing sound replaced the panicked screams of the few seconds before. In front of everyone's eyes, as soon as Luigi had opened the door, he had turned into a statue, frozen in stone with only a scream to alert everyone to the danger of the new arrival. Pit's mind was reeling…how had she come back? How had she been revived? He had made sure she was killed before he rescued Palutena, so, how had she returned? Questions blazed through his mind as the muffled cries and whimpers of the younger smashers reached his ears. In particular, he could hear Nana' stifled sobs and Diddy whimpering in a corner.

"Can we open our eyes now?" came the frightened voice of Ness from across the room. "Is it safe?"

Why does it have to be her? Why here? Why now? Oh, Palutena, what did I do wrong to have her come back to haunt us?

"No! Don't even think of opening your eyes yet," Pit yelled in return.

The hissing sound came closer to him, until he could feel it surround him.

"Ah…Pit. I thought I recognized your voice. It is ssso nice to ssssee you again."

The boy shudder as a scaly hand was placed on his shoulder, sending a terrified shudder through his body.

"What? You don't want to ssssee an old friend?"

"Pit, what's going on?" yelled Snake from across the room.

"Just be quiet and don't open your eyes!" the angel yelled back as a hissing laugh filled the air. Pit could feel Lyn shuddering next to him as the Sacean felt the unwelcomed guest's evil aura enter the room. Pit moved his hand around the couch until he found hers, then grabbed it in his own, holding it tightly.

"It will be ok, Lyn," he whispered as he felt his old enemy glaring at the back of his neck. "Just don't open your eyes until she is gone."

"Ah….sssso you have told your friendsssss about me," the woman behind him hissed. "So sssad to see you don't, trusssst me."

"What do you want Medusa?" Pit replied as he felt the snake woman pass by one of his wings.

"Jussst where our friend, Sssshiida issss. The boss ssseems, interessssted in her, that's all."

"She's not here….she, left…just a few minutes ago. You just missed her," Pit replied hesitantly, shivering from the clammy hand placed on his shoulder.

"Ssso, sssad," came the reply. "Then I guessss I will jussst have to have ssssome fun here inssstead. Maybe ssstarting with thissss girl here."

Lyn felt Medusa slid right behind her, shivering as Medusa placed her head right next to her own.

"Sssshe will make a niccce addition to my sssstatue collection," she hissed, as Lyn felt several snakes beginning to wrap themselves around her neck, their tongues flickering against her skin. She shuddered as she felt the woman place her hands on Lyn's cheeks, and knew that she was now directly in front of her.

"Pleasssse, look into my eyesssss."

Lyn strained against the temptation to open her eyes, feeling an overwhelming desire to just take one glance. She felt a scaly hand place itself against her cheek, freezing her in place as she again shuddered from the touch. The handmade its way across her cheek, tapping every so often until she felt Medusa's fingers against her eyes.

"It won't hurt you, to just, look, once."

"I...I won't. You can't make me."

"I believe that I can, misssssy."

Lyn trembled against the temptation to open her eyes, as the pressure to open them mounted.

"I can feel you giving up, Sssacean. Jussst one glance, is all I asssssk."

"You can make it, Lyn," Pit whispered in her ear. "Don't give into her lies." In an instant, Pit felt a horrible weight slam itself into his body, knocking him up and over the couch. His landing splintered the coffee table hiding behind the sofa, causing him to wince in pain.

Note to self, her backhand has grown stronger…

Lyn heard the boy from Angel land groan behind her, his comforting embrace gone. She had heard about Medusa through stories from the angel, but, had never dreamed she would have to face a creature that had held prisoner, a Goddess. Just as she felt the last bit of her strength to resist fade away, she remembered who was waiting for her back home in Ostia. Her determination returned, just as a voice floated over Medusa' chilling voice.

"Shiida is upstairs, in the hospital bay."

Both Pit and Lyn whirled around, barely being able to keep their eyes closed, but fuming as Medusa hissed in excitement.

"Resetti! Why did you do that?"

"Ah, sssso ssshe isss here, then." Medusa cackled as Lyn felt her move away from. "Then I sssshall leave you, for now."

"No, he's lying," Pit screamed as he pushed himself up from the remains of the table, his back muscles twitching. "She's already left."

"Angelssss shouldn't tell liessss," Medusa hissed as she made her way up the stairs, her voice turning into an evil cackle as it disappeared down the hallway.

Pit finally opened his eyes and glared at the mole across the room from him. "Resetti, how could you?" Pit screamed as he made his way towards the cowering mole. The angel grabbed the mole by his throat, shaking him in the air. "What were you thinking?"

