Chapter 19
The Poes all flooded through the wall into the other room when the lock hit the ground. Link went to the door and moved the heavy stone out of the way. I stepped into the room, Link following close behind. The door closed behind us, a metal gate slamming down as well.
The room was magnificent. The back wall had waterfalls flowing down them, the water falling into a large pool that covered much of the room except for a small portion where we stood. The water was a putrid purple, the air in the room acrid and suffocating. In the very center of the room there was a tree trunk that went from the poison lake to the ceiling. And, on that pillar-like tree, was its sword. The red engraved, black bladed sword for which the creature was named was hanging as a trophy of its supposed defeat. I held back a growl as I stared at my… its weapon.
On the ground in front of us was a grouping of undead creatures, this time including two Stalfos. Hovering above the toxic lake was an assortment of Poes, but there was one that drew all attention. The ghost was three times the height of Link. It had a protruding stomach that stuck out from under the red vest it wore. The lantern it held in one hand was large enough that I could stand inside of it. The pig-like mask it wore was partially broken, revealing a glowering gold eye.
No side made a move. We simply stared at each other. Jahalla's one visible eye revealed no emotion, but my face twisted into an emotion that certainly was not my own. The corner of my mouth pulled up to form a wicked, crooked grin. A single unamused laugh escaped before I tilted my head at the Poe King.
"No words for me, Jahalla? I thought you would just be dying to yell empty threats at me before I tear you apart." I paused when I saw the giant Poe's eye twitch. "Too scared to even speak?"
"Death Sword," the large Poe boomed, "do you think, in that mortal body, you are any threat to me? Without your weapon and former power you will be easily squashed. Disloyal servants are to be distinguished. And, then, I shall be rid of you, desert Poe, at long last. Your arrogance and absurdity shall be your undoing."
"Absurd? You call me the fool while you believed I was dead for YEARS.? And then you do not confront me yourself, but send inane?. underlings to kill me instead? Even in this form and without my sword I am still far more powerful than you, coward."
"Let us test that by ceasing to fight with words." The aggravated pig-masked Poe growled and swung its lantern.
"This farce will be over soon enough." I pointed my sword at the ghost. "I will have what is mine."
In that moment the room became chaos. The majority of Poes fought in the air, their lanterns and scythes clashing together in a continuous clamor. The ReDead and Gibdo screamed as they slowly made their way towards Link and I. The two Stalfos' bones and armor clattered as they ran towards Link. Gomess stuck near me, killing anything that would distract me from Jahalla. The King himself hovered above the poison lake, well out of my reach.
The giant Poe swung his lantern, a storm of fire raining down onto the ground. Anything unlucky enough to be under the fireballs were set aflame. I managed to dodge the fire by going in and out of my ghost-like form. Jahalla laughed as I danced around his attack with no counter of my own. I had no idea how to fight such a large, flying monster. The Death Sword offered no insights either.
I tried a jinx spell, deciding that it was the only thing that may hit the hovering ghost. The blue flames made contact with his body, but that was the extent. He simply glanced at where the fire had struck him. Then he let out a booming laugh.
"Your power seems to have diminished greatly, Death Sword." he mocked as he brought back his lantern to create another firestorm.
I grit my teeth, the comment upsetting the Death Sword's ego and causing the creature's emotions to overtake my own. As the fire began raining down again, I avoided being burnt to ash. As I stepped out of the way of a burst of flames I noticed a shadow above me. My stomach dropped when I looked up. Jahalla was speeding towards me with every intent to crush me beneath him.
Link tackled me, sending us both rolling out of Jahalla's way as he slammed into the ground. As soon as we regained our bearings through a cloud of dust, Link glanced at me, looking as though he were about to speak. A Stalfos interrupted when it jumped through the dust, sword poised to attack. Link held his shield up to block the attack before stumbling to his feet and bashing the creature with the shield. The Stalfos stumbled back. Link charged forward to attack the skeleton, leaving me to deal with my opponent.
