Another day, another council meeting. Midna knew her time in Hyrule would be less than pleasant, but this was just torture.
Still - she tried to listen anyway. Yesterday everyone had noticed how apathetic she'd looked, and she didn't want anyone to think she didn't care about Hyrule. She did. Not as much as she could, because she didn't know its people that well yet, but she hoped that would change in time.
And besides - with the stern look Salaas was shooting at her back, she knew he wouldn't be pleased to find her not listening again.
Too late she realized she had tuned out the council.
"…right after this meeting," King Ganondorf said. "Prince Eldren will temporarily assume my position while I'm away."
"What?!" the prince spluttered.
Midna bit her lip, very much regretting not listening to the king.
"But your majesty!" a hawk-nosed man protested. "This is so sudden! We had no forewarning of your departure; how are we to prepare accordingly?"
Ganondorf waved a hand dismissively and leaned back in his seat. "I already said - Prince Eldren will take charge for a little while. Everything is taken care of."
"And your escort?" the hawk-nosed man asked.
"I… have one ready," came the king's vague response.
A dark-eyed woman frowned at him. "Your majesty, with all due respect, we would like to know just who this escort is and for how long you'll be gone." She leaned forward across the table. "This kind of information is vital - especially considering Hyrule's dire state. In fact, it would be best if you postponed your plans altogether, until it's safer for you to leave."
"I cannot postpone them!" Ganondorf growled, baring his teeth. He reached up to rub his forehead, and sighed deeply. "This is important, don't you understand? That's why I need to leave immediately. No exceptions."
The woman opened her mouth.
"And as for my escort," Ganondorf interrupted before she could say anything, "don't concern yourself over them. A few… very trusted friends will be accompanying me."
"Who are these friends?" the woman asked.
The king spoke over her in a much louder voice that drowned hers out - "This meeting is dismissed!" He slammed his palms on the table to emphasize his point, making Midna jump a little in her chair. "It will commence again at the prince's command." Then, without another word, he stood, and walked out of the council room, heavy boots ringing loud against the marble floor as he went. He slammed the door behind him.
For a moment the council members could only stare at the door in confusion. Midna was the most confused of them all.
Then the silence broke when everyone turned to Prince Eldren at once and demanded to know what he would do, how he would handle his father's absence, when the next meeting would commence -
"One question at a time, please!" Eldren held his palms in front of him in a pleading gesture, his lips twisting into a grimace.
So the dark-eyed woman spoke up before anyone else could. "When will the council meet again?"
The prince laid his hands on the table and laced them together, heaving a long, deep sigh, and the Twili princess thought she could see his shoulders sag - just a little. "I don't know," was his honest answer. "We don't have much to discuss. It seems everything has already been taken care of. The demons haven't appeared since their first attack, all the people close to Castle Town have been locked safely inside its walls, and messengers have been sent out to warn the outlying villages and towns. What else is there to do?"
"We still don't know who the necromancer is," the hawk-nosed man pointed out.
Eldren sighed. "Does anyone have any information as to who he or she may be?" His eyes swept the council, piercing each and every one of them - but Lady Ali in particular. Midna found herself watching the woman, waiting for her to say anything, but she didn't. She simply kept her gray eyes on the floor and her mouth clamped shut. "No?" The prince shook his head. "Then if not, I see no reason to convene any time soon. We will hold another meeting if any information is brought to light. If that's all?"
Nobody said anything, so Eldren nodded his head once and told everyone to return to their activities. They all got up and began to shuffle out of the room.
The prince stood, and Midna did the same, stopping him with a gentle hand on his arm. "Hey," she whispered.
He smiled at her. "Yes?"
"Uh - sorry, but…" She waited for the last council member to exit the room, leaving only her, her bodyguards, the prince, and the princess, before she continued. "I kinda tuned the king out…" She offered him a sheepish grin. "What did he say about leaving?"
"He's going to check up on the Gerudo. Apparently, since they've been pillaging recently, all the messengers fear them and refused to warn them about the demons, so my father has taken it into his hands to tell them himself."
The Twili woman pressed her lips together. "Really? That's dangerous, isn't it? And he seemed reluctant to mention who his escort was." She cocked a brow. "A bit strange, don't you think?"
"I…" Eldren's eyes slowly drifted away from hers, and he stared down at the floor as if it had suddenly become very fascinating. "I don't know what to think," he finally whispered.
"But Lady Ali does," Zelda interrupted.
Midna's eyes flicked to the other royal's. "She refused to admit who the necromancer was, right?"
