Chapter 9

It was becoming yet another restless night for me. Ever since that rotten Hue and those other two attacked a few days ago, more and more Poes seemed to be visiting the town nightly. The day after the attack, the next wave of Poes had managed to infiltrate the walls, only to be met by a group of knights. Two people were killed that night fighting off the Poes. While they had been successful in thwarting the Poes, I still felt horrible for the casualties. While I was bothered by the incident, there was something else that had been worrying me. After that night they never reentered the town. I could sense them nearby, just outside the walls, but they did not enter. For the past two nights, the Poes had come at dusk and would seemingly leave without incident well before dawn. Surely the knights had not intimidated them to the point they remained outside.

I rolled over in my bed, not comfortable enough to sleep.

At least Link was not as angry now. I had spoken with him nearly every day, trying to share everything I knew so he could relay the information to the knights and guards. He had been quite upset about the two that were killed by Poes though. It was hard to judge if he had forgiven me because he was so stressed about the Poes and other monsters being too close to town.

And Vaati proved to be a very irritating person to track down. I had yet to find even one person that knew where he had been going during the day. I had tried the library, but he had apparently not been there for a while. I did not want to risk going out at night to find him, although it seemed I would have to. If he had left the sentry with me I would not have this problem. Well, actually, I probably would, but at least I could complain to him instead of to myself.

I flipped onto my back and stared at the ceiling.

I could faintly sense several Poes outside. They had been coming in groups of five or more. A few had been like the Imp Poes from the other night, some similar to the sisters, as well as another few unknown forms. In variety and in numbers; someone seemed desperate to kill me and I still had no idea why.

I closed my eyes, trying to sleep instead of creating yet more unanswerable questions for myself. For much of the night, however, I followed the movements of the Poes. They never made it past the wall.

It was early morning, the sky still colored with the rising of the sun and a layer of dew shimmering on nearly every plant. I sat down on the edge of the fountain in front of the castle. As I waited, I listened to the soothing sound of the fountain. I could have fallen asleep if left alone.

"Hey," Link greeted as he sat next to me. His eyes also had a dark bags under them from a clear lack of sleep. Because of the monsters, the knights and guards had been busy. Link, younger knights, and even volunteers had taken to keeping the town safe. Link had been on the night watch last night, it would seem.

He yawned. "Last night, we found a band of Bulblins near Lake Hylia. That's third group we've had to kill this week. There is definitely something going on because this is just ridiculous how many monsters have moved in on Castle Town." He rubbed his eyes and yawned once more. "We only got back a few hours ago and I have another shift this afternoon." He finished his side of the information exchange and began with his questions. "I haven't heard anything about Poes in the last few days. Have they stopped?"

"No, I have sensed them outside the city every night." I raised my eyebrow. "Other people have not reported seeing them?"

"No one patrolling the walls have mentioned seeing Poes. Bokoblins and Bulblins, yes, but not one person saw Poes. Are you sure they are there?"

"I am certain they are there," I shot back, almost defensively. I mumbled sorry before adding, "I have not been able to sleep because of their presence. They… bother me. I cannot stand their pointless visits. They have no reason to stay outside of the city when they can very easily enter and…" I paused my rant, ending quietly with, "and kill me. The constant threat of attack has me more on edge then if they would just come after me."

"I know what you mean. I would rather hunt them down before they got a chance to attack." There was a brief silence before Link continued. "I was able to talk with Zelda yesterday. She seemed really stressed out with all that is happening. She mentioned that she could feel evil presences in the city, like powerful, boss monsters' type of evil. And… she is very concerned for her father…"

"The rumors are true then. The king has fallen ill?"

"Yeah, he's been sick for a week or so. Some of the knights think the Gerudo's poisoned him or cursed him." He whispered, "I agree with them."

I simply nodded and looked down at the ground, not having much else to say on the topic of the king. Zelda had certainly hidden her worry well when I had met her in the library a few days ago. Had I known… Had I known I would have made a fool out of myself trying to comfort her. It may have been better that she had kept the truth from me.

