A dull, gripping pain pulsed in my head. The attack I received from the green bird was more painful than I thought it would. Well, Ike's phantom did grab my head and dig his claws into my wound, and it definitely made it worse.
The bleeding stopped but I still could only take a quick dab at it without wincing. I felt a little jealous of Ike, who now is fully replenished from my white light, and I don't receive any healing powers to myself. But still, I was glad we saved him.
He rested a hand on my shoulder. "Does it still hurt?" I turned around to say it doesn't, but seeing his worried eyes, I had no choice but to say, "Just a little."
"Then here," he said as he untied his headband, "This should cover it for now."
I wrapped the long ribbon-like headband around my head like a bondage tape. It looked weird with my laurels but I didn't want to take them off. The laurels gave me somewhat of a dignity that I was an angel and not part of this cave.
"Thanks." I said. Ike replied with a brief nod. Then, from behind me, Roy sighed tenaciously. Captain Falcon pursed his lips but I could see a smile forming. "I hope you didn't forget us."
A short laugh escaped from my throat like a hiccup. I was surprised I laughed but I retained my smile. "Of course I didn't."
I was surprised I laughed.
Fatigue weighed us down. I dragged my feet to a nearby flat rock and slumped. Fighting in water seemed to always bring me down quick. Around me, my friends sat down heavily onto the flat rocks.
"We should take a break first." I offered. Roy nodded in response.
Captain Falcon took off his bike helmet and grinned at me, "I'll be on watch then. You three rest up for some more spelunking later."
The cold rock felt soothing against my body, inducing me to sleep even more. I felt my eyes roll back as I closed them. I'll get everything together later. Just a little rest and I'll be up again.
My head felt warm yet dizzy like someone was churning butter inside my head. Little to no coherent thoughts ran through my mind, just pictures of memories that happened in this cave like a silent movie. Slide shows of us in our past life slowly came to view.
I was in the kitchen, the grand kitchen made to feed all of my friends, alone. Remnants of the cooking utensils were still laid on the counters, left behind for cleaning later. A sweet smell of cheese invited me out into the living room.
But I stood in between the kitchen and the living room, hesitant to move forward to my friends who have already started eating. I was hungry and the spaghetti with cheese and meat sauce looked delicious, but I couldn't get myself to get closer to the commotion.
Deep in my gut, I felt loneliness in a room full of people. I saw my friends. I saw Link taking a big load of spaghetti on his plate, and I saw Marth scolding him for taking so much. I saw Lucario struggling with the fork and others were helping him. I felt a smile coming but my cheeks were heavy.
So I waited until everyone situated themselves at the tables inside and outside before I grabbed a plate.
The steam building from the pasta was warm but blindingly white. The delightful smell I enjoyed from the kitchen was getting too strong. I stepped back, sighing, but the white smoke seemed to shroud the pasta and everything on the table. Everything looked like white flashes.
When I looked away to a more dimly lit area, I noticed black spots danced at my eyes and some things seemed to double. I put my empty plate down on the table and felt the walls until I was in the backyard.
The cool night breeze was soothing.
But I was still hungry.
My vision was blurred from the water in my eyes. I wiped them roughly only to find Roy staring at me from a lying position. I jumped.
"Sorry." He chuckled.
Without even thinking, I scooted back a little. "A little close there, maybe?"
"I was a little cold, and you are very warm." Roy sat up and hugged his knees. I tried to check my clock but the room was too dark to see the time. Captain Falcon was lying down so I guessed he and Roy switched watch duty. Ike had his back turned to me but I saw the steady rise and fall of his breathing.
"Do you want to switch watch duty?" I asked. Roy shook his head.
"I don't trust you. You're eyes are still wandering." He said quietly.
"Haha, I won't doze off."
Roy smiled so I returned. But then, his body fell over to me. I caught him hastily. His face was frozen with the smile. I shook his shoulders but his head rocked back and forth like a rag doll. "H-Hey, what's wrong?"
Vigorous hands gripped my arms. They weren't Roy's; they came from behind. A husky, yet mischievous voice whispered into my ear. "No, no, this just isn't fair."
Kid Link's phantom smiled from ear to ear, drooling the hissing magma from between his teeth. I tensed at the gooey, fiery liquid, slowly making its way down to my collarbone. But the phantom sucked the drool in.
"You have quite a talent to find meat shields, hmm? But you already know how this is going to plan out when you and I… have some fun."
I wriggled out of the phantom's grasp. I drove my bow across his neck, but the phantom stepped away easily. He dodged all of my swings but not once did he strike back. He did cough up some of his searing hot magma that landed dangerously close to Roy's limp body.
"My friends," I spoke through gritted teeth, "protect me, and I protect them also."
"Sure, my sweet angel." The phantom cackled and raised his hand to form a snap. I lunged, pinning him hard onto the rough black rock. Again, the phantom lay there without struggling. I had a feeling he wasn't being serious with me.
"You know it's just going to be me and you in the end. One-on-one, black and white, 'monster' against 'savior'. Heroic isn't it?"
"My friends will be with me. No matter how much you hurt us, I will save the kid inside from you."
"Fine. So be it. But consider this. Which is in the safer position in this underground world? The warriors from above that are diminishing one by one, waiting to be saved by a sorry example of an angel like you, or as one of us, safe from the clickers, admired by the humans, moving freely as we please, and having nice specialties such as my magma."
When I noticed, the phantom was gone and I was staring at the ground thinking of what he said.
Around me, Ike, Captain Falcon, and a complaining Roy slowly woke up. I quickly told them of my encounter with Kid Link's phantom. Roy placed a hand on my shoulder.