"Yes." The Hylian princess lifted her chin a fraction - and Midna couldn't help smiling as she met her eyes. A storm boiled within them, powerful clouds rolling in the gray-blue sky of her eyes. No longer did gloomy rain dampen them. It was nice to see the princess back to her former self, Midna thought. "I intend to speak to her again today."
"You'll allow me to come, of course," Eldren said, squaring his shoulders.
"Of course not," Zelda told him with the slightest frown. "You'll scare her."
"What?" The prince looked offended. In order to hide the hurt in his eyes, he looked down and fixed a few nonexistent wrinkles in his white shirt, and straightened his blue, gold-trimmed coat over the top of it, though it already hung perfectly straight. "I'm not intimidating. I won't scare her."
Zelda's lips curved into a smile - a strange smile the Twili woman had never seen on her face before. It looked almost like a smirk. Almost. Not quite. "You're absolutely terrifying," she told her brother, and with that odd smile widening, she turned and left the council room without another word.
Eldren and Midna stood speechless in her wake. The Twili had always seen the other princess as a sort of no-nonsense person, and had never heard her even attempt to crack a joke before. The sudden jest left her surprised and utterly confused. She blinked at the door, and shut her mouth, which she only barely realized had been hanging agape.
Then Eldren turned to her, thick golden brows knit together in concern. "Am I terrifying?"
Midna couldn't help it. She burst into laughter. His brows furrowed even more, if that was possible, and a shadow of concern flitted through his eyes. "What?" he asked, almost desperately.
"Oh, Nayru," the Twili somehow managed between giggles. She patted his arm. "You couldn't be terrifying even if you wanted to!" And then she was laughing again, and couldn't stop, tears gathering in her eyes.
Eldren frowned and tugged absently at the long sleeves of his coat. "Thanks… I suppose."
Midna finally regained control of herself and wiped at her eyes. She didn't know why she had found the entire thing so amusing. "You're welcome," she said with a grin.
"Your highness," Salaas interrupted from behind her. "If we're done here, then…"
The Twili woman sighed. "Yeah, we are." She glanced to her bodyguard, then returned her gaze to Eldren, giving him a wide smile. "See you later?"
"At lunch, if you don't mind," he replied.
"Sure."
He smiled. "Since Zelda didn't ask us to meet with her again, I'm going to assume it'll be just the two of us. Would you like to eat… outside, perhaps, in one of the gardens?"
Midna's eyes brightened in excitement. "That'd be great! The same one we went to last night?" He nodded, and she laughed. "Good! See you at lunch!" Then she swept out of the marble room, Ludin and Salaas in tow.
Midna sat, legs crossed, on a stone bench before the little bird fountain, and tore off a chunk of sweet roll with her teeth. A pleasant silence stretched between her and the prince. Rays of sun streamed through the leaves of trees to dapple the ground in shifting spots of light. The sweet songs of birds danced through the air, and as she swallowed her food a small smile came to Midna's lips.
"This is my favorite garden so far," she said as she set her sweet roll down on the plate and used her fork to tear off a sizable chunk of roast beef. "Do you have any others?" She stuffed the meat into her mouth.
Eldren watched the dainty little streams of water spewing from the stone birds' mouths. "We have the outer ward, the inner ward, and then three gardens. This one is the second largest," he explained. "I can show you the others sometime if you'd like."
"Yeah, I'd like that."
The prince selected a small bite of roast beef and ate it much more delicately than she did. She almost wanted to laugh, watching him - they were such opposites, and yet she found it surprisingly easy to get along with him.
Eldren's gaze flicked to hers. He blinked. "Is something wrong?"
Midna grinned. "I was just thinking about how superior your manners are to mine."
He laughed. "Yes… I've noticed that, too," he replied with the tiniest hint of what might have been a smirk on his face, then he looked away again and took another small bite of meat.
"Hey!" Midna huffed. "Are you calling me a slob?"
"I don't know if I'd use the word slob, but…"
"Yeah, okay, I get it," the Twili grumbled, stuffing the entire rest of the sweet roll in her mouth and chewing noisily, mouth open, jokingly emphasizing his point. She almost choked on her food with laughter when the prince's nose wrinkled in disgust and he turned his head away. "S-sorry," she managed around her gigantic bite of food, hiding her smiling mouth with a hand.
He chuckled and shook his head.
A familiar voice interrupted them. "Midna?"
The Twili's eyes widened. That voice. Smooth, and gentle, and low, like the breeze through long green grasses - she couldn't possibly mistake it. But she doubted herself anyway. She turned her head, looking over her shoulder - only to see Link standing there a few feet behind her.