"Had she described the evil she sensed?" I decided I may be more helpful in this area than that of family issues.

"No, not really. Just that they were powerful and not the common monsters we had been dealing with."

We fell silent again. People had just begun filing into the streets, on their way to work or the market. Soon it would be time to leave to go about our own business. Link would go prepare for his next watch. I would return to the shop to help Syrup, especially since the number of customers had increased. People had been stocking up on medicines before the monsters inevitably made a move to conquer Castle Town.

"Are they still holding that festival?" I asked, suddenly curious. With all of the recent events, I thought that perhaps they would cancel the annual festival supposedly honoring the defeat of a great monster ages ago. The reason for the festival had been lost but it was still an excuse for a celebration and thusly kept around.

Link nodded. "They will be setting up either later today or tomorrow. I asked my father why they did not cancel it, but he said people deserved a short, one-day break from the madness the monsters are causing. Most of the guards and knights, as well as a few volunteers, will still be working though. I only have a few hours off that afternoon. I think Zelda said she could come for a while if it's not too late or she's not too busy. Would you like to come too?"

"Umm, yes." I smiled slightly. "I would enjoy that."

Link smiled back before he stood up. He offered to help me up and I accepted. "I need to go rest before my next patrol. Talk to you later?"

I nodded.

He waved once before walking away. Soon enough he was out of sight. I took a moment to stretch and yawn. Then I slowly walked back to the shop, prepared for the long day of talking with customers and brewing potions.

I could no longer stand it. I had to know why the Poes kept outside the walls. Although it was nearly the middle of the night and very dark considering the cloud cover, I decided to crawl out my window and leave to find my own answers. I knew the perfect place to begin looking. It was only tonight that I had realized the Poes had been congregating at the very tower Vaati and I liked to meet.

I turned a corner, noticing a guard only feet away, thankfully looking the other direction. I quickly backed away, taking another street. For once I tried to walk down the darkest of alleys to avoid detection. Because I had not been out since the Poe incident, I had no clue where the increased number of guards were posted. While before I would have been questioned if caught, now I would likely be detained for disobeying the recent curfew laws. Risking the alleys seemed a better option than ending up in the dungeons.

Soon enough I arrived to the watch tower. Without looking, I reached for the ladder, knowing where it was by memory. My hand grasped at empty air. I stared at the brick wall before me, the ladder non-existent. It was gone. The ladder was gone. I ground my teeth together, about ready to kick the wall in frustration.

As I turned to leave, a flicker of sorts caught my attention, forcing me to look back at the tower. The ladder was now there, as if it had never been gone in the first place. I hesitantly reached out again and grasped the first rung. Baffled as to the sudden appearance, I was slow to place all of my weight onto the ladder. Once I felt it was real enough and not an illusion, I began climbing up.

When I arrived to the top and had my feet firmly planted on the tower, I noticed the cause of the vanishing ladder. Vaati sat on the edge of the tower overlooking the fields. He had a book in one hand while he used the other to lazily cast spells, seemingly at the ground. I wandered to his side.

"Eivie," he greeted passively.

I said nothing, instead looking below the tower in a mild shock. There were two ReDeads clawing at the tower, trying to climb up. Several Poes hovered nearby. Two Imp Poes stared on as the other, more common, purple Poes tried to fling fire at the tower. The magic would fizzle out before making it far. And, scattered between the ReDead and Poes, there were stone statues. Each statue was of a ReDead caught in mid-attack, their mouths hanging open as the prepared to shriek.

Suddenly Vaati switched from wind magic to a crackling spell. One of the ReDeads howled in pain as it slowly turned into a stone statue.

"What are you doing?" I whispered. He was not even looking at the monsters as he killed them. He did not fear them, or even seem to be interested in killing them. He looked bored with it.

"They have been quite persistent, the foolish creatures. However, they have made for good target practice." He set the book to the side, allowing me to see it was the very book I had found in the library the other day. He chuckled when he sent a large tornado at the monsters. The remaining ReDead screeched as it was torn apart by the vicious winds. The Poes tried to escape, only finding their lanterns destroyed by the several sentries Vaati had summoned.

