A/N: Thanks again to alwaysingirl, RoseWing and Kirkysaurus for their reviews!
Apologies for the extremely late update, guys. Turns out being sick, having friends over or having to finish a project isn't really good for writing :P
So, it's Drazzil vs Zelda. Who will win?
Chapter 20 - Fight
Wasting no time, Drazzil lunged at Zelda, who only dodged at the last second. He didn't give up, slashing at her at high speeds. Thankfully, her reflexes were so finely tuned she could dodge each one.
'Ruto! Get out of here!' she shouted as she dodged another attempt. Ruto's eyes widened at the sound of her name, and got up to run. Zelda turned back to her attacker and flicked out her dagger.
'Foolish girl!' Drazzil shouted as he attempted another lunge, which was dodged, 'you think that puny weapon is enough to scar me?'
'It had before,' Zelda replied as she effortlessly dodged another slash. Drazzil cursed, took out another dagger, and started to slash at her with both of them at once. Zelda found this a lot harder to dodge, but she still managed. Just. He was getting the upper hand, even if she was dodging all of his attacks. After she noticed, she began to attack as well.
Their attacks alternated with such speed and grace one could have mistaken the routine for an elaborate dance act. It seemed rhythmic. After Drazzil attacked, she flung her arm out. And vice versa. Over and over again. She actually started to get bored even though this was a fight to the death. Drazzil was getting really frustrated, she could tell. Sometimes his attacks would get more ferocious, start to weaken, and then he'd pick it up again a few seconds later. He did look really worse for wear, though. His cheek had a large scar, and he had many small scars along his arms and face.
'Hey, you've really let yourself go since we've last met,' Zelda teased.
'Don't remind me,' Drazzil growled as she dodged another swipe.
They kept at it for another five minutes, slashing at each other over and over. Even though Zelda wasn't even tired, she could tell Drazzil was starting to breathe more heavily as he attacked. If they kept this up he'd probably collapse from exhaustion rather than a dagger to the face. Zelda decided to finish the fight quickly by throwing in some kicks.
Another ten minutes passed, and Zelda's attacks stayed regular, though Drazzil would only dodge them by mere centimetres. He was gasping now, panting for breath. His attacks were much slower than Zelda's, and she could easily duck and dive over them. In time she grew bored, and doubled the speed of her attacks. Drazzil dodged the first swipe, but her other dagger stabbed him in the arm, causing him to cry out in pain and drop his dagger. Zelda smiled and kicked him in the stomach, making him fall.
'Argh!' he grunted as he landed. She kicked him again across the face. He held it and spat out blood. Not only was he bleeding from the nose, but the wound in his arm was also bleeding badly. He tried to stand, but he was so weak that his knees buckled and he fell right back down. Zelda just walked up to him casually and jabbed him in the face with her fist, causing more blood to drip out of his nose.
'Ouch...' Drazzil groaned. It definitely looked like she was going to win the fight.
That is until his ride came.
A loud rumble even though it was distant, the wagon was slowly but surely edging up to where Drazzil lay. Zelda just shook her head in disbelief. What a coward.
As if he gained more strength in the last few seconds, Drazzil stood shakily and waved to the wagon. It responded by rousing the horses into a faster gallop.
'Sorry I have to leave you little girl, but I can't be late!' He jumped onto the wagon and waved at her cheekily. 'Next time you won't be lucky!'
And then the wagon sped away from her. She sprinted after it, bellowing insults and threats. Nevertheless, it continued on its path to safety. It didn't look like she could catch up to it any time soon. Zelda just gave up and wiped the blood soaked dagger on the grass, before putting it back into the holster. After walking back to the spot where they first were, Ruto came out from behind a tree.
'Wow, Sheik! That was amazing! You really knocked that guy out the park! Too bad he escaped before you deal the final hit,' Ruto shouted. Zelda soaked up the adulation but didn't show it.
'I know right? That guy was such a coward. Always has been.'
'You mean you've met before?'
Zelda sighed. 'Yes, we've met. Only once though.'
'Did you beat him up then?'
'How do you think he got that scar?'
Ruto just stared. 'Wow.'
Zelda smiled. Even if she was scared to death at the time, it still sounded pretty cool.
'Right. Well now what are you going to do?' she asked.
'I have to go to the Water Temple. There's something I have to take care of there. However, if a human were to try to get in, they'd need an item first. The Iron Boots. They're located at the Ice Cavern behind Zora's Domain.'
If she was telling the truth, Link would be heading there next.
'Okay, Ruto. Thanks, but this is where we go seperate ways. Goodbye, but only for now.'
'Okay. Goodbye Sheik. Thanks for everything!'
And just like that, they walked off, Zelda to Zora's Domain, Ruto to the Water Temple. Now all she had to do was get to the Ice Cavern and teach Link the Serenade of Water. Hopefully it wouldn't take that long to get there.