Eldren's head turned as well. Midna could only stare, words escaping her, and she swallowed.
Well. This just got awkward.
"You're… Prince Eldren, right?" Link asked, a hesitant smile lifting his lips. When the prince nodded, the other man bowed his head. "Your highness. I'm so sorry for intruding."
"You know Midna?" Eldren inquired.
The Twili princess swallowed again, and hid her suddenly-sweating hands within the folds of her black dress. What should she say? She almost wanted to lie - but she had nothing to hide, did she? She and Link had only ridden horses around a few times, and she'd purchased strawberries from him. That was it. She readily admitted to herself that she had a tiny bit of a crush on the farm-boy, but she didn't need to tell that to Eldren. So she opened her mouth to explain to the prince - but Link spoke before she did.
"She bought strawberries from me, that's all," he replied, nervously running a hand through his messy golden hair and shifting his weight. "I'm so sorry for interrupting. I just needed to get out of the infirmary for a bit of fresh air, but if I would have realized there was someone here…"
"It's fine," Eldren said with a smile. "The infirmary… were you attacked by the demons, then?"
Midna could see Link's jaw clench. His eyes dulled - no doubt remembering his dead parents. She wanted to hug him, but she didn't. She couldn't. She looked away as he responded, "…Yes."
"Ah. I'm so sorry," the prince offered.
Link tried to shrug nonchalantly.
Suddenly -
A figure stepped from between the trees and onto the little stone path. Noonday sunlight poured onto the form of a tall, well-muscled man, illuminating his broad shoulders and thick neck, and the strong legs that carried him confidently toward them.
Midna's eyes shot wide open. Her heart skipped a beat. Beside her she heard Eldren inhale sharply.
Her lilac lips parted. Her throat constricted. But somehow - somehow, thank the Goddesses, she found the voice to scream - "Link! Behind you!"
The Hylian's brows furrowed for a split second before he cast a frantic glance over his shoulder, golden hair whipping about his face at the sudden movement.
A hand webbed with inky black shot out to grasp his neck. Link shouted in fear and barely managed to roll out of the way, grunting in pain as he did so. With a pang of panic Midna remembered his broken ribs. And she saw the man - no, the demon - turn his terrible yellow eyes to his prey, pulling his white lips into a snarl, black markings wrinkling around his mouth as he did so.
Without another moment's hesitation the Twili leaped to her feet. The plate of food that had been sitting on her knees crashed to the stones beneath her, shattering into dozens of tiny pieces, the food on its surface scattering all over the ground.
"The demons! They're in the castle!" Eldren shouted needlessly after quite a long pause in which he had done absolutely nothing. Not that he could; he possessed no weapon to fight with.
"I noticed that!" Midna growled, stretching her palms out before her, and bringing her hands together all in one swift movement. A liquid shield rippled before Link's fallen form, and when she showed her palms once more, it solidified. The Hylian pushed himself onto trembling arms, eyes wide, dark fear swallowing their brilliant blue.
With a hiss the demon-man kicked the shield, only to find it unbreakable. Sweat beaded on Midna's forehead at the exertion of keeping up the shield. "Link," she tried, but could say no more.
He understood. He scrambled to his feet, breaths ragged, chest heaving, and pressed himself to the trunk of a birch tree behind him. Again the demon kicked the shield. This time it bent a little beneath the attack.
Without another second of hesitation the Hylian sprinted back the way he had come, following the stone path to the door that led into the castle. Not a second later the shield crashed down to the ground, and seeped into the dirt like water.
The demon whirled to face her, anger boiling in his awful eyes. Midna gulped and stumbled back. A shard of glass caught her bare foot, and she yelped rather disgracefully as it lodged deep into her skin.
The demon stepped toward her. He stretched his large hand to the Twili princess, thick fingers reaching for her neck. Her heart beat wildly against its cage and she could think of nothing to do. Creating the shield had exhausted her, and the only magic she had left to defend herself with - her hand-hair.
But she needed to tie her hair up in order to focus her magic. She had nothing to do that with.
So she could only stand there, helpless, before the cruel face of the monster, as it advanced.
His hand reached. Three inches. Two. One. Midna begged her legs to move, to run, run, Farore please, but they wouldn't listen -
Suddenly Eldren crashed into her, knocking her to the ground. She cried out in surprise and pain as her body collided with the hard stones, scraping her cheek and bruising her all over. Quickly her crimson eyes flicked up, only to see the prince atop her - and the demon's leg flying right toward him.