"I, I don't know," the creature replied. "Her voice, was so….hypnotic. I just felt like I needed to tell her."

"Pit, leave him be, we need to go help Shiida out before that Snake lady does whatever she has planned!"

Pit glanced over at Lyn, his expression softening as he dropped the mole onto the ground. "Fine. We'll go and help Shiida." Pit walked over to the stairs where Lyn was, then turned around, pointing towards Resetti. "Although I'll be back to deal with you later."

The pair sped up the stairs as Resetti shrank back into the crowd of smashers, seeming to become even smaller than before. Red shook his head as he watched Lyn and Pit running up the stairs, the angel looping his arm through his shield band as he headed upstairs. The Pokémon Trainor cast a distrustful glance towards Resetti.

"How many times have we told you, Resetti," Red questioned. "Never tick off an angel."

-O-

If one couldn't count the number of tiles in the room before, they could probably count the number that survived after Bowser was through with them. Pieces of tile and mortar covered the remaining tiles, revealing a twisting pathway across the chasm beneath. It was one of the moments of Bowser's glory, as his size made it impossible for him to fall down any of the holes as he walked across them.

"Who's the Hero now?" Bowser roared as the other four smashers made their way across the twisting path towards the gloating koopa. "I'll give you a hint, it's me!" He raised his hands in the air, breathing tiny spurts of flame as he did a short victory dance on one leg. "I think I deserve a kiss from Peach for how I bravely marked the path for her."

Peach began giggling as Mario's face began turning red. "Oh come now, Mario," she chirped sweetly as she made it to where Bowser was and gave him a quick peck on his cheek. "It isn't like he will make anything of it." Bowser laughed, pointing a jagged claw towards the beat-red plumber.

"Beat that, Mario! I got a kiss from the princess and you didn't!"

Peach walked back over to Mario, and planted a big kiss onto his cheek, completely draining the joy out of Bowser's face as the koopa's jaw went slack. Peach giggled as her and Mario walked past the astonished koopa whose hand was still pointing into thin air. "Besides, Mario," Peach laughed, "I still don't like him for all those times he kidnapped me."

Bowser spun around, his previously ashen face pulsating with anger. "I wasn't kidnapping you! I was rescuing you from that plumber so you could be with a real man!"

"Come, children, we have larger issues to deal with besides your incessant badgering."

The residents of the Mushroom Kingdom stared at Marth who was tapping his foot against the stone floor. "If you don't remember, the longer we wait, the more likely Link dies. Now, let's hurry." Marth spun around on his heels, his cape swishing behind him as he rejoined Zelda and began walking forward again. Mario glared at Bowser, who shot him a dirty look in return as the both them and Peach started after the Princess and swordsman.

The group had barely walked for about another five minutes before coming to another stop as the group entered another room, not quite as large as the other, but still of considerable size. A well lit path traced itself down the center of the room, ending at what looked to be an old, worn out looking throne. As Zelda stepped inside the room, she noticed the large, marble statues lining the path to the throne.

"What is this place," Peach said in a daze, looking at the ornate architecture covering the walls. Unfinished marble pillars stood every few feet around the sides of the room, their façades covered in a thick layer of grime and soot. As Zelda approached the first statue, her curiosity only peaked.

"None of the statues have a face…"

Marth walked towards her, then looked up into the face, or where there should have been a face on the statue. The statue itself looked very familiar, like someone who he knew, but without a face, the stone was so worn down from time that he couldn't figure out who it was. The Altean prince moved onto another statue, making his way around the room as he looked at each statue individually, with the same result for each. None of them, had any facial features, except for….

"Marth, over here."

Marth hurried over to Zelda's side, wondering what she was looking at. What he saw worried him. The statue the Princess of Hyrule could be identified easily, as it was the only one with a face in the entire room.

"Its, Link," Marth said in astonishment, wondering why a statue of the Hylian would be hidden away in this dark room, far from the mansion proper. "Why would a statue of Link be down here?"

"I don't know," Zelda replied, her voice trembling as she spoke. "But it worries me. Until we entered the room, I was able to feel his presence, but now…nothing. I can't sense him at all."

"Over here! I found-a door."

Both Zelda and Marth hurried towards Mario, who was standing in what looked like a large, steel plated door. Zelda had no time to think about its oddity and how out of place it was before she noticed the symbol of the Goddesses, the Triforce, carved into the metal.