I shakily stood back up, my knee scraped, bruised, and bleeding. There was no time to worry about that injury though; I could not waste my opportunity. Jahalla was still picking himself off of the ground, his lantern resting only a few feet away from me. I dashed towards him, my sword ready. Once in range, I swung my sword with all of the strength I could muster. A splitting screech rang out as the blade scraped across the metal lantern.
The lantern's surface was barely scratched. In fact, my sword seemed more damaged than the lantern. Jahalla seemed not to notice or care that I had landed a hit. Instead he rose to his feet before rising back into the air and out of reach. Either my attack had proved so superficial ad pathetic that ghost pain no mind, or… Or the lantern was not what his soul was attached to. If he were such a coward and so fearful of the Death Sword, surely if I got near what his soul was attached he would show some reaction. It had to be the mask. It had to be or else my sword would be broken long before the lantern was destroyed.
I looked around, hoping to find something to perhaps help me reach the mask. I only saw the battles going on around me. The other Poes swarmed above, using scythes and lanterns to destroy each other. Link had defeated one of the Stalfos and was fighting the other, as well as any ReDead or Gibdo that got too close. Gomess was hacking apart any monster that dared try to interfere with Jahalla and I's battle.
The loud clanks of Jahalla's lantern being moved about caught my attention once more. The large ghost brought its lantern to its face. Then he blew into the lantern, the flames growing larger. The fire was carried by his breathe and sent fanning over the entire area. The ReDead and Gibdo screaming as they burned. I could not move as I stared at the wall of fire about to engulf me. When I came to my senses and tried to run a ReDead grabbed my ankle. I fell, the flames already licking my legs. Being burned was the most painful injury to afflict me yet. The skin the fire burned seared with pain, some areas blistering. The fire held so much of my attention I could barely hear my own screams.
Something scooped me off of the ground, struggling to hold me by the waist until we were just above the flames' reach. As I looked down I noticed the familiar black tattered cape of Gomess.
"A life for a life, human," The ghost muttered as he shifted my weight to keep hold of me. "My debt to you is repaid."
I stared wordlessly at the fire. Gomess had been listening me simply because he survived our battle. Even though I had not purposely done so, I was thankful the creature decided he was indebted to me for that accident. Such a strange creature.
The flames died down when Jahalla stopped blowing into the lantern. Gomess dropped me on scorched ground. All around there were blackened bodies of the ReDead and Gibdo that were caught in their master's attack. I panicked when I did not see Link right away. It was chance that I noticed him in an open archway next to one of the waterfalls, Meg and Joelle floating beside him.
My breathing was labored because of the pain of my injuries and the smoke. The burns across my legs stung as the foul air in the room hit them. Any movement hurt, but I had to force myself to turn around to face Jahalla. The Poe King hovered above the water, his gold eyes narrowed and focused on me. The ghost was probably smirking behind his mask.
Jahalla suddenly floated in the air before plunging downwards. He slammed into the poison lake's surface, a giant wave forming from the impact. The water crashed onto the ground and flooded the area within a blink of the eye. I was caught in the wave and pulled down as the water smashed into the wall and rushed back towards the pool.
The burns were immersed in the poisonous liquid and felt as though I was on fire all over again. The rest of my skin tingled before the sensation changed to stinging to pain. I tried not to breathe it in, but my effort failed. My lungs filled with the water and immediately ached and burned. I helplessly kicked and moved my arms. I had no idea how to swim.
My head was suddenly above the water. I gasped for breath only to end up with more water in my mouth. The toxic lake was still wrought with the disturbance of Jahalla's slam. I reached my hand up in a last attempt to grab something to save me.
By some miracle someone grabbed my hand and pulled me towards them. They wrapped their arm around my waist and began swimming. My eyes were too blurry to see on account of the poisonous water that had been splashed into them. But, despite not seeing, there was only one person that would be swimming through the water. Link had saved me even though he had to jump into the water as well.