The beast's foot slammed hard into the prince's side, sending him sprawling. With a gasp of pain he rolled the short distance to the bird fountain, crashing stomach-first into its side. He crumpled in pain inside the bottom basin. Water soaked his clothes. Midna scrambled to her feet just as the demon threatened to send her to the same fate, and she dodged his kick, shouting, "Eldren!"
He pushed himself up with shaking arms, water dripping from his face and his once-spotless gold-trimmed coat. The man-demon only stood there for a moment, trying to decide which of the royals he should attack.
Taking advantage of this, Midna rushed to the prince's side, grasping his arm and hauling him to his feet, gritting her teeth in exertion as she did so. He was heavy. Eldren stumbled beside her, and nearly fell, but he landed on her shoulder and she kept him upright. "Let's go!" she hissed, curling her fingers tight around his thickly-muscled arm and dragging him out of the courtyard.
The monster turned and watched them leave. He made no attempt to follow.
The Twili kicked open the wooden door that led back into the castle. The hallway before them remained empty, thank the Goddesses - but she could hear screams further into the structure. Eldren grimaced. "Th…thanks," he managed to say, then straightened himself, and winced a little. "I can walk on my own."
"I don't care if you can walk on your own." Midna leveled him an intense stare. "Can you run?"
He took a deep, shuddering breath. Locks of ragged hair draped across his sweaty forehead. He didn't bother to brush them away. "Yes. I can."
"Then let's find Zelda and see if she's all right!" she told him. And without another word she ran.
The prince followed. The two royals sprinted down the little hall, soon emerging into a larger one. Three servant women rushed past them, screaming and casting frantic glances over their shoulders. Further down the marble corridor a demon turned from around a corner, and began to pursue them. Midna bared her teeth at the beast. "Go, go!" she shouted to Eldren, who had stopped to watch. He ran. She followed. They rushed past the infirmary, and down the hall to the right Midna thought she saw Link and his brother disappear around a corner. "And find something to tie my hair up while you're at it, will you?"
"What? This isn't the time to be worrying about your hair!" he yelled in reply, turning and dashing up the set of stairs before the infirmary.
"For Din's sake, you idiot!" she called after him as she slowed to a stop. "Just find me something, got it?" She didn't wait for any sort of reply from him before she turned in the opposite direction and hurried to follow Link. From her peripheral vision she saw the demon walking toward her. She quickened her pace, feet thudding against the carpet, each step driving the glass she had stepped on further into her foot. She ground her teeth together and tried to ignore the pain.
On second thought, she should have asked the prince where to find the armory. Link would need a weapon, after all. She wondered if she could find it on her own.
A door crashed open near her.
It slammed against the wall, and weakly swung back and forth, creaking. Midna gasped in surprise and stumbled. From behind the door a demon stepped out - a tall man, tall enough to tower over her, thin and bony and terrible. His pale hand shot out -
- and grabbed her slender neck.
The Twili woman could not even find the breath to scream. She could only claw helplessly at her enemy's hands, but like cold stone they curled, immovable, around her throat.
No, no…
He lifted her at least a foot off the ground, pressing her against the wall as she fought him in vain. She could feel the life slipping away from her. Blackness shrouded her vision. Only a pinpoint of yellow light told her the demon's soulless eyes still pierced her.
Then - then, thank the Golden Goddesses - a flash of red light collided with the demon's side, and he stumbled away, releasing his hold on his victim's neck. Midna collapsed to the ground, gasping for air, clutching desperately at her neck, sunset eyes wide with horror.
Her panicked gaze shot to her rescuer. "Salaas!" she cried, as her bodyguard sprinted down the hallway. Rage consumed his face in a way she had never before seen. His golden eyes roared, and the sight of them sent her heart beating in fear. His blue hands flicked, swift as a snake's tongue, toward the beast. The thin demon narrowed his pale eyes at the Twili man before him. He started to reach to wrap both his hands around his neck - but Salaas stopped him. His hands clamped down on the monster's bony arms, and red light streamed from between his fingers. It swiftly crawled with insectile legs up the demon's arms. Even from where she sat leaning against the wall, Midna could feel the pure, blistering heat radiating from the red light - and the demon screamed.
She heaved a shuddering sigh of relief as its yellow eyes rolled back in its head, and it wailed, wailed like a wounded animal, and the sound echoed through the marble halls. Midna clamped her hands over her ears. It did nothing to drown out the terrible noise.