XxX
After two hours of Octorok-slaying, shivering, baffling and annoying running to Zora's Domain, Zelda finally made it to the exit. She sighed and put the dagger back into the holster. Surely it wasn't this long and frustrating to get from one point to another. She ran past the frozen King Zora to Zora's Fountain.
It was a lot colder here than any other area. In fact, it was so cold there were little icebergs floating on the water, all leading up to a small cavern. Zelda guessed that the cavern was her next destination.
Easily, she hopped onto the first iceberg. It tipped slightly under her weight, and she had to throw out her arms for balance. Once she stopped falling, she quickly travelled to the centre of the small island to steady its equilibrium. After she felt it safe, she ran to the edge of the iceberg and hopped to the next one. After she staedied herself on that one, she continued. This only took a minute as she got to the cavern with ease. As she entered the cold hit her like a tsunami. And she thought the fountain was cold?
Suddenly, a scratching sound sounded abover her head. She looked up, only to see an ice stalactite trembling violently before falling. It was very sharp. One hit with that thing could render her out of action for a few weeks. She only dodged at the last second, and the stalactice shattered onto the ground only inches from her ankle. The sound started again, and another two stalactites fell. She dodged them with ease as well, now that she was aware of their presence. There was also something encased in the red ice that held King Zora captive, but she ignored it. After all, there was nothing she could do about it right now.
She entered the next room. It was big, with lots of enemies inside. There were three ice statue enemies, with a Blade Trap circling them slowly. Thinking the enemies to be of no harm, she decided to go in and kill the statues, dodging the Blade Trap as she went. As she went in she fired a needle at the statue. The projectile bounced off the monster harmlessly, but still captured its attention.
It turned to her and sent out a wave of icy breath. Zelda dismissed it as a harmless attack, and just let it hit her. However, when it actually did hit her, a wave of pain coursed through her body. She tried to move, but it felt like all of her nerves were frozen stiff. After frantically trying to get out of the way of the monster's breath, she 'thawed' and jumped backwards. Right into the Blade Trap's path.
She screamed and clutched at her legs where she had been stung. Looking down, there were small cuts in her trouser legs, blood dripping from each. They stung like crazy, and she yelled out again and fell to the ground. She fumbled in her bag for a red potion and downed it in one gulp. Instantly, the cuts started to crust over. In a few seconds, they became mere scabs. This place was a lot tougher than she had expected.
Preferring not to fight, she ran around the outside wall of the room to get to the next area.
XxX
After two more hours, she got to the final room of the small dungeon. The walls were a beautiful crystal colour and lots of little ice crystal dotted the room, giving it an elegant look. She heard movement behind her, and hid behind one of the crystals near the door. After five minutes, Link entered. He had changed back into his green tunic, she noticed.
Suddenly, a White Wolfos appeared, howling. Zelda shrank back as Link took out his sword, ready for battle. The Wolfos lunged first, sharps claws poised for Link's chest. Link quickly shielded the attack like it was nothing and sliced the monster. His attack hit, and the monster jumped back. It was a riveting battle. In fact, one could say it mirrored the battle between herself and Drazzil. Whenever, Link attacked, the monster did next. The only difference was that Link pummeling the monster to death.
After only five minutes, the monster howled and burst into flames. Link shoved the sword back into the sheath. He walked up to the treasure chest and took out the Iron Boots, holding them over his head in a sign of triumph. Zelda decided to take that moment to walk out from her hiding place.
'We meet again, Link...
'If you came here to meet the Zoras, you wasted your time... This is all there is... With one exception, the Zoras are now sealed under this thick ice sheet...
'I managed to rescue the water princess from under the ice, but... she left to head for the Water Temple... This ice is created by an evil curse...
'The monster in the Water Temple is the source of the curse. Unless you shut off the source, this ice will never melt... If you have courage enough to confront the danger and save the Zoras, I will teach you the melody that leads to the temple.
'Time passes, people move... Like a river's flow, it never ends... A childish mind will turn to noble ambition... Young love will become deep affection... The clear water's surface reflects growth... Now listen to the Serenade of Water to reflect upon yourself...'
She brought out her harp, easily playing the Serenade of Water. As was the case with their meetings, Link brought out his Ocarina and played along. The room became shrouded in blue, and it stayed until he finished. Zelda put away her harp.
'Link... I'll see you again...'
He went towards her, but she thre down a Deku Nut, blinding Link temporarily. When his eyesight cleared, Sheik was gone. He shrugged it off, and exited the room. Zelda dropped down from her small hiding place, and the 'dragging into unconsciousness' feeling began to tug at her. She sighed and dropped to the ground, falling asleep in seconds.
A/N: Any typos, really sorry. I didn't have any time to spell check it afterwards XP