Damna minus consulta movent (Afflictions we are accustomed with affect us less)
- Juvenal
Gargling drool, the blooded ReDeads crawled, cautiously encircling their prey, continuously snapping their teeth.
The black Iron ReDead raised her ax, shaking it with such vigor her armor clanked. "HURRRRAGGHHHH!"
Heavy armors clanking with every step, the Iron Redeads approached while the blooded ReDeads reared, the heroes horribly outnumbered and encircled.
"This is not good!" Kibou cred, hiding behind Luna.
Zelda gripped bow and Phantom Lance in the same hand then loosed a Light Arrow. The crawlers dodged it then lunged simultaneously as Link raised his sword and shield, the monsters howling with such force their mouths bled, horrible screams gripping Link and Zelda. The monsters arched through the air while the Iron ReDeads raised their axes—music chirped, all ReDeads covered in a milky aura and freezing in place.
Luna pocketed the Ocarina of Time, which she had slid out Link's pocket moments ago.
"Smooth, Luna," Kibou chuckled. "But...how did the ReDeads' screams not affect you?"
Luna stared back with her ghostly eyes. "From the future, I'm already..." Dead...
Link and Zelda recovered from immobilization. She shot a Light Arrow, hitting a paused ReDead, aura blasting it and a few others backwards. Link slammed his fist into the floor, unleashing a growing orb of flames, setting aflame the undead around everyone, who moaned as flames grew over their deathly bodies.
The Hero of Time shivered. "I hate these guys..." Wasting no time, he charged, slashing to and fro, slaying several flaming crawlers before the Iron ReDeads writhed out their Sun-paralysis, the crawlers remaining frozen.
Zelda sheathed her bow and, gripping the Phantom Lance two-handed, joined the fray, jabbing strenuously into the debilitated crawlers. The white-armoured Iron ReDead swung his battleaxe, Zelda twirling backwards to dodge, then lunging her lance one-handed by its base. The spearhead poked the Iron ReDead's eye hole. Grunting, the brute held his mask as blood leaked out. He raised his giant weapon—Zelda flourished the lance, swinging out an energy ball that hit the Iron ReDead, armor sparkling with electric magic.
"They're recovering!" Zelda warned.
The crawlers broke free of the Sun's Song then swiped their clawed hands aggressively, enflamed arms whooshing. Link blocked and returned attacks, Zelda jabbing in all directions with utmost rapidity to keep them back. With Sheikah grace, the queen easily evaded all claws and jaws snapping at her, the Iron ReDeads unable to find an opening to swing their hefty blades.
The aggressive brutes always got in the way of their ironclad counterparts, twitchy movement interfering with the axes which sometimes smacked them aside. Amid the melee, the flaming ReDeads wanted to screech, though they only inhaled smoke, unable to get the air they needed to unleash paralyzing screams. Choking on fire, the crawlers focused on using their claws and teeth, mouths only meeting Zelda's spearhead or Link's sword. Yet, Zelda abruptly slipped on blood, a crawler jumping at her; she rolled backwards while kicking into its midsection, flipping it over herself then shooting a Light Arrow through its head.
Meanwhile, Luna swerved and rolled around, avoiding conflict while Kibou whizzed about, using his sparkles and light to sometimes distract the ReDeads, easily dodging their attacks. Sometimes, crawlers stared at Luna though did nothing, never even touching the albino.
"I think we can use another song, Luna!" Kibou squeaked a he zigzagged amidst the monsters.
"I'm trying!" She scurried beyond the melee, withdrawing the ocarina. She took a breath and... "Pbthhh—what!?"
A crawler pulled the ocarina out Luna's mouth. It cocked its head, breathing heavily through its nostrils, empty eye sockets bleeding. "Youuuuu...ourrrr...frrriennnd?"
"Gimme that!" Luna jumped, trying to swipe the ocarina, though the crawler held it high.
The crawler let off a mournful moan. "Lllike ussss...whyyyy?"
"I said give me that!"
While Luna tried to receive the Ocarina of Time from her uncooperative bully, the grownups fought on.
Zelda bashed her lance shaft into the snapping mouth of a monster, dodged the white Iron ReDead's ax, jabbed several crawlers back, then leapt over a few as they tried to tackle into her. She landed atop the white Iron ReDead's pauldrons, ramming the lance between the pauldron and breastplate, dashing out blood. Ripping the lance out, she backflipped while twirling the lance, unleashing electric magics before hitting the floor, shocking several foes.
Link received some blows and staggered, a crawler diving at him but he Jump Attacked over it and hit the next. He kicked a crawler that tried to grapple him then rolled sideways, a big ax slamming to the floor. Link Spin Attacked, blue and basic yet pushing back several ReDeads. Link backflipped as the black-armoured Iron ReDead swung her ax sideways. Link landed, raising his shield as undead screams reverberated through him, the flames consuming the ReDeads subsiding...