The monster thrashed. Still Salaas held tight. The red light spread fast, glowing tendrils crawling up to the demon's neck, and in an ironic twist, they began to choke him just as he had tried to choke the Twili princess.
The beast's screams only grew louder. Midna gritted her teeth and squeezed her eyes shut - how could Salaas possibly stand that wailing? - and finally the enemy weakened. His tense shoulders dropped and his head lolled to the side. It had all happened in a matter of seconds.
In his final moments the demon attempted one last time to flail. His knee slammed into the Twili man's abdomen, and he couldn't help but let go, mouth dropping open in a vain attempt to gasp as he collapsed onto his back with the breath knocked out of him.
The monster stood on shaking legs as the red magic faded from his body. In its wake ash smoldered, and there was only black where pale skin had once been. The beast bared his teeth. He tried to take a step toward his fallen foe, but before he could even advance by an inch, his knees wobbled and gave out beneath him. With widened eyes the monster fell, face-first, into the carpet, missing Salaas by an inch - and there he stayed, unmoving.
Midna got to her feet, leaning against the wall for aid as she gingerly prodded her already-bruising neck. Breath still came in short, desperate gasps, and sometimes it didn't come at all. Her legs shook but she ignored them and stood anyway. Salaas couldn't move; he could only lie on the floor, trying to catch his breath.
Finally the Twili man gasped. His breath rushed into his lungs all at once. He turned to his side and pushed himself to his feet, chest heaving.
"Mi…Midna," he managed.
Even despite the situation - even despite her racing heart, and the demon's corpse lying there on the carpet - "What? No 'your highness'?" she teased, a tired, relieved smile spreading across her lips.
Salaas smiled in return.
Another demon rounded the corner.
"Din!" Midna cursed. She grasped her bodyguard's arm, and together they turned and ran for their lives.
Only to crash into someone.
The Twili princess panicked. Her heart fluttered and she stumbled back, eyes flitting to meet whatever terrible fate she had run right into - but her red gaze met blue instead of the burning yellow she had expected. Her lips parted in surprise and any words she wanted to say slipped away from her.
Thankfully Link managed to say something for her. "Midna," he breathed, a tiny smile on his lips. Her eyes went to his hand, only to see it resting upon the hilt of a sword. Her shoulders drooped and she sighed in relief.
"You found a weapon…"
He looked over her shoulder and his lips twisted into a grimace. "There's one behind you," he stated.
"I know. We have to run!"
"They can only walk," the young Hylian man told her. "Obviously it's not a good idea to push our luck, but they're slow. We'll be fine as long as we keep moving. Come on." With that he turned and strode away, his brother Laik in tow.
"Wait!" the Twili woman called. "What about Zelda? Where's she? And what will we do about the rest of the nobles and castle staff?"
Link stopped. For a moment he only stood there, back facing her, hand still resting on the sword's hilt - then he sighed and turned toward her. "I don't know."
"We need to find Zelda," Midna insisted.
The golden-haired Hylian tried to smile. "I know. All right, take us to where you think she might be," he said, motioning for her to go ahead.
Midna nodded and turned around. The demon strode, determined, toward them - and she huffed at the sight of him. "Salaas," and she didn't have to say any more. Her bodyguard stretched out his hand - and from his palm erupted a beam of red light, spewing toward the enemy like liquid fire. The beast was not swift enough to dodge. The scorching light crashed into his stomach, sending him stumbling back, arms pinwheeling in an attempt to keep his balance. "Hurry!" Midna rushed past him while he still flailed about in an attempt to stay standing, and the others followed.
"Are your ribs all right?" Midna asked as she exited the hall and went up the stairs in front of the infirmary.
"Yes."
"And my head's fine too," Laik said with a shrug.
Midna shot him a pointed look over her shoulder. He gave her an unrepentant grin, but thankfully said nothing more. She saw a sword belted to his hip as well.
"Where's Ludin?" Midna asked her bodyguard.
The Twili man frowned and focused on the hallway before him. "Missing… I lost him in the chaos. As soon as I realized demons were invading the castle, I came for you as fast as I could."
The princess clenched her hands into fists within her black dress, crinkling the fabric. "He's okay though?" She couldn't hide the tremor in her voice. She hadn't known Ludin too well, and yes, he unnerved her more often than not - but she still found herself caring for him and couldn't stand the idea that he might be dead.
"I don't know," Salaas murmured.
Midna swallowed. "We'll find him," she said, even though she wasn't sure of her own words.
Suddenly three people sprinted down the hall in front of them, skidding to a stop just before they crashed into the others, and the Twili woman breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of them. There stood Eldren and Zelda, and behind them, Lady Ali.