"I think Link is behind here," she said quickly, closing her eyes as she began meditating. The door vibrated softly, then began rising as Bowser and Peach joined the threesome near the door. Zelda tried preparing herself for whatever was behind the door, knowing that if she couldn't sense her fellow Hylian's life force, then whatever had happened to him wouldn't be good. A loud 'clink' sounded as the door reached the zenith of its climb, and slowly, Zelda opened her eyes.

He was there, but he was gone. Zelda rushed into the room, the fear she had been holding in throughout this entire journey into this dark path started to break through her ability to control it. Peach gave a startled gasp, only raising Zelda's despair further.

Oh please don't be gone, oh please, Link. Don't be dead.

-O-

"Just follow my lead, and we'll be fine."

Lyn nodded as the two crept slowly towards the hospital door, hearing Medusa's soft hissing could be heard from inside the room. Pit swallowed, realizing that Doctor Mario, Kirby and Metaknight were still inside the room, acting as guards in case of another attack. Should have hurried to warn them…Pit thought as they inched closer to the door. He could feel Lyn behind him, her hand on his shoulder, allowing him to feel her racing heartbeat. She had probably never faced an enemy like Medusa before, and Pit realized that he should probably tell her what he was planning. Mentally slapping himself for his carelessness, he halted a few feet from the hole in the wall where the door used to be, turning around to face the Sacean.

"Ok," he whispered, placing his shield in front of them to shield their eyes if Medusa walked outside the room. "Here's the plan, and I'm going to need your full participation if this is to work."

Lyn nodded solemnly. "What do you need me to do?"

"Do you still have your sword with you?" the angel asked.

Lyn grabbed the handle of the sword tied to her hip. "You mean Mani Katti? I never go anywhere without it."

"Ok, good. Give it to me."

His request was greeted with confusion; however, Lyn drew her treasured blade, handing it deftly to the angel. "How is being completely defenseless going to help us defeat her?"

"We don't want to be on the offense when we go in, we can only attack her with our defense." Clearly from the look on Lyn's face, she was baffled by what he was saying. How do I explain this…? "Ok, what I mean is that as we saw with Luigi, if you look into her eyes, you turn to stone, however, it comes with a catch."

Lyn nodded, "So what's the catch."

"The catch is that it is a power she can tap into, or tap out of. It used to be that she couldn't control it, but after her meeting with Perseus," the angel grinned, "she learned that it could be used against her if she saw her own reflection. Perseus attacked with a mirror and," Pit flipped his shield around, showing Lyn her own reflection before he turned it back around, "she died by her own hands. When she was revived and released upon the world, she learned how to control the ability, knowing how to turn it off if need be. However, once she turns it off, it takes several minutes for her to be able to tap into it again, giving us time to strike."

Lyn was chewing on her bottom lip, a nervous habit from her childhood as she digested the information. "So we use your shield as a mirror, to either have her look into it, or to have her turn off her ability." The angel nodded. "If that is the case, we do you need my sword?"

"Your sword is just as reflective as my shield, so if I hold it in front of the shield, I can tell if she is looking at us. Her eyes glow an eerie greenish color when her ability is tapped into, otherwise they are cold and soulless. I just need it for a moment to see when it is turned off. After that," Pit grinned like a two year old eating a slice of cake, "she's a goner."

Lyn just had to smile at the angel's optimism. It was infectious, causing a smile to grace her lips as well. It reminded her of the smile Nils always had when he was around. "Let's do this then," Lyn said, placing her hand on Pit's shoulder. The angel nodded, turning around as he inched towards the open doorway, one hand clutching his shield, with the other holding Mani Katti in front of it, allowing him to see in front of him. They crept forward at a crouch, slowing turning the corner as they finally made their way into the room.

"She's at Shiida's bed," Pit whispered, stopping both of them in their tracks. Lyn thought she could hear the woman saying something, but couldn't quite make it out from the distance they were at. "Lyn, make some noise, I need you to distract her.

The Sacean glanced around the room in a hurry, looking for anything she could make a loud noise with. She spotted Kirby, Metaknight and Doctor Mario in a corner, their statues showing the horror on their owners faces at the moment they saw Medusa. She spotted a large piece of mortar and picked it up. A grin spread across her face as she spied a window that had not yet been broken.

Medusa smiled as she looked down at the young woman in front of her. She seemed so pretty, so it seemed like such a shame that she had to die.

