Author's Note
I bet everyone was surprised by Ghirahim's reappearance here, but trust me, it's going to be important. Her reappearance now and gender swap is going to be a major plot point and not just something that is thrown in for brownie points.
I've also been trying to make the battle sequences better to read, and make them believable and interesting to read, so I hope that's the case here in this chapter.
Uploaded
06/29/2023
LEGEND BELOW
"O-Oh goodness, I'm so clumsy!" = Normal speech.
''Dont panic.'' = Normal thoughts.
Chapter 14
Raiding the Yiga Hideout act 3/A sudden and unexpected death battle
Rated-M
M rating for Romance, and things of explicit nature, and blood and death.
Music of the day
The Legend of Zelda Skyward Sword - Ghirahim battle theme
His eyes widened in surprise as a blade of sharp shadowy darkness came flying for him, throwing his shield up to block the attack. He stumbled backwards under the force of the attack, yet planted his feet to hold himself steady.
"What's wrong, tired already? Oh poor you, such a shame you won't put up too much of a fight. But then again, I don't expect much from most of you mortals." The Demon Queen taunted, slowly sauntering towards him, vile blade of darkness poised and eager to cut him down.
Despite his exhaustion and aching wounds, he locked eyes with her, and kept moving. If he were to get cornered now, it would be all over.
He studied he movements, her poise and the motions behind her attacks.
She was toying with him, not even willing to take him seriously. Whether or not that meant she was leagues above him or not remained to be seen, but her extreme confidence in this battle made him fear things weren't going to go his way.
"Come now little man, do not run from me. It'll only make it worse for you." She taunted, swinging to casually try and strike him down once he was close enough.
His eyes narrowed as he parried the attack, immediately swinging his blade in a rising upward arch that slashed her across the face. He immediately followed the attack up with back to back attacks, one to her chest, legs, and chest again, before he leapt back, the hairs on the back of his neck rising in anticipation for another attack.
She stopped where she stood, small cuts within her body showing that indeed he'd landed the first strike in this showdown.
But she did not bleed, the damage to her body superficial.
Her amused smile vanished now, irritation instead marring her face. "Your attempts at survival are cute, but nothing more." She muttered lowly, eyes glowing malevolently.
She snapped her fingers, five magical kunai appearing from thin air, all spinning and poised to attack at any moment. "Die." She said simply, throwing her hand forward. The magic weapons suddenly surged forward, barely giving him any time to respond.
But, still, respond he did. In a flash of motion, he swung his blade out, catching all the magic throwing weapons tossed his way, sending them all flying right back at her.
The demon queen snarled, slashing the weapons out of her way. But the moment of blindness caused by having to defend herself against the flying blades gave him enough time to fly in with an attack of his own, two hands on his sword and he swung down hard, his blade slashing her across the face. He immediately followed it up once more with a second and third attack, before he jumped up in a flying spin kick to attempt to knock her off of her feet.
The attack landed with a loud and thunderous clap, sending her head snapping to the side. He hit the ground, quickly jumping back to assess whether or not he'd done any real damage, or if he was going to need to find a way out of this situation.
Ghirahim froze, her face stunned, eyes wide. Slowly, she turned to face him, eyes quivering. She raised a hand to her face, inspecting her ruined hairdo. After readjusting it, she turned a murderous gaze towards him.
"I was playing around with you at first, letting you struggle and hope. But your continued existence has fouled my mood, and now, I want to see you bleed!" She snapped, summoning twenty more dark kunai.
Link swallowed, but kept his composure, even knowing now that she still refused to take him seriously in this fight.
She threw her hand forward, sending the sharpened blades of darkness right at him. Not willing to put his ruined shield to the test again, he quickly leapt out of the way of the attack. His head snapped to the side to avoid being skewered as the last blade took a slice out of his cheek.
He hit the ground, sliding to a stop. He couldn't hide his exhaustion now, his breathing heavy and labored. He needed to end this fight soon, otherwise he wasn't going to survive it at all.
He kept moving, circling around her as she slowly approached him, giggling like an inane monster as she daydreamed about all the ways she could stab him.
He eyed her up and down, trying to find any way to brake through her hardened body and do some real damage to her. He still wasn't sure if his weapons really could do that, but he was sure of one thing.
They clashed back and forth over and over, Link constantly trying to find a weakness, an opportunity to take her down. But after a few minutes he realized that she wasn't going to go down, at least, not without him pulling out all the stops. Every strike he landed on her didn't seem to do much, while every strike she landed on him did real damage.