"He's trying to trick you, making you vulnerable and easier to take down. We will be with you against him, okay?"
I nodded.
"Alright, now that we had our bromance moment, shall we move on our way?" Captain Falcon chuckled as he placed his helmet on his head again.
"Uh, haha, I guess." I stuttered. I opened my bag to reveal my black notebook with the most recent clue I received from Priscilla. I read it out loud to everyone:
"Find the tree. Find the tree. Sacrifice. Sacrifice. Sacrifice. Down the stairs the lost child awaits. Hurry. Hurry."
Ike furrowed his eyebrows. "A tree… Do trees grow in caves?"
"Trees need water and sunlight. And big space. Unless if we're dealing with a tree that's engineered to grow without some of those elements." Roy shrugged.
"Stop talking like a scientist, man. Let's follow this road down. I'm sure we'll find the phantom sometime soon, or he may come to us again."
Gradually, the rough black walls smoothed out into a circular tunnel with transparent rock that tinged a greenish-blue. While our way down the tunnel, we caught Captain Falcon up with the major details. He nodded at appropriate moments and shrugged at the confusing points.
"Wow. That's a lot to take in." He finally said.
"I know. We're trying to figure everything out on our way too. "
"But that's great. Having you as a 'savior' and what not. Plus you kind of suit that role of saving everyone." Captain Falcon regarded my wings. I smiled sheepishly.
The tunnel started to snake around, and with the water settling on the smooth rock, it was becoming more and more slippery. Eventually, a manmade passageway branched off and down the slick slope. Thankfully, there were handlebars so we wouldn't slip on the steps.
With each step, we were submerging a little bit more into the lukewarm water. But I saw the end of the stairs coming quick so we probably won't be completely underwater.
"So you think these are the stairs that wills lead us to him?" Roy asked.
I lifted my bag above my head. "The journal entry says go down stairs so this seems right to me. Or maybe not. I just want to see where this leads to."
We were waist deep in the water at the bottom of the stairs. It was a narrow, straight hallway with a short, bulky wooden door at the end. The walls gleamed the teal light, which made the water appear green. It was a beautiful sight but as I took a step forward, something slick slithered against my thigh.
Ike took a low stance and dipped his hand into the water. A white, almost featureless creature wriggled weakly in his grasp. "… A fish."
I was more surprised that Ike was able to capture the smooth animal, but the fish itself was unlike any other ones I saw in stores. First of all, it was milky white, transparent at its fins, which looked underdeveloped and wasn't built for speed. Its eyes were nonexistent from the dark life in the cave. It was very sensitive to sound; I sighed with wonder and the fish's head immediately turned toward me.
While Ike, Captain Falcon, and I were interested in the fish, Roy was eyeing the door at the end of the hallway. "So the fish was swimming away from the door."
"Uh, I guess?" I shrugged.
Captain Falcon crossed his arms, pursing his lips thoughtfully. "But why would the fish be here? It doesn't look like there's any food down here except for anything past that door."
"Someone has opened that door recently and this fish escaped." Ike nodded to himself, slowly releasing the white creature.
"Let's hope it's a tree, then."
There was a small "Home Sweet Home" sign on the wooden door. It was sturdy but short. Orange light flickered above us invitingly as if someone inside was expecting visitors. The glass on the lamp was murky and I spotted a well-used ladder that was on the ground. I wondered if the people that were here wanted to escape from the Polis' and live a conservative life.
I grabbed the doorknob and noticed it was warm. Our surroundings were relatively warm, but the knob was almost hot compared to it.
"Let go of that." Roy said sternly.
His eyes were very serious so I didn't question. But as soon as I let go of the doorknob, the metal deformed and dropped into the water. The remainder dripped down the door, licking flames slobbering down like snakes, hissing. Black smoke billowed and spewed from the fire. We all stepped back cautiously, and I noticed my hand was stinging a little.
But If I hadn't let go in time, my hand would have melted off.
"So, who wants to go in first?" Captain Falcon chuckled.
"I will. Everybody stand back." Roy stepped forward, sword drawn. Fire licked at the edges of the blade. He looked confident on whatever he was going to do, but considering that a metal doorknob melted, I wasn't very sure.
The blade was brought up high above Roy's head, and with one powerful swing, the wooden door split diagonally across. Ike muttered an "I could've done that," but still, I admired Roy and his sword.
What surprised us was that the other side of the door wasn't scorching hot. The room inside was the same teal color as the walls, and the air was rather cold, than warm at all.
I couldn't decide if the room was large or small. A grand tree bent over at the ceiling, much of its branches restrained and hanging low. The green canopy rustled and made the lake below it shimmer green. I could see the bottom of the lake very clearly. It shouldn't be deeper than my height.
The tree was pushed up against the wall but it had a shoreline where the lake water lapped gently. Some canoe-like boats swayed soothingly like a crib putting a baby to sleep. I spotted a small door at the tree's base.
"The stairs, and the tree…" I muttered.
"I guess trees do grow in caves." Ike scoffed.
"Well, maybe it doesn't need sunlight…" I replied as I turned around.
But no one was there. The lights were still on.
Icy cold hands crept up my back and I froze. They felt small, like a child's. But the hands weren't covered in ink. Contradictory to that, the hands were giving off a soft white glow. Then he spoke; his tone was calm at its best and almost godly.
"I've been waiting for you."
Author's Note: Hi, it's been a while. I was surprised that people still favorite and put alerts to this story after a month. Thank you for reading this far, and the next chapter will finally cover the fight with the second phantom. Finally. Geez.