The prince thrust his hand toward her. "Here," he said breathlessly. From between his index finger and thumb a long, thin, white cotton ribbon dangled.
Midna laughed. She couldn't help it. "You actually got me something to tie my hair up!" She reached for it and snatched it from between his fingers. "Thanks," she said as she quickly brushed her hair back with her fingers and twirled the ribbon around the fiery strands, tying them off in a simple knot.
Eldren only stared at her with both brows raised in confusion. Clearly, he thought this was merely an aesthetic thing. She smirked at the idea of surprising him.
His eyes widened. "Demon!" he shouted, pointing behind her.
Perfect.
Midna spun to face the enemy, newly-tied up hair whipping about her face at the movement. The enemy stepped up the stairs and into the hall, eyes blazing, stomach scorched a little from where Salaas had burned him. With her smirk splitting into a grin, she focused her power - and her hair shot out in front of her, thick sinewy tendrils twirling around one another and combining to form one gigantic hand. Large orange fingers curled around the monster's thin form. Even he seemed surprised, she thought with an inward chuckle as his eyes widened.
Then she flung him around like a child shaking a toy. Against the castle walls she smashed his head, and the marble cracked beneath the onslaught. Stone dust plumed from the walls and fragments of marble crumbled to the floor. The demon screamed for a moment - and then silenced.
Midna uncurled the fingers of her hand-hair. The monster dropped, lifeless, to the floor, the top of his head bashed in, neck twisted at an unnatural angle, black blood seeping into the red carpet. The sight made her stomach clench. Bile rose in her throat. Where she had been eager to show off her magic only moments ago, now she only felt utterly sick. She had never killed before.
It's only a demon, she told herself. It needed to die.
But though she could swallow the bile, she could not stop her stomach from twisting into a knot within her. She let her hair fall to a normal ponytail on her head.
"Sweet Farore," Eldren whispered behind her.
She turned to him, and forced a smile onto her lips. "That's what I wanted the hair-tie for. Oh, and… sorry about the wall."
"That's…" His eyes froze on the corpse of the demon and he could not move them. Behind him, Zelda's lips pressed into a line, and she squeezed her eyes shut, clasping her hands in front of her. Lady Ali trembled, jaw agape. Midna looked over her shoulder to see Link and Laik staring, equally as surprised, at the fallen monster. Salaas seemed unfazed. A moment of silence passed between them all.
Taking advantage of the temporary peace, Midna asked, "What should we do about the others in the castle?" Though - by now, she feared it was too late. The screams of the castle's other inhabitants had silenced, at least as far as she could hear.
Princess Zelda managed to speak up. "We'll tend to them as soon as possible. We passed a single demon on our way here. How many have you seen?"
Salaas answered. "Three. I killed two. Princess Midna killed the third… as you all saw."
"What about that tall, broad-shouldered one?" Link asked, eyes narrowed in thought. "Last I saw, it was still in that garden."
Salaas shook his head. "All the ones I saw seemed fairly thin."
Eldren grimaced. "There are at least two demons still roaming about the castle, then," he sighed, shifting his weight to one foot. "Based on the lack of chaos around us, I'd hope the remaining two are all that's left."
Then - a cloaked figure swept around the corner behind Eldren, long black robes trailing along the floor, swishing about his legs as he approached. Midna couldn't help grinning when she saw him. "Ludin!" she called, brushing past the prince to meet him. "Where were you?"
"Slaying a demon," he responded as casually as if he were talking about the weather.
The Twili princess shook her head. "Nayru, Ludin, you had us all worried. Anyway, so - does that mean there's only one demon left? That big one we saw in the garden?"
"I hope so," Eldren grumbled.
"We need to search for it," Zelda spoke up. "We cannot allow anyone to get hurt, if we can help it. This chaos must stop."
"How did they get in the castle?" the prince sighed, shoulders drooping. He adjusted the sleeves of his coat - which were still wet from being kicked into the fountain.
Both Zelda and Midna's eyes turned to Lady Ali. The timid woman gulped and quickly looked down at the floor, avoiding their piercing gazes. She said nothing.
"Lady Ali," the Hylian princess began. Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly and she never blinked once as she stared at the woman. "Do you know how these monsters invaded the castle? And how many there are?"
The woman squeezed her eyes shut. Her hands shook, and she brought them up to cover her face. "I… I can't -"
"These are dire times." Zelda lifted her chin and pressed her lips into a grim line. A storm rolled and thundered in her eyes. "It is urgent that we know who the necromancer is, how many demons there are, and how to stop them - if you can tell us that bit of information as well."