But, he knew he had to do something quick if he was to survive this battle. She was still toying with him, not giving the fight her all.
However, he still hadn't given this fight his all either.
He spun his blade around, sword pointed back, eyes locked firmly on her figure as she menacingly approached.
"Oh? What's this? You think your little tricks will work on me?" She boasted haughtily, flicking her hair out of her face.
Ignoring her, he focused his breathing, calming his heart and focusing all of his power into his blade. In the condition the sword was in, he was sure it wouldn't last much longer.
But all he needed it to do was survive this next attack.
But he needed a moment longer to charge the attack in his battered and wounded condition, and she didn't seem like the type to stand around and wait.
But, she was still underestimating him. And that was his shot. If he could have her play into his hands, he may still have a chance out of this horrible situation. Unfortunately, that meant going outside of his comfort zone and getting vocal with his enemy.
"I do actually. After all, for a Demon Queen, you hardly seem that infallible." He taunted, still focusing everything he had within his blade, the sword hidden just out of her sight behind his armored body.
She clicked her tongue, struggling to pretend like his words didn't stab at her pride.
But it seemed to do the trick, as she stopped in her tracks, rolling the words around inside her head. He knew from how she carried herself that she wouldn't and couldn't let something like such open and blatant disrespect go so easily.
"I mean to say, you do seem to be struggling against a lowly mortal. Would a real Demon Queen find me as difficult as you are?" He asked, raising his eyebrow in question. Then his eyes widened slightly, as if realizing something important. "Oh, I see now. That must mean you're a fraud." He said decidedly, slowly inching backwards to give himself as much space and time as he could get.
"I've had enough of your nonsense, you wriggling worm!" She snapped, loosing her composure in the face of his taunts. "You should be begging for your life, bowing down to me in the vein hopes I'd spare your miserable existence!"
"No." He said lowly, exhaling as he suddenly lunged forward in a burst of speed. He ran straight forward, throwing her sword out of the way with his shield. Then he swung, putting everything he had left into this last attack.
His blade glowed a dull red with his power, slashing up across her face, before he repeatedly slashed and slashed, throwing everything he had at her.
Before, his attacks did little against her, mere metal and strength doing little to her demon body. But now, his blade empowered with his ancient technique passed down through the generations, focused his spirit into his blade and this time, she truly felt his strength.
Ghirahim recoiled in pain, stumbling backwards as his attacks slashed and stunned her body. "Enough!!" She roared, throwing him back.
He yelled in surprise as he was thrown from his feet, his body slamming into the cave walls. A moment later he fell, landing in a crumpled heap on the ground.
"I give you an inch and this is what I get?! I could've killed you in the beginning, but I felt like being merciful! Look where that got me, you've scarred my beautiful body!" She snarled, shaking with a dark evil power.
She teleported across the room, plucking him up off the ground by the collar of his surcoat. "Tell me, before I end your wretched miserable life, what the name of the mortal that dared to oppose me is. That way, when the next one comes along, I'll let them know who fell before them." She growled lowly in his face, holding him a foot off the ground.
Slowly he opened his eyes, his bright deep blue orbs seemingly glowing in the darkness of the dungeon. "My name… is Link…" He muttered lowly, refusing to look away as he stared her down with that blinding level of courage that it bordered on legendary. "And… I'm not planning on dying anytime soon…" He grinned widely, spitting blood in her face. He suddenly hoisted himself up in her grasp, throwing his feet forward, spring-boarding off of her breasts as he dropped a smoke bomb at the ground.
The entire area exploded in smoke, thick and black that it was blinding. Ghirahim stumbled backwards as he kicked her, hissing as his red blood blinded her temporarily.
She drew her blades again, ready to cut him down once the smoke vanished. It took a long moment for it to clear, but once it did, she realized something important.
He left her.
In that moment, when he kicked off of her, he slipped away, leaving her alone in her now empty dungeon.
She wanted to be angry, furious, outraged and burning with murderous anger.
But in that moment, all she could think of was the name the man gave her, and how the blue of his eyes reminded her of someone from many millennia ago…
"No… This mortal isn't my destined one…" She muttered, shaking her head. "I don't believe it, I refuse to." She snarled, before vanishing into the darkness…
He exploded out from the smoking tunnel that lead down into the Yiga clans hideout. He stumbled out, but didn't dare stop.