The moment Link dragged me onto land I began coughing out water in between pained whimpers. The air caused pain nearly everywhere. The burnt skin on my legs seared and burned because of the toxic water as well as the air. Every breath caused my lungs to feel as though they were on fire. My vision was still blurred, perhaps because of the pain and not solely the putrid water.
"Eivie? Eivie?" Link was crouched down next to me, gently rubbing my back in attempt to comfort. "Eivie, can you hear me? Can I help somehow? Eivie, talk to me, please." He of course sounded panicked.
I fell into a coughing fit the moment I tried to speak. I tried to stand up, knowing that Jahalla was going to attack again. The ghost would not wait around. Link caught on and attempted to help me to my feet, but my legs gave out, causing me to fall against him. He held me up for a second before trying to coax me to sit back down.
"Link," I finally managed to whisper in a raspy voice. "Jahalla. Leave me. Go." I began coughing again, but, this time, I noticed blood mixed with the water and spit. I was also beginning to feel faint; I would not be awake, possibly even alive, for much longer.
"I'm not going to leave you, Eivie." He gently sat me on the ground before brushing some of my hair out of my face. "I won't leave you. I can fight him, so don't worry. You're not alone in this fight. Let me help you. Let me protect you." His hand found mine and he gave it a gentle squeeze.
"Link…" When words failed me, I just smiled slightly, my hand still in his. I did not deserve him. I honestly did not deserve his kindness, his sincerity. He deserved so much more than a monster. A few tears fell down my face, further blurring my vision.
The sound of Jahalla's lantern shattered the moment and returned us the situation at hand. I squinted in attempt to see what the ghost was doing, but I could not concentrate. Every part of my body burned, the pain becoming completely unbearable. My head was beginning to throb as well. Link gave me one last, fleeting look before he stood to face Jahalla. He walked forward, sword prepared to kill the Poe King.
"How disgustingly sweet," it mocked.
"No," I whimpered grabbing my head as pain split through it.
"I will not let that human steal my kill." The Death Sword began laughing. "With how injured you are there will be no holding me back, girl. This will be my body to control and you will die finally. No need to worry, you won't have a clue when I tear your precious friend apart."
"I will not let you take control." I curled up on the ground, clutching my head. The edges of my vision were growing dark. I coughed as I tried to force air into and out of my lungs.
"Oh? I don't think you have the ability to hold me back any longer."
I screamed, pain rippling through my entire body. My head felt like it had been split down the middle. And, instead of seeing the surroundings, I saw am inhuman face emerging from the darkness. It had curved horns and a monstrous face with wicked teeth warped into a vile smirk. Its yellow eyes gleaming with viciousness.
Then everything went black.
Link walked ahead, ready to face the fearsome Jahalla in place of Eivie. He held his sword tightly as he studied the large creature, trying to guess what its weakness was. He had seen Eivie attack the lantern, but the thing hardly looked damaged. He could try slashing the body and hoping it would not simply go through the ghost, or he could try for the mask. Knowing there was no way to reach the ghost as he floated above the poison lake, Link waited for the Poe to make a move.
Suddenly he heard Eivie scream in apparent agony, which caused him to spin on his heel. He expected to see something attacking her, but… But what he saw made his eyes go wide with fear and worry. Whatever he was looking at could not be his friend. No, no it could not be Eivie. There was no way she could be this creature he was staring fearfully at.
The entire room went still at the sight and silent at the maniacal cackling. Hovering above the ground in a shroud of black smoke was a corpse-like creature with curved horns. It still resembled Eivie in ways: its size, the clothing, the necklace, hair, and voice. It was the demeanor more than anything that revealed something else was present and using her form.
"Jahalla, we will not be fooling around anymore. It is high time I destroyed you, cowardly King." The monster gave a crooked smile before tilting its head to the side. "I will be taking my sword back as well." The Death Sword reached its hand out. The black sword's engravings glowed brilliant red before ripping itself off the wall and flying into the creature's outstretched hand.