"Sssuch a pity, young child," she hissed, taking a small vile of liquid from a pocket from her tunic. "Really is a shame that the Master has ordered your life. And he went through ssuch an effort for the few of you that he wantssss." Several drops of liquid dropped from the vile into Shiida's partially opened mouth, as Medusa began a hissing laugh. The liquid slid down her lips and into her mouth, a small black line marking the path it had taken. "Ssweet dreamssss, my Master's newest pet in the afterlife."

A loud crash caused her to turn, dropping the vile onto the ground, spraying its contents onto the floor as it broke. "What, who'sss here?" Medusa turned towards the entrance, then hissed in panic as she saw her reflection staring back at her. She mentally shut down her power to transform life into stone, cursing herself for doing so. When she again opened her eyes, an angry scowl formed as she glared at the two people standing in front of her.

"I should have known it would be you, Pit," she hissed, taking a step towards the duo at the door. "I should warn you though, sservant of Palutena. You will not find me ssso easssily defeated asss lassst we met."

"Doesn't matter," Pit grinned as he passed Lyn back her sword. "You should slither away now before you hiss your life goodbye."

"That was a poorly worded pun, Pit," Lyn chided as she laughed softly. "Good try though."

"Enough talk," Medusa yelled, sprinting towards the duo. "It'ss time to die!"

-O-

Zelda tried holding back the tears trying to escape. She had always been told that as the ruler of Hyrule, she had to contain her emotions at all times. It was a crushing task, especially for one who wanted to be as free as she wanted to be. Sheik had provided her with that outlet, a persona that she could feel however she wanted, to act as she pleased…to cry when she needed.

Now, the tears simply didn't come.

Zelda felt as a soft hand itself onto her shoulder. She looked back into the teary eyes of Peach, the monarch of the Mushroom Kingdom not feeling so constrained about her emotions as the Princess of Hyrule. She envied Peach in that way. Peach had never had advisors ruling her life, day in and day out. She didn't have a father who would lock her in her room is she so much as showed a single tear.

"It's alright, Zelda," Peach cooed, wrapping her arms around her friend. "It's ok to let the tears out."

Zelda felt her emotions churn within her, raging against the strict discipline she had been practicing all of her life to perfect. In a veritable flood, the tears came pouring out, as the ruler of Hyrule broke down.

Mario watched from behind the two women, slowly removing his cap and bowing his head in respect for his dear friend. Bowser trudged around the room, trying his best to avoid the scene in the middle of the room, although every now and then he found himself glancing over his shoulder towards them.

"If there was only a way he could be brought-a back," Mario said. "Just so we could-a said our goodbyes."

Through her despair wracked mind…something clicked with what Mario said. Slowly, Zelda removed herself from Peach's embrace, startling her.

"What's the matter, Zelda?" she asked.

"Mario…what did you say?"

"Uh," Mario gulped, wondering if he had somehow offended Zelda. "I just said if there was a way that he could be brought back so we could-a said our goodbyes." Zelda turned around, bending over Link, placing her head against his chest. "What, did I-a say something wrong?"

"No, no you didn't, Mario," Zelda said, wiping at the tears in her eyes. "You made me remember something that we could try."

To the surprise of everyone in the room, Zelda put her hands against Link's chest, pressing firmly against it several times before placing her head back against his chest.

"Uh, Princess?" Mario wondered, stepping forward as he spoke. "Are you alright?"

"I think she's gone mad," Bowser grunted from the opposite side of the room. He immediately shut up as both Peach and Marth shot him death glares. Marth walked up next to Zelda, placing his hand on her shoulder as she again started pumping her hands against Link's chest.

"Zelda, I don't know what you are doing, but, even I know that when someone has passed on, they aren't coming back."

Zelda stopped momentarily, turning only to stare into the Altean's eyes. "No, Marth. You're wrong." She cupped her hands around Link's face, plugging his nose as she bent lower. There is one way." Even Bowser was startled by what came next, the massive koopa's jaw dropping to the floor. Peach gasped as she watched Zelda bend down, and place her lips against Link's. Bowser was the first to react.

"Did she just kiss a dead guy?"

-O-

How did she get this strong?

Pit ducked, narrowly avoided Medusa's dagger like fingers from ripping through his throat as he tried slicing at the woman's legs. With an unnatural grace, she deftly jumped backwards, avoiding the attack, hissing in anger at the young angel.