When the monsters were dead, he turned around and stood up. I stumbled back a step. He was different. Something about him had changed. The dangerous glint in his red eyes, the way he brutally and callously killed the monsters, and the way he seemed to enjoy the pain he had caused them, all of these things caused me to take a few steps away from of him.

"Are you afraid of me, Eivie?" he teased, taking a step forward. When I twitched to move away again, he laughed a few times. "No need to fear me this moment, I do not plan on harming you. On the contrary, I would like to give you my gratitude. That book you found has proven to be most enlightening."

"What… what is it about?"

His answer was a crooked smile and silence.

"Why are you protecting the town?" I tried, hoping to at least get some information from him.

"Protecting these weak humans?" he scoffed. "While right now you are quite useless, soon enough you may prove to be a valuable ally. Letting them kill you prematurely would be a waste." He held up his hand when I prepared to blurt out another question. "My dear, naïve, Eivie, soon I will be leaving you to deal with your own problems. Once you learn about your connection to the Poes, I will allow you to make your decision. Just remember one thing: monsters and humans will never be accepting of each other."

"What are you talking about, Vaati? Please, just tell me plainly what you know!" I took a step towards him in a failed attempt to be demanding. "What do you know about me?" I shouted.

He smirked, his eyes showing how amused he was with my anger and pleas. "If you cannot figure it out yourself, then you are better off with the foolish humans. But, should you realize your potential, you could become something truly horrifying, a creature worthy of serving under me."

"If you refuse to tell me about myself, then answer this: What was in that book? Why are you suddenly so… so…" I could not find a proper word to describe his new behavior.

"Evil?" he finished, rolling his eyes. "The most powerful of monsters are very difficult to kill. A god is impossible to defeat."

"Are you calling yourself a god?"

"No, not yet. Soon, though, I shall become an unstoppable god. I shall destroy them once and for all," he growled. "I will not be defeated again!" The wind roared around him in his rage for a second before he collected himself. "Know that if you stand in my way, you too will be destroyed, but, should you side with me, you will have the world bowing before you." He smiled deviously again and then turned away from me.

"Vaati?" I reached out to grab his wrist. I was too late and he had already disappeared from sight using that blasted teleportation spell. "What are you planning?" I mumbled quietly even though I knew he was gone.

I let myself fall to the ground and sit down, pulling one knee up to rest my chin on. I ran a hand through my hair, just trying to organize my thoughts. Vaati was gone and with him all of the answers to my numerous questions. Whatever he had read in that book had sparked something in him. His arrogance and anger took on a new meaning to the point I was terrified to see what he decided to do next. He had been able to kill those Poes with minimal effort; if he actually wanted to cause harm… he could destroy anything in his way.

And if he had been the one keeping the Poes out of the city, they would be attacking now that he had left. I could not protect myself if they showed up in such numbers. I would have difficulty defeating one Poe, never mind several aided by ReDeads. I would need help, that much is certain, but dragging Link into this was wrong. I had created the problem and he should not have to risk his life for my own incompetence. Although, if I failed to kill the Poes, the monsters may attack the town for the fun of it. Either way, Castle Town and everyone in it were in danger.

The next days could very well determine the fate of Castle Town.

A/N- I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, because I certainly liked typing it! There was finally some action this chapter, not just dialogue and information. I am really excited to type the next couple of chapters. Thank you to all who have faved, followed, read, and reviewed. You all make me so happy and I hope you'll be stickin' around.

Miss Ominous- Zelda is more of a side character, I guess. I mean, she does have her role in the story and is not just there. I am not really sure how to write Zelda's character, so I guess I am avoiding making her a main character… And the reason I have an update schedule is my procrastination problem. If I did not give myself a "due date" I would be horrible about updating even monthly. I'm happy you're still here reading and reviewing. Thank you!

Awkward passerby- Well, she did give the villagers a good reason when she had Beth scare those children. I will probably be giving more explanation to the Ordon Poe attack to better show why Ordon is so suspicious of her. Thanks for reviewing again!