Link took a hesitant step towards his friend only to have a giant blue flame smash into the ground in front of him.
"Do not interfere, human. I will dispatch you as well in a moment."
Link froze in place, knowing that this was no longer Eivie. The Death Sword had taken control of her. He stared for a second longer, the creature glaring at him as well. Then he backed away in defeat. There was nothing he could do right now; he needed to come with a plan. Hopefully Jahalla would not hurt her before then.
Jahalla did not waste time in launching a series of fireballs at the monster possessed Eivie. Despite all his attempts to reign in his panic at his foe's control of the body, his eyes were wide and his body fidgeting. He should have not underestimated the human's sturdiness and should have killed it right away instead of playing with it.
The Death Sword effortlessly dodged the attacks, flying agilely around the room. It continued laughing hysterically, glad to have full control of the defiant human for the first time in years. It swung its sword, flinging one of Jahalla's flames back at it. The pig squealed as he narrowly avoided being blasted in the head.
"Protecting your mask, are you?" she taunted. "Something precious about it, perhaps?" With Jahalla's lack of response, she added in a dead, flat tone, "I will burn it to ash and keep it as a trophy."
The Death Sword and Jahalla then began to fly around the room, neither making hits. During this time, one Poe was bold enough to move about the room. Link twitched when the black caped Poe, Gomess, suddenly appeared at his side. Not knowing what to expect, Link gripped his sword tighter, prepared to be attacked.
"You could leave, knight," the Poe began, a crazed smile beginning to form. "The human you knew is gone and has been replaced by the creature you see before you now."
"No, I refuse to believe that," Link stated without pause. Even when he saw the crazed sprit whirling around the room, growling and cackling as it swung its sword at Jahalla, he did not want to believe that Eivie was gone. She could not be dead. She would not let the Death Sword win.
"Stubborn, I see." Gomess scoffed once as he looked at the possessed Eivie. "A terrifying being, would you not agree? The Death Sword's return is not a pleasant sight, even to us Poes. The creature is quite rash and kills without much thought, be it human or monster. It is not a particularly favorable leader."
"What are you getting at?" Link pulled his attention away from the battle long enough to look the Poe in the eyes. Had it come to chat with him about the Death Sword for a reason?
"Nothing, really. Just that its death would be beneficial to us both. Merely a suggestion I believe you should consider, for I have no great hatred for your kind. Unlike that deranged beast."
"But… you have been helping Eivie, so why would you want to kill the Death Sword? Did you not want it to return like the others?"
"If it lives it lives," the ghost shrugged. "If not, well, then, I will have a bit more power considering my standing among my fellow monsters. It would be best for you to consider killing it before it has a chance to regain its original form. Eivie is gone regrettably. She was interesting, to say the least."
Link stared at the dark Poe questioningly. Had Gomess honestly come over just to tell Link he should kill the Death Sword, thereby letting Gomess take power? A monster asking a human for help in securing power. How odd. Eivie kept stranger company than he had thought.
A sudden glow ended the knight's and phantom's conversation. Jahalla sent a wall of flames over the battlefield once more. Gomess speedily flew into the air, grabbing Link by the back of his tunic and dangling him just out of the fire's reach. The Death Sword breezed by, the fire having utterly failed to damage the agile monster.
Gomess returned to the archway next the waterfalls and unceremoniously dropped Link onto the ground. The other Poes had gathered in the same place in attempt to avoid being collateral damage in the Death Sword's and Jahalla's battle. The earlier attack that killed the ReDead and Gibdo showed how little respect Jahalla had for his underlings. Link imagined the Death Sword was just as uncaring in that regard. They were both monsters after all; they were selfish and killed whatever they wanted.