"You can't hit me," Medusa snarled. "The massster gave me a potion to increase my strength tenfold." To showcase her point, she grabbed a steel support column, snapping it into pieces before throwing them at the Pit and Lyn. The Sacean dodged left as Pit leapt to the right as the beam came crashing in between them. Medusa charged Lyn as the swordswoman was getting up, the monsters face red in fury. The Mani Katti was out in a flash, held in front of Lyn like a protective shield as Medusa' dagger-like fingernails clashed against the holy blade. Medusa tried slashing with her other hand, only to have Lyn repel that attack as well. Both fought across the room, Medusa slashing wildly with Lyn doing her best to avoid each attack. Lyn finally found an opening, thrusting forward with her sword, grinning as Medusa howled in pain. The joy was short lived as Medusa grabbed the Sacean's blade, then used it to throw both it and its owner across the room. Lyn rolled to a stop near Pit, breathing heavily as she pushed herself off the ground.

"So, Pit. How did you beat her before when she was less powerful?"

"I shot her with arrows until she died," the angel responded. Unfortunately, Pit had already tried that method, only to find that the arrows Palutena had gifted to him had no effect whatsoever on the bewitched woman.

"How did she attack before if you were far enough away to attack with your bow?"

"Like this!"

Pit pulled his shield up in front of both Lyn and himself as two matching beams of green light shot from Medusa's eyes. Lyn saw Pit giving way as the beams bounced off his shield, burning twin lines into the ceiling above. Lyn stared at the smoldering marks on the ceiling as Pit collected his breath.

"Is that how she attacked before?" she said, awestruck.

"Yeah, that's how she attacked before," the angel huffed. Lyn glanced from the ceiling, to Medusa, then back to Pit, a smile making its way onto her face. Holding Mani Katti in front of her, she placed a hand on Pit's shoulder.

"Then I think I know how we can beat her."

-O-

Bowser had the most horrified look on his face as Zelda backed away from Link, before starting to press against his chest again. Mario was backing away from Zelda like she was a deranged psychopath while Marth was frozen in place. Had Zelda finally lost her mind, Marth thought as he watched her continue to press against Link's chest. Marth knew how it felt to lose someone close to you, as he had both his father and mother die when Altea was invaded, but, what Zelda was doing was just…

"Uh…Zelda, I think you…"

"I know what I'm doing, Marth," Zelda interrupted. "I was taught that this method could save someone if they had stopped breathing moments before." She again clinched Link's nose, breathing in deeply before exhaling again into the Hylian's mouth. Placing her head against his chest, she glanced over at Marth. "I know what I'm doing."

Zelda stopped for a moment, breathing heavily before placing her hands back against Link's chest. "Come on…breathe Link, breathe." Tears were beginning to form again as she pressed against his chest. "Link, I know you are still there, now come back, please." Repeating the motion several more times only seemed to exhaust her further, her compressions against his chest losing strength with every push. She laid her head against his chest, half of the reason to hear if his heart was beating, the other half to still her own. Glancing at his closed eyes sent a chill down her spine. From the moment she had met Link during the bleak days of Zant's invasion, she had always been most impressed with his eyes; filled with a yearning for adventure and life. Now, she dare not even open them, for fear of remembering them only as lifeless orbs.

Marth watched the whole spectacle with a horrid fascination. He knew what Zelda was doing. Her idyllic life had been thrown into a sea of turmoil and now, one of the few sources of strength in her life being Link, slowly sinking beneath the turbulent waves. And she could only watch him slowly sink away. In a way, Marth dreaded every minute of the scene in front of him. Thoughts of Shiida clouded his thoughts, drowning his mind in wave after wave of desperate thought, all the while his eyes continued to watch the tragedy unfold in front of him. Marth, it seemed, was a torn man.

"Zelda. I…I think you should let him go."

Zelda turned and stared into Marth's eyes, seeming to both show her willingness to never give up on her friend, yet at the same time, showing her despair at what seemed inevitable.

"Just one, last time," she murmured, tilting Link's head back while bending low to his face. She turned again to face the Altean Prince. "Just one last try." The Altean nodded, knowing it would be the only way for her to finally accept what had happened. Zelda closed her eyes and steadied herself. Taking in a deep breath, she placed her lips over Link's mouth for a final try, hoping beyond hope that the Three Goddesses were willing to spare her Hero's life.

-O-

They had succeeded in surrounding her, trapping her directly in between them. Although it wasn't much of an accomplishment when you considered the fact that their opponent could shoot lasers from her eyes and could turn you to stone at a moment's notice.

"Pit, you ready?" Lyn yelled, holding her sword level with her eyes. Her whole body was tense, a nervous, jittery feeling flooding through every nerve telling her that this idea would never work. That their only hope was to flee, and run as far away as possible. She thrust the feelings from her mind, refocusing on the plan that she and Pit had decided on. She locked herself into position, only waiting for Pit to begin their plan of attack. After giving him a nod, and a small gulp, the angel began immediately.