"Link!" Zelda yelled, having avoided the ReDead screams as sometimes happened.
A monster wrapped its arms around Link's legs, the paralyzed hero pushed over, surrounded, then stomped by many foes, the black Iron ReDead raising his hefty battleaxe...
Zelda raised her Phantom Lance overhead and spin it around in her fingers. The stave burst with power, a vast electric pulse snaking across the floor, surging throughout the ReDeads, the heavily armored pair shaking so much their armors rattled.
"Ah-hah!" Luna jumped, grasping the Ocarina of Time gripped within an undead hand—the electricity just went through her, her hair extending. "Zihzihzihzihzihzihzihzihzihzihzihzihzih!"
Zapping, Link unraveled himself and slashed angrily, grunting and shouting until several crawlers fell down, moaning their last breaths. Another growled, leaping; Link uppercutted his shield into the incoming ReDead, knocking it back then stabbing it dead.
While the Iron ReDeads steadily recovered from their electrocution, Link and Zelda engaged the nearby crawlers.
A crawler inhaled sharply, ready to scream; Zelda thrust her lance clean through its neck, esophagus pierced. Leaving the lance in the ReDead's throat, Zelda withdrew her bow and shot a flurry of Light Arrows. While Light Magic sizzled the crawlers' bodies, Link finished them off.
Zelda sheathed her bow, pulled the lance out the crawler's throat, then beheaded it. The last crawler annoyed Luna, who had yet to retrieve the instrument even with Kibou's help.
The Bearers of the Triforce got ready as their armored foes approached, huffing from exhaustion and expended flames.
"Their lungs are probably damaged from smoke inhalation," Link commented.
"They won't be screaming anytime soon." Zelda's Phantom Lance pulsed with electricity. "Catch!" She threw it like a javelin, the stave releasing an electrical ball mid-air, shocking the Iron ReDead, then stuck into his armor, continuing the electric surge as she shot Light Arrows at him...
Link charged, sword ready, his foe push-kicking him and he nearly falling. Link skipped about, looking for opening, she raising her ax and swinging side to side repeatedly. Link did a baseball slide, slipping under the great weapon. Rolling around, he jumped while twirling, Spin Attack propelling him while hitting the Iron ReDead's back with every rotation. He flipped, sundering the ReDead's helm then, while still mid-air, Link Hookshotted his foe. Chain retracting, Link was pulled along, dropkicking the Iron ReDead's mask and knocking her over.
The ReDead crashed heavily. Grunting, she sat up, gauntlet hitting the floor in frustration. The Iron ReDead sharply inhaled, though Link prevented the paralyzing scream by ramming his sword into the visor breathe hole. She gargled blood, grabbing Link's sword and pushing it away
She and Link charged, battleaxe swinging heavily while Link danced around, chipping away at her armor...
Meanwhile, Zelda's white-armored foe ripped the Phantom Lance out his armor and threw it back at her. She backflipped, kicking the incoming polearm upwards, redirecting its trajectory then simply catching it before finishing her flip. Bow put away, the queen unleashed more lightning magic, the orbs crashing against him.
Armor zapping from magic, the ReDead took a breath and screamed; an energy ball hit his visor again, electricity pulsing his throat, Zelda unaffected. She cast another energy ball...
"HEYYRRH!" His battleaxe hit the projectile, deflection so powerful Zelda realized her head bounced against the floor.
"Oww..." Zelda held her head, golden hair soaked with blood. Grunting, she gripped the Phantom Lance and jumped to her feet, her foe's ax crashing where she had once been. She flurried jabs, headache so severe she could barely think straight, wobbling yet dodging the giant ax swinging for her, using the length of her lance to pick away at her foe's armor...
"HYYAAAGH!" Link Jump Attacked his black-armored opponent.
"TSAYYH!"
The ax slashed into Link, hurling him back, mail shirt bursting links everywhere. He hit the floor. "Ih-hnh!" Sitting up, Link shook his head as his foe loomed over him. He rolled backwards over his shoulders as her ax crashed down.
Link dropped his sword and shield, rolling his shoulders until his split hauberk slid off, damaged armor just a liability. "Still can't trade blows with them..."
Sword and shield regained, he skipped back and forth, cutting away here and there while avoiding the giant weapon. The Iron ReDead raised her ax; Link instinctively jumped, yet the ax remained up. He thrust, sword ramming into armor—she grabbed Link's shoulder, pulling him close then screaming into his face. Link gasped, freezing from fright. She let go of him, stepped back, then her ax came crashing down!