As the flames began to die, the Death Sword commenced its own onslaught against Jahalla. The large Poe was breathing heavily from wasting its air on the flaming attack, and seemed to be unable to move at the moment. The Death Sword went straight for the mask, not bothering to mess around with weakening him first. Jahalla had been expecting such an attack. As the Death Sword swung its large blade downward, the Poe King swung his lantern in front of him, summoning fireballs right in front of the Death Sword.
Link nearly covered his ears when he heard the Death Sword's pained screech as it collided with the fire. It was much worse considering that it still had a hint of Eivie's voice mixed in with the inhuman noise. The Death Sword slammed into the ground and rolled, its sword left near the edge of the toxic water. Once it came to a stop, the Death Sword struggled to stand. Eivie's body had been in poor condition to begin with, but, now, her arms were badly burnt, most of her skin that was unburnt was discolored from the toxic water, her clothes and hair was singed at the edges. The Death Sword let out an ear-shattering roar before it rose back into the air, ignoring its wounds completely.
Jahalla sped for the Death Sword before it could recover its weapon. He planned on squashing her into the wall, which would certainly break ever bone in her body, thusly killing her. Link twitched, ready to jump down and try to protect Eivie, but he knew he could not reach her in time. The Death Sword held up its arm, looking as though it would cast a jinx, or perhaps even a last effort to block Jahalla from crushing her.
No one expected it. In a fraction of a second, Death Sword's blade flew through the air and smashed into Jahalla head. The creature let out a deafening wail as it crashed into the ground, its mask breaking to pieces. The Death Sword lowered itself to face the dying Poe King. She said nothing as the cowardly Poe screamed and tried to catch the broken pieces of his mask.
The Death Sword held out its hand once more, its weapon retuning to it. While it kept a blank face, its lips would twitch as if trying to form a malicious smile at its dying enemy. "And here you fall, Jahalla, as you cower and scream without dignity. You were not meant to lead us, but only I seemed bold enough to cross you. And, now, you will die a sad, pathetic death with no hopes of return."
It swung its sword, the blade smashing the remaining bits of mask covering Jahalla's face. The great Poe gave a final cry as it faded into nothingness. No one dared make a sound as the Death Sword stood staring at the ground where Jahalla had formerly stood. At first it was quiet, but then it became more and more noticeable. The Death Sword was laughing hysterically and gleefully, eventually beginning to smash its sword into the ground as if it was killing Jahalla over and over again. The other Poes watched cautiously as the Death Sword celebrated, understanding that that thing was their new master. Gomess and the Sisters seemed to be the only ones unfazed by the Death Sword's erratic behavior.
Link looked on as the Death Sword willed Eivie's body to swing the sword into the ground. With all of the wounds Eivie had suffered, such needless movements were unfounded and needed to be stopped. But he was hesitant, of course, because he could see the insanity in the monster controlling his friend. He would not let Gomess be right, though. Link would never believe that Eivie was gone.
Link took a few steps back, preparing to jump back into the poisonous water and then swim to shore. A tug on the back of his collar made him flinch before he jerked his head to look over his shoulder. It was Gomess. Link stared at the creature, perplexed why the monster kept helping him. The Poe did not even seem this helpful when it came to Eivie, so why did it keep carting him around the room?
Gomess did not move right away, instead studying Link's expression. "You could still destroy it while it's not paying attention," the Poe explained. "This will likely be your last chance to do so without a troublesome battle."
"No," Link stated without pause. "I am going to try talking to her."
Gomess shrugged before picking Link off of the ground. "It will be your death, human."
The phantom carried Link down without another word. Once Link's feet were firmly planted on the ground Gomess retreated back to where the other Poes were. The Death Sword's laughter had become an occasional chuckle, its sword now planted in the ground. It did not notice as Link slowly walked forward.
"Eivie?" Link called warily.