"Hey, Snakeface, why don't you try giving me that lobotomy with your eyes again? It might make me as dumb as you are."

Lyn nearly gagged at the idiocy of the angel's comment; however it seemed to have done the job well. The snakes on Medusa's head started wiggling madly, making a horrid hissing sound as their master clenched and unclenched her fists.

"You dare insult the Queen of Darknessss?" she roared.

"More like the Queen of Ugly," Pit retorted, his knees beginning to shake. His mind was telling him that insulting Medusa when she was ten times as powerful as normal wasn't a brave thing, more of a death sentence. However, it was the only plan that they had, so going with it they did.

"A person with assss little intelligence assss you doesn't need a lobotomy, Pit," Medusa scowled, her eyes beginning to glow a deep green. The angel gulped, hiding behind his shield as her eyes turned a brilliant jade. "They need to be made an example of!"

Pit closed his eyes, hiding behind his shield like the coward he felt he was, especially with how Lyn was without the protecting cover of his shield.

This was so not in the plan…

"Pit, what's going on?"

Behind his shield, Pit's eyes shot open. Lyn…

"Lyn, you know how I said she could regain her power to turn people to stone?"

"Yeah? What about it?" Lyn yelled in return as Medusa slowly turned around." It was then the noble of Sacea felt the worst feeling she hoped she would ever feel in her life. Medusa' eyes were glowing an intense green, a wicked smile across her face.

"Well," Pit replied. "She got it back. I'm so sorry, Lyn."

A course shiver starting in Lyn's feet, eventually reaching her knees, causing her to look down in horror. Slowly, her body was being turned into stone, and there was nothing she could do about it. Medusa crept towards her, her gaze never leaving from the flailing Sacean.

"Sssso, sorry indeed," Medusa mocked, growing ever closer as Lyn's legs were now completely turned to stone. Lyn struggled against the power slowly destroying her, only making her fear worse.

"It will all be over soon, missssssy," Medusa hissed, now just feet away from Lyn.

"Lyn, remember the plan," Pit yelled as the angel threw away his shield and was running towards Medusa, his bow now split into two swords. Lyn's hands moved quickly, placing the sword parallel to the snake woman's eyes.

"What isss that going to do?" Medusa cackled in amusement as Lyn's neck turned to stone. A reflection of herself in the steel of the sword caused Medusa's cackle to turn into a shriek of despair.

"No!" she hissed, feeling a tingling sensation beginning in her feet. Pit slid to a stop, watching as Medusa's own spell slowly began working against her. The snake woman tried moving, only to fall to the floor, her feet and lower legs frozen solid to the rubble drenched floor.

"You…you think you've won," Medusa hissed, the stone making its way up her torso. "But my Master hassss already won." With the stone creeping up her chest, Medusa pointed towards the hospital bed where Shiida lay. "Even now, your friend is dying, and there is nothing you can do about it. She is ours now." The snake woman began cackling madly, the sound eerily cut short as Medusa's head was encased in stone.

Pit heaved a sigh of relief before walking over to statue of Lyn. His shoulders slumped as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry you had to go through this, Lyn," he whispered, walking towards the bed where Shiida lay. Pit heard a gasp behind him, followed by a deep intake of breath. The angel smiled as he turned around, now looking upon a now un-petrified Lyn who lay gasping on all four on the ground.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner she was going to do that?" Lyn gasped, glaring at the angel.

"I thought she was going to use her laser so we could reflect it back at her with my shield and your sword," Pit retorted. "I didn't know she was going to try and petrify us."

"A little warning might have been-a helpful."

Both Lyn and pit turned to see a very miffed looking Doctor Mario, Kirby and Metaknight walking towards them. "Who was-a that anyways?"

"Don't ask," Lyn said as she pushed herself off the ground. "We've got more important things to worry about." The Sacean rushed to the bed where Shiida lay, the Talysian woman's body slowing beginning to shake. Lyn looked from Shiida, to Doctor Mario, then back to Pit. "I heard what she said, but, do you know what she did to Shiida, Pit? You have the most experience with that witch."

The shaking only grew worse as Shiida's whole body began convulsing. Doctor Mario began frantically working with different machines surrounding the young woman, forcing both Lyn and Pit away from the bed. Pit stared at Lyn, and the Sacean knew what his answer was.

"I don't know."