Link flew backwards, hearing himself and Zelda scream, his heaume bent into his forehead, dashing out blood. Head wound squirting with every pulse, Link groaned as he sat up, wrenching the helmet off, the torn steel scraping his scalp. He knelt, forehead gushing blood with every heartbeat.
Ax up, the Iron ReDead shuffled forth, huffing eagerly then deeply inhaling—the Hero of Time threw the damaged helmet into his foe's visor, impact disrupting her immobilizing screech. Link raised his blade, shouting his battle cry and feinting a Jump Attack; she slammed her ax, Link feeling the wind of its fall. Having held back his jump, Link hopped atop the helve, the Iron ReDead looking up. Link gripped his sword two-handed by the blade, hammering the pommel and quillons into her helmet, poking dents with every strike...
Meanwhile, although debilitated, Zelda evaded the big ax smoothly, jabbing into every opening. She groaned, holding her head. "I gotta finish this quick, my head hurts so bad I feel like puking."
"TSAYY—EHHY! Hrrnnh..." The armored zombie swung again.
The queen knelt, huge ax swinging overhead. She stuck the lance between the Iron ReDead's legs and held it at an acute angle. She pushed the shaft sideways, the Iron ReDead's legs locking against the shaft from behind the left heel to across the front of the right greave, tripping while Zelda rolled aside, ironclad zombie crashing.
Sliding the lance back, Zelda gripped the lance two-handed near its bottom, swinging it downward, sidespike pecking dents in the helmet.
Screaming horribly, the Iron Knuckle clumsily spun around on his knees, mighty ax whirling, Zelda a hair's breadth from its murderous edge—a Light Arrow whizzed into the visor's breathe hole. Fletching scraped the gums, arrowhead striking the backplate cantle while Light Magic reverberated the ReDead's insides.
Zelda stood, motionlessly gripping her bow, affected by the ReDead's scream yet only a moment after she had loosed the arrow!
The black-armored ReDead went limp, falling sideways.
Past the immobilize queen, Link redirected his foe's incoming ax by flowing his shield along it. He slashed into the armored hands, denting the gauntlets and causing severe pain. He slashed obsessively until the Iron ReDead's cuirass fell apart, clinking against the floor. The ReDead sharply inhaled, swinging her hefty weapon with greater speed and frequency, Link backflipping to create space. Grunting, the alwyte ReDead jogged after her opponent. She yelled, though Link threw his shield like a Frisbee, striking the undead's visor and causing her to flinch. She charged again, shaking her ax high.
Link withdrew his Longshot and released to the side. As the chain protracted, he swung the Hookshot over, chain wrapping around the ReDead's legs. As she fell, Link knelt while positioning his sword like a spike from the floor; the ReDead landed upon the blade, the weight of her armor only pushing her down the blade.
Link whipped his Hookshot, chain unwrapping from the ReDead's legs while he slid his sword out.
Both Iron ReDeads fallen, a floor switch popped up at the center of the room.
Zelda recovered from the ReDead scream, shaking her hand. She put her bow away and picked up her Phantom Lance, Luna and Kibou still trying to retrieve the ocarina from the crawler. The last ReDead inhaled—Zelda stuck a Deku Nut in its mouth, shutting it up. Link took back his Ocarina of Time and fluted a certain song, shining light upon the living dead.
"Link! You alright?" Zelda asked, movement regained.
He smiled. "I have quite a heart. Looks like you hurt your head again. You OK?"
Zelda nodded. "Raising kids makes headaches feel normal."
Link put all his equipment away and eyed the Ocarina of Time. "You took this from me?" he asked Luna.
She pushed her fingers through her hair. "When you weren't looking. You're not the only sneaky thing around."
Link gave her a small pat on the head. "Clever girl."
"Link, I'll be needing the Ocarina of Time, please. Legion remains in you. We can't let him learn any of the powerful songs. If I play them instead, he cannot do anything."
Link handed her the ocarina.
She smiled.
Kibou rang. "You actually smiled!?"
Her smile dropped. "Yeah..." She walked upon the floor switch, flattening under her weight. Clanks echoed. The ceiling released a stairwell opposite of the entrance, gradually protracting downwards.
Luna held the ocarina to her lips and played a simple, melancholic song.
Link's eyebrows raised. "How did you know the Elegy of Emptiness?"
A golden aura surrounded Luna. She stepped off the floor switch, a sad statue of herself left behind, keeping the stairwell activated. She sighed at the exuvia, both foreshadowing and remembrance of herself. She looked at Link but gave no answer.
Kibou flew over the husk. "How did that get there?"
"Magic," Luna replied. She headed to the stairwell. "Come on, let's finish this nightmare!"