The Death Sword went silent the second before it slowly turned its head in Link's direction. "Now, time to deal with you, human," it muttered while it lifted its sword up. "You are particularly dull if you believe that girl to still be living. I had to crush her personality in order to take this body; there is no way such a pathetic, whining, worthless human could survive such a thing. I only lost control to her before because of my injuries from battling Jahalla. But, now, I have almost returned. When I regain my original form, this little human's body will not even survive."
Link ignored the Death Sword's words, praying by some miracle the beast was wrong. "Eivie, can you hear me? You need to fight against it. I know you can."
"Foolish boy!" The Death Sword screamed, a blaze of blue fire surrounding it briefly. "The human is gone! Is it that hard for your miniscule brain to comprehend!?"
Link narrowly avoided a fireball the monster flung his way. "Eivie, you're not a monster! I know you can fight it!" he called again.
"Infuriating human," the Death Sword growled through its gritted, pointed teeth. "Your very existence has become irritating beyond tolerance. I shall spatter your blood across this room and use your bones as décor, boy." It raised its sword and rose into the air slightly. "It is time you learned your standing among us, human."
Link did not have time to say more in attempt to bring Eivie back. The Death Sword sped towards him and easily covered the distance between them in mere seconds. Without pause it swung it blade down, aiming to slash Link in half in one hit. Link had brought his shield up in the nick of time, causing the sword to be defected with a single, horrendous clash.
With an irate screech the Death Sword raised its sword again before slamming it back onto the shield. Link's feet dug into the ground, his arm in pain from such a strong blow, and his ears ringing from the metallic shriek of the sword meeting the shield. He quickly ran to the side when the Death Sword raised its sword again.
Link was hit from behind by a plume of blue fire. He turned on his heel, raising his shield to meet what was likely another oncoming attack. He could not use his sword now, but he refused to hurt Eivie anyways. The Death Sword struck the shield again, this time causing a sizable dent that would greatly weaken the shield. Link did not run, rather he remained standing in front of the monster with his shield raised. He would not give up.
The Death Sword smirked as it swung its sword down once more, prepared to deliver the final hit. "Eivie!" Link yelled one last time as he closed his eyes.
He stood there for a moment, unsure what happened. Slowly he opened his eyes to see if and why he was still alive. In front of him, the Death Sword stopped mid-attack and had one hand clutching the side of its head.
"How?" It growled. "How are you?" It dropped its sword to the side to hold the other side of its head. It trembled slightly before it fell to the ground on its hands and knees, all the while still growling.
Link took a hesitant step forward, his hand held out as if to offer aid to the fallen monster, or, perhaps, his friend. It still did not look very human: the horns and corpse-like appearance remained. He was still hoping it was Eivie though. He walked forward until he was right in front of her.
It glanced up, still growling and resumed holding the side of its head. It let out a sudden, ripping scream before it fell to the ground completely. Link dropped to his knees next to the body, panic-stricken with the thought it and Eivie had just died. It drew in shallow, barely noticeable breaths. He leaned down further when he saw its lips moving.
"Link," she whispered in a raspy, quiet voice.
"Eivie!?" Link yelled in surprise and joy. "Don't move, okay?" he said when she tried to move. She was far too injured to try moving about on her own. When he heard her sniffling and saw her body jerking shakily, he brushed hair out of the way, knowing she was sobbing. "Hey, it's okay. I'm here and I will take care of you. I won't let anything bad happen; not anymore." He rested his hand on the side of her face, trying to take her focus away from what were intensely painful injuries.
She managed to place her hand on top of his and squeeze it slightly. She gave a small smile through the pain before her body went limp. She passed out, but this time the Death Sword did not retake control. Link stared at her for a moment as he tried to decide what to do.
He cringed when he heard a Poe's lantern jingle behind him. "We are to take you to the Master Sword," Gomess stated. "Are we not, Meg?" he asked the purple Poe next to him, a threatening tone leaking into his voice.
"I suppose," Meg grumbled. "If that is what you want us to do, Gomess, we have no choice."