-O-

Everything seemed like a dream to him. All he could see was darkness, his mind reeling and spinning faster than a stampeding goat. A forceful rush of air colliding with him felt so inviting. The wind felt as if new life was being funneled into his soul and mind. The young man's mind started coming back to him, allowing him to realize where he was. Slowly, painfully, he began opening his eyes.

It was then he realized what the inviting wind was that had felt so good to him in his dreams.

"Zelda?"

Zelda gasped, pulling away from Link quickly as the Hero of Twilight began gasping for air. You're alive, you're alive! was all her mind could handle at the moment. Almost as soon as she had backed away from Link, she embraced him in the tightest hug she could, not wanting to let go as if that would cause her to lose him again.

"You're alive…thank the Goddesses you're alive," she cried. Link was utterly perplexed by everything going on. All he knew was everything went black, then the next moment he woke up with Zelda kissing him.

"What's going on?" Link murmured. "Why were you kissing me, Zelda?"

"It wasn't a kiss, Link," Marth interrupted as he walked towards the Hylian's side. "She said it was something called CPR, although I would call it the kiss of life if you asked me. Glad to see you back though, Link. The mansion would never had been the same without you."

Even though he was even more confused than ever, Link simply nodded his head as Zelda finally let go of him. Helping him to a sitting position, Link was finally able to look straight into Zelda's eyes. "So…you use CPR by kissing someone?"

"That is only part of the technique," she replied sheepishly, not knowing why she was suddenly nervous. "It is a two part process that can help a person be resuscitated in case they have suddenly passed away. As long as the person hasn't suffered a fatal wound such as blood loss, that is. The first part consists of reactivating the person's heart then trying to restart their lungs."

"A little slower," Link groaned, rubbing his head. "I think I get the idea, but please don't explain it now as my head is pounding like mad." Link pushed himself slowly off the gurney, then reached out and held Zelda in as deep an embrace as she had just done for him. "Really, you don't know how much it means to me to have a friend like you." Link felt her warmth against him, sending a small shudder through his body. He had felt so cold for so long, this feeling warm almost felt, unnatural. Link felt a small trembling come from Zelda as he opened his eyes.

"Zelda, you're trembling. Is something wrong?"

"I…no, nothing's wrong," Zelda answered, turning her face as she felt unable to lie directly to Link. She couldn't tell him what had happened while he was gone, not yet. How would he react, what would he say? No, it was better that she wait to tell her about everything.

Although it seemed as Link wouldn't let the issue die.

"You're leaning a bit to your right side, Zelda. You can't fool me, what are you hiding." Zelda bit her lip, turning slowly to face her friend.

"It's nothing, Link. Really, now let's go, you probably need some rest."

She grabbed his hand, trying to pull him towards the door only him to hold her in place. She watched in horror as he slowly knelt on the ground, wincing with the effort. And his hands lifted up the bloodstained portion of her dress. He looked at her with a mix of anger and sadness. "This doesn't look like nothing, Zelda." He let the dress fall as he grabbed onto the edge of the gurney, pushing himself up as sweat started dripping down his face.

"Don't push yourself Link," Marth added as he walked over to the gurney. "I don't think Zelda wants to have to perform CPR on you twice in one day. Although if we could be going that would be excellent, only if both of you are feeling up to it, that is."

Link looked at the Altean in confusion. Had he really just told him not to push himself, but that they needed to hurry? What is going on with him today?

Link's confusion was matched by Zelda's understanding. She nodded at the Altean's request, waving at Mario to come and help support Link as they left the room. She watched in silence as Link again glanced down at the stain on her dress, all the while giving her an accusing look. She hated lying, especially to Link. As far as she had known, he had never lied to her, not once in the entire time she had known him. Sure he had hidden things from her, as she had with him, but…as he passed, the weight of what she had done to him began to sink into her soul. For someone with infinite wisdom granted to them by the three Goddesses, it didn't seem like she was using much of it at the moment.

Just as they were about to leave, with Peach already out the door, a chill went down everyone's backs.

"Leaving so soon?"

A static humming filled the room as a single television in the far corner of the room flickered to life.

Link's eyes shot open. "It's him…"

"It's who?" Zelda asked, her eyes looking questionably into Link's. "Who are you talking about?" Link raised his arm, pointing towards the darkened outline of the figure in it. "It's Mewtwo…the one who did this to me."

"Wait, that little shrew is the one who made me walk all the way down here to find you?" Bowser roared. "I am so going to wring your next if you ever get invited to another tournament."

"I don't think-a that is going to happen, Bowser." Mario quipped while the plumber stared at the stage.