Silence draped the air. Not a soul broke it; they only waited for the poor, trembling woman to speak.
She didn't.
So Zelda continued, "We will not hurt you. We will protect you. Do not fear the necromancer."
Lady Ali gulped. She shook her head, and her shoulders heaved with quiet sobs. Zelda did not apologize. Instead she laid a hand on the other woman's arm, and simply waited for a response.
Finally - "Five," the lady responded. "There are five demons."
Immediately everyone looked at each other, and Eldren began pointing at people, his lips silently counting how many demons had died. His brow furrowed and he counted again. "You killed two, didn't you?" he asked Salaas. The bodyguard nodded. The prince's gaze flicked to the corpse of the one Midna had slain, and she saw his jaw tighten. "That's three," he mumbled, then turned to Ludin. "You killed one?"
Ludin nodded.
"Four," Eldren concluded.
"How many are in Castle Town?" Zelda inquired.
"None… they're just in the castle itself," Lady Ali murmured, dropping her gaze.
"That should leave the broad-shouldered one we first saw," Link spoke up.
As if on cue, the aforementioned broad-shouldered monster stepped up the stairs and came walking toward the group with the confidence of a creature who knew he could take them all at once. Midna turned to him with a deep grimace etched onto her face. Her hair twitched, ready to reach out and grab him if she needed to - although, seeing the other demon's corpse lying on the ground, head mutilated, made her hesitate.
Link and Laik drew their swords. Eldren, Zelda, and Lady Ali took a step or two back, eyes wide, since they still didn't have any weapons. Ludin only stood there and watched.
Before anyone could do anything, Salaas extended a hand and blasted the beast with a beam of fiery red light.
The monster didn't seem to notice. He kept walking, pushing against the red magic as if it were a gentle breeze.
The bodyguard's eyes widened. He stretched his other hand forward, and his palm spewed forth a second beam of magic. His brows lowered in concentration and a bead of sweat appeared on his temple.
Still the demon seemed unfazed.
"Salaas! It isn't working!" the Twili princess cried.
He let his hands drop to his sides, and he heaved a deep sigh, chest rising and falling a little faster than it should have been. A few drops of sweat rolled down his forehead and dripped off his nose. The demon's body was slightly charred but he seemed not to notice. "What else can we do?" Salaas snarled, wiping the sweat from his face and then lifting his hands as if to try again.
"No, don't!" Midna commanded. Instead she turned to the monster, and extended her hair into a hand again. Orange fingers lunged forward and grasped the demon, curling tight around his torso.
He squirmed in the Twili woman's grip, and her eyes slowly widened when she realized the extent of his strength. His struggling made her tremble. Sweat gathered and rolled down her forehead and her temples, but still she held tight to him, and tried to lift him up.
It didn't work. The monster struggled, harder and harder, and Midna's jaw dropped when he broke free from her grip and shoved her gigantic hand-hair away as easily as if he were batting at a fly.
The Twili woman collapsed to the ground on her knees. Her hair retreated to its normal position. Her throat went dry and she could only stare, panting like a dog, as still - still the beast advanced.
Only six feet now - five - four -
Gritting his teeth, Link lunged forward, his sword swiping toward the monster's charred body. The blade barely brushed against his abdomen - but surprisingly enough, a chunk of blackened flesh came loose and fell to the carpet.
The beast roared in pain. His hand, webbed with the inky black markings of necromancy, crashed into the Hylian's injured side. Link cried out in pain as he flew across the hallway and collided with the marble wall, then sank to the floor with a groan.
Laik shook. With eyes wide as dinner plates he scrambled backwards away from the demon.
"Link!" Midna cried, and tried to stumble to her feet, heart racing uncontrollably. She only tripped on shaking legs and fell to her hands and knees again. But still she tried, tried to stand and run to him because Farore help him, the demon's eyes burned with rage and he turned toward the fallen Hylian -
Eldren's hands shot out and grasped her arms. He pulled her back against his broad chest. "Don't," he whispered, voice trembling. "Don't hurt yourself."
"No!" Midna struggled against his grip, but he was too strong. "Let me go!" she begged, and tears gathered in her eyes as she saw the terrible pale monster of a man stop beside Link. The golden-haired Hylian looked up at his foe with terror consuming his face. He tried to stand and failed. Midna's lip quivered. "Let me go, let me go -"
Just then Salaas extended both his hands again - and no matter how much his arms trembled, he sent two blasts of fiery magic at the beast.