Link looked to the black cloaked Poe, confused why the purple Poe was taking orders from him. Gomess offered a sly smile, knowing that Link had caught Meg's subservience. "If you are dying to know, knight, with Jahalla gone and the Death Sword and Eivie unconscious, I am the most powerful ghost here." He explained before grabbing the back of Link's tunic again.
Link decided he did not want to question the Poe's motive in helping him get the Master Sword. Sure, Gomess was in charge, but that barely begun to explain why the ghost was still helping him. As long as they did not try to hurt Eivie or him, he was fine with the strange monster's help.
Gomess carried Link to the other side of the room to the archway opposite of the one they had been in earlier. Gomess returned to help Meg lift Eivie and carry her up as carefully as two spindly armed Poes could. Once they brought Eivie up, the Poes set her on the ground carefully. Link then picked her off of the ground gently and tried not to jostle her around too much as he found the easiest way to carry her. While doing such, he noticed that some of her wounds had begun healing already, likely because of the Death Sword, he assumed. Most of the burns still looked raw and blistered, some of the worst even charred. He regretted not stopping at the potion shop before leaving Castle Town; he had been in a hurry, but now saw it would have been very helpful. He could only hope Eivie would make it long enough to find help or something.
"Follow," Joelle ordered Link as she flew ahead of him. "Let's get this over with."
Link mumbled an okay before following after the grumpy Poe. Meg and Gomess were behind Link as they moved down a hidden, twisting passage. Link could hear the two whispering about something, which worried him. He still not trust the monsters.
After wordlessly walking through the darkened tunnels for some time, Link noticed a light. He sighed, knowing that they would finally be outside of the dark dungeon. With the time he had spent in the room with the toxic lake, fresh air sounded amazing. In a few minutes the group found themselves outside in the light of the evening sun. Link was astounded that they had been in there for such a long time; it had seemed so much quicker.
Once Link had a moment to adjust his eyes to the heavenly brightness, he glanced around, curious where the so called legendary sword was. Most of what he saw were normal, boring trees. He could not see anything that would mark this as the spot to keep such an important item.
"The sword is in a clearing surrounded by stone ruins nearby," Meg stated as Joelle and she reached for Eivie. Link allowed them to grab her and the two began flying downwards between the giant trees to the ground somewhere below.
"Why is the sword in a forest?" he asked out loud, not entirely expecting an answer.
"There is an area of the forest known as the Lost Woods. Living beings have a difficult time passing through without a proper guide." Gomess grabbed Link and began carrying him down as well. "Most humans tend to avoid the temple, for obvious reasons," the Poe laughed.
"Then why haven't you monsters destroyed it?" Link began picking Eivie up again as soon as he was on the ground.
"We cannot touch it." Joelle spat out, like Link was a complete moron for not knowing something so apparently obvious.
"It's called the Sword of Evil's Bane for good reason," Gomess added as he slowly floated past Link. "That is why I find it curious the sorcerer wants you to fetch it."
"Yeah," Link mumbled, agreeing with the Poe on something. It was suspicious. Even Eivie had mentioned Vaati fearing the sword, so why did he want him to fetch it?
Link followed the Poes through the trees, occasionally pausing to adjust his hold on Eivie and checking how she was. Eivie seemed no better. Her appearance did not change back; not one tiny bit. She had mentioned that Vaati had somehow been keeping looking like a human. The Death Sword taking over might have undone whatever Vaati had done.
Link skidded to a stop when he noticed a crumbling wall in front of him. The Poes had forgotten he could not walk through walls. He sighed heavily and prepared to yell, but the silly creatures popped their heads through the wall to look what happened to him. Gomess cackled the second he saw Link's annoyed expression and continued as he carried the knight over the wall. Meg and Joelle set Eivie down on the ground near the wall.
Link looked around at the clearing they had just entered. It was not a large space, but still not cramped. He could see the tall trees of the grove over the dilapidated walls that formed a circle around the area. In the center there was a small pedestal with a purple hilted sword stabbed into it. Link did not waste time and went to stand in front of the legendary Master Sword.