"You will never get the chance to do that, koopa," Mewtwo responded, his face impassive. "As I am making sure that none of you leave this room alive."

Puzzled expressions filled the room as the television turned off. Marth again pushed everyone to leave, just as a grating sound reached their ears. The door they had come through was slowly closing while a large container with a timer dropped from the ceiling. The smashers instantly recognized what the dreaded device was from the Subspace war. They bolted towards the door, being cheered on by a worried Peach on the opposite side. Surprisingly, Bowser was the first through, stopping on the other side only to grab Peach, exclaiming something about how Mario will never have her. Mario's eyes flared in anger and to both Zelda and Marth's surprise, let go of Link, leaving him fully depending upon Zelda for support.

Worry was quickly being replaced by dread in Zelda's mind as her and Link staggered towards the door. Marth was already through; trying to place a large board underneath the closing door to stop it's downwards climb. The door hit the board, creaking to a halt as Zelda and Link finally made it to the exit. Just as they were passing through, the board snapped, spraying the three with splinters and large pieces of wood. Marth was blasted backwards by the small explosion, watching in horror as both Link and Zelda toppled to the ground, directly underneath the door closing door. The Hylians tried pushing themselves out of the room, only to realize that they wouldn't make it in time.

"I'm sorry Zelda," Link whispered, staring into Zelda's terrified eyes as the door lay only a foot above their heads. "Guess it's too late for Farore's Wind, huh?"

Zelda nodded slowly, both crying at laughing at her friends words. Even in a time like this, he could crack a simple joke. She closed her eyes as the door lay inches above them. Oh how she will miss his humor. Link wrapped his arms around his friend, in a last gesture of defense as he felt the door scrapping against his shoulder, sending intense pain through his body as the door continued to crush him against the ground.

At the moment he thought he could stand no more, the door ground to a stop. He barely had time to open his eyes as a strong, clawed hand grabbed both Zelda and him, yanking them out from underneath the door and throwing them several feet away from it. Both opened their eyes in shock as they saw the door close completely, with a somewhat miffed looking Bowser glaring at them.

"You really need to start saving yourselves," Bowser growled as he dusted his hands off. "This is the second time today that I've had to save someone's hide." Marth was quickly by Zelda's side, helping the princess up before extending his hand in helping Link as well. Mario was by Peach's side, still glaring at Bowser as the massive koopa trudged past him.

"You've saved others today?" Peach asked.

"Of course I have," Bowser snorted. "I was the one who defeated Liquid in the basement, and now I've saved both Zelda and Link's lives!"

"So you're a hero, then," Peach giggled.

"What, no…I…"

"I like heroes," Peach laughed as Bowser stuttered.

"You do? I mean, yes. I am the hero!"

Bowser leapt into the air, then sprinted forward down the hall, his happy shouts of Peach liking him echoing off the stone walls.

Everyone but Peach and Mario shook their heads as they heard a massive explosion behind the door, although they were surprised that the door held against the blast. They walked past the statues in the room, Link asking Zelda about the one which looked like him. As they made their way towards the exit back to the mansion, Link pointed out another statue at the end of the room which made both Zelda and Marth shiver.

"Hey, doesn't that one look like Shiida?"

-O-

Pit glanced toward Doctor Mario, lowering his head while removing the wreath on his head as Lyn bowed her reverence. Everyone was silent for several moments, before Pit finally broke the silence.

"So…who wants to be the one to tell Marth?"


I finally got this chapter done and it's also my birthday so, HAPPY BIRTHDAY PRESENT FOR EVERYONE! Since I'm getting a lot of presents today, I was thinking that since all of you have been so dedicated to this story, I should give you a present as well. It kind of took a long time for this chapter, as I wanted to surprise everyone as well by going through and re-editing and fixing up all of the previous chapters in this story. So, hope you like your present! This story will be picking up really soon, as if it hasn't already. Also, this is the longest chapter I have written to date for any of my stories, so hopefully I didn't bore you to tears with it. Anyway, please read and review the parts you liked or didn't like as well as what needs fixing. I have really loved getting all the reviews so far, as I have had over 50 reviews now! Thank you, thank you, thank you! :D Especially to Shimmerleaf, MangoLover, dxm2000, Sweswe,bankai179, anyone, Smash King24, Lay, NinjaSheik, LinkWarriorInGreen, notfromearth7, TriforceandSheikahArt, Turdecken, MangoFAN, Pyro-Link and Mantis 09. I think that is everyone who has reviewed so far. So thank you everyone for your support of this story!