The monster's yellow eyes turned to his attacker. His lips curved into an ugly grimace.
Somehow - somehow, thank the Goddesses - Link pushed himself to his knees and drove his sword straight through the shafts of red light and into the demon's chest.
The monster wailed then, voice deep and echoing, and with wide eyes he stumbled back, thick hands reaching for the blade embedded in his torso. Then - he gasped, one last time, and collapsed to the carpet with a muted thud.
Link stood on unreliable legs, grasping at the wall behind him for support. His breath hitched and he shut his eyes in obvious pain.
Finally Eldren let the Twili princess go. She rushed to the Hylian's side even though her foot burned with that terrible shard of glass still embedded within it, and she grasped his arms. "Are you okay? Did you get hurt? Are your ribs broken all over again?"
At that last part - Link actually laughed. He immediately regretted it, clutching at his side and wincing. A hiss of pain escaped his clenched teeth. "Din… you're going to be okay, Link, I swear," Midna murmured.
"I'm fine," he promised her with a shaky breath. He forced a smile onto his face.
"So… we're done then?" Eldren asked, taking a step towards the monster's burnt corpse and prodding its side with his boot, as if checking to see if it was really dead. He cast a glance over his shoulder to look at Lady Ali.
She nodded reluctantly, face still red from crying. "Five… five are dead. They're gone."
Midna's eyes flicked to Eldren's. Her lip curled and she surprised herself with the amount of anger bubbling up within her, twisting and clenching her heart. "You," she spat. The prince blinked in surprise at the venom in her tone. "You would have let him die! If - if it weren't for Salaas -"
He shook his head and held up his hands in an attempt to placate her. "I'm sorry!" he tried. "I would have rushed in to help him, but - I don't have any weapons!"
The Twili woman's eyes blazed with unquenchable fire, and her grip on Link's arms tightened. Eldren visibly cringed.
"Midna," Link muttered, exhausted, shakily brushing his unruly bangs away from his eyes, "I'm fine. Really. Don't worry about me so much." He pushed away from her. She stared at him, and her lips parted, words gathering on her tongue that she could not seem to speak. She reached to him but he had already stepped away.
Link stopped beside the demon's unmoving body, and studied the sword lodged in his heart. The blade burned a bright red color, and its once-straight form bent into a shape that no good sword should have possessed. The Hylian gave a little nervous laugh and turned to Salaas. "That's some pretty amazing magic you have."
Salaas actually tried to smile in reply.
But Midna wasn't finished with her tirade. Anger still clawed at her insides and threatened to overtake her. She let it. "And - and you," she snarled, glaring at Laik and Ludin. "You did nothing! You killed a demon all on your own -" She pointed to Ludin with an accusing finger - "so you should have been able to help Link!"
The pale Twili man seemed unfazed by the entire situation. He kept his hands tucked into his large black sleeves and only stared with those blank orange eyes of his. "Slaying the other demon sapped all my energy. I had none to spare."
Midna ignored him. She whirled to face Laik, teeth bared. "I can't believe you! He's your brother, you should have done something to protect him, you petty coward!"
Laik flinched and quickly averted his eyes to hide the guilt within them.
Zelda's shoulders drooped for the first time since Midna had met her - though, only a little. She breathed a tired sigh through her nose. "That is quite enough," she commanded, voice quiet but imposing and strong, and it left no room for argument. "I feel a few explanations are in order." Her stormy eyes swept the group gathered in the hall. "And some introductions, perhaps. First, however, we should head to the infirmary and check for survivors there, as well as tend to those of us who are injured."
Midna's lips pressed into a line. Zelda stepped past her and headed down the stairs, and the rest of the group followed.
Eldren came up beside the Twili woman. She looked at him and frowned. "I'm sorry," he said quietly, and stared down at his boots as he walked. "I just… wanted to protect you."
She heaved a great sigh and shook her head. "I know. I'm sorry for shouting at you."
They walked in silence for a while - until she noticed Eldren looking at her hair. She met his eyes and lifted a brow. "What are you looking at?"
He shrugged, lacing his hands behind his back as he walked. "You know, for future reference - if you ever can't find a hair tie, can't you just pull your hair up with your hands and hold it there? Would it work that way?"
Midna gave him a blank stare. A blush of embarrassment dusted her cheeks, and she quickly ducked her head to hide the fact. In her frenzy, she hadn't even thought of that idea. "Yeah… it'd work," she grumbled reluctantly.
Eldren grinned.