He took a moment just to look at the blade. While it did not seem like something too spectacular, it did give off a sort of aura. For some reason he could just tell that this sword was more special than its appearance let on. After taking a deep breath, he wrapped his hands around the hilt and gave a pull. It slowly slid out of the pedestal, and, when it was completely out, it let off a brief but blinding light. Once he had the sword freed, he moved it through the air, admiring it. He took his words back and decided that this had to be one the finest swords he had ever seen. It may not have been overly detailed and elaborate, but it could slash through any monster, he was sure. He stared at it for a while, forgetting he was in a hurry. It was only a small breeze that reminded him where he was and what he had to get done, who he had help. Link took his old sword out of its sheath and slid the Master Sword in instead.
As soon as the sword was put away, Link went to turn around. He was met by a sudden punch to the face. Before he even got a chance to fight back, he found some strange spell being cast on him. Link fell to the ground and found himself starting to drift off. As his eyes fell closed, he saw a glimpse of a purple cape.
Vaati cursed and shook his stinging hand a few times. He had not expected to hurt himself, but the look Link gave as his fist slammed into Link's face had been enough to warrant the brief pain. Vaati had wanted to do that since he got his memory back.
He ignored the now sleeping Link and went to attend to Eivie. His sentry he had following her had informed him that she had become quite injured during her battle with Jahalla. He waved for the Poes hovering next to her to move. They obediently obeyed, only the black one hesitating. Gomess, Vaati remembered Hue calling this odd Poe. Not that the creature mattered really.
"What have you done, foolish girl?" Vaati muttered as he kneeled down next to Eivie. "I cannot leave you alone, it seems." He picked up her arm, examining her hand and how claw-like her nails had become. He also glanced at the horns on her head. "I see my spell has been shattered as well," he said as he set her arm back onto the ground. "I suppose I should help you, hmm?"
He retrieved a red colored potion from his pocket and popped the cork top off. For the moment he set the potion off to the side. Vaati gently moved Eivie so her head was resting on his lap. He tilted her head back and forced her mouth open. Then he retrieved the potion before slowly pouring it into her mouth. Eivie's unconscious reaction was to begin coughing and attempting to spit the potion out.
"Don't you dare spit that on me," he grumbled as he covered her mouth and nose, forcing her to swallow.
In a few moments, some of Eivie's wounds had healed or at least began to close. The healing potion had done all it could; Eivie was able to at least be carried safely now. Vaati set her back on the ground and took a few steps away. He transformed into his demon form, delicately grabbing Eivie in one of his claws. He then grabbed Link roughly, only making sure the sword did not fall or touch him while he flew. Vaati rose into the air and sped off to the palace now that he had retrieved what he came for.
A/N- I hope you enjoyed! Jahalla has been defeated, but at a cost. The Death Sword is really bothering Eivie now. There are probably mistakes in this because I honestly did not feel like reading through it several times; I'll probably fix things up later. I also hope my third-person POV is decent enough. Well thank you to everyone who read this chapter and the previous ones!
Thank you to Ana dressed in blood and SkyArrow for favoriting and/or following! Thank you to Kingdom Legends and Zetra Shink for reviewing!
Kingdom Legends- Here's another long chapter for you! I'm happy to hear that you think my stories good. I am also really happy that I finally get to write the Death Sword and show its personality a bit more. Thank you for reviewing! I hope you continue to enjoy the story.
Zetra Shink- I hope you enjoyed this even longer chapter! Yeah, fighting Jahalla was definitely not the best thing for Eivie to do because of the Death Sword. And I'll let in on a secret: I've been spelling Jahalla wrong the entire time. It's actually Jalhalla, but since I just caught the mistake I'll just keep it Jahalla for simplicity's sake. Thank for leaving such a nice, long review!
-AwkwardBlackCat