He knew she could've been right behind him the second she realized that he was gone, so he had no time to waste.
He kicked up off the ground, pulling out his shield before he landed on it. The yiga base was atop a steep hill within a canyon, which would allow him to shield surf away at blistering speeds.
By the time she'd reach the door where he'd escaped, he'd already be out of sight.
Something he noticed upon his escape was the sandstorm that was raging outside, something that would provide him an excellent place to hide.
It took only a few moments to escape the canyon that previously took minutes to scale, and now he was out into the desert once more.
He could see Gerudo Town in the distance, not too terribly far away.
Of course, that's when his shield, having held up under all that damage, finally gave way. "Oh." He intoned in surprise as it broke underneath him, sending him flying into the sandy dunes.
He hit the ground rolling, the sand quickly slowing his roll.
As he rolled to a stop, he found it nearly impossible to move. Every part of his body hurt, and his muscles were screaming at him for rest. But he also knew sleeping outside in the desert was a terrible idea, and that he'd probably not be safe until he was behind the walls of the town.
That being said, when he went to stand, his legs refused to work. He tried to summon his energy to stand, but there was barely anything left.
He stumbled to his feet, barely managing to not fall face first back into the cold sand below.
But, he was at his limit…
And yet, a little pink sprite chose that moment to appear from his pocket, flying around him with a mist of pink colored magic. She flew around him for a few moments, before tapping him on the nose with a tiny little wand. Then she flew away, vanishing into the storm.
He found it possible to stand now, rejuvenated somewhat. But he wasn't sure how long that magic spell she'd cast on him would last, or how effective it was. So he quickly made his way back to the town, approaching the front gate.
With his tired rattled brain doing most of the thinking now, he pulled out the Thunder Helmet, to show that he'd succeeded in what he'd been quested to do.
Upon returning to the town, the Gerudo all ran out to greet him. None could believe what they were looking at, and most guffawed in awe of his return and what he held in his hands.
However, they all cleared the way when Riju approached, clearing a path right through her people.
She walked up to him, a deeply pleased smile on her face, that and a bit of concern. "I'll be honest, no one expected you to return so quickly. Everyone in the desert heard that battle, those explosions in the canyon. I had ordered my women to prepare a party to go to your aid, but it seems that it wasn't necessary." She stated honestly, hands on her hips.
"Yet here you stand, the Thunder Helm within your possession. I'm quite impressed." She said honestly, stepping up to him. "Very… impressed." She added again slowly, trailing off as if she was distracted. She blinked as she approached him, eyes drawn to the horns sprouting from his forehead.
Those certainly weren't there before.
However, before she was even given the chance to comment on them, she noticed the state of the man that had already done so much for them. He looked like he was dead on his feet, riddled with wounds and cuts, bleeding from just about everywhere she could see, and had a nasty head wound, likely from one of the bombs she heard going off earlier.
Yet despite all that, he stood before her, that grin on his face, even though it was so tired and forced now.
"Come, bring him to my chambers and tend to him. He's greatly wounded." Riju urged quickly upon noticing his horrible condition.
"B-But Lady Riju? The law?" A guard asked, and for good reason. After all, he was a man.
Riju made a sound of irritation, clicking her tongue. "As of this moment, Link is to be forever allowed to freely come and go from the walls of this town. He has my personal blessing." She declared, all of her guard clearly hearing the new orders. "Once he is tended to, find me in my chambers." She ordered, disappearing into her home.
The civilians and guests within the town alike all gasped in surprise, whispering amongst themselves about this new revelation. Yet, ignoring them all, her personal guard helped Link to her house, seeing as he could barely stand on his own two feet.
He was dragged inside her home, the drapes to the front door slide shut for privacy. As the attendants assisted in removing his armor to tend to his great number of wounds, he couldn't help the smile that he had.
Despite all the pain and suffering he'd gone through up to this point, he could safely say that he'd given it his all, and he'd finally taken the first step and taking his kingdom back. And that first step lay within the helmet he had clutched tightly in his bloody hands.
That was the thought that comforted him and finally allowed him to fall asleep while being cared for, knowing he'd done his all to deserve some time for rest.
When the assistant's finally managed to strip him of his armor and when to direct him to a bath, they found him completely unconscious, the weight of his journey having finally caught up with him.
"Quick, grab Lady Riju. She wishes to cater to him personally." The first woman muttered to the second. The robed Gerudo woman quickly walked away, seeking out her chief...
Chapter
14
End
