Born a Weapon

A Twilight Princess Fan story

Chapter 18

Monster

When Midna found out crossing Hyrule Field would take at least a few days, she was very upset. Midna complained about the time relentlessly, occasionally blaming Link for not telling her earlier. That was fair, he did forget, but he wouldn't admit that since it would only encourage her further. Link simply kept walking, ignoring everything Midna said. No matter how much she complained, it wouldn't change how long the crossing would take.

The first day was uneventful. Around the beginning of his journey, he ran into some bokoblins, but he was able the sneak past them without incident. The trees began to thin out, but he was still able to find one to sleep under for the night. He set up the makeshift beds, positioning Midna's so she would be in the shade when the sun rose. Link doubted Midna would be willing to a watch shift, so he tried to pick a tree out of sight and on a hill. While Link waited for sleep, he thought of everything that had happened. He might find the people from Ordon in Eldin, and he hoped he would find Epona there too. It was likely since she was probably taken by the bulbins too.

On the second day, Link spotted a large group of bulbins on the field. They seemed to be setting up a large camp, and Link noticed several smoke pillars behind the camp, likely from campfires.

"Well, this complicated things," Link commented, lying on a hill. He was far away enough there was no chance of the bulbins hearing him, so he could safely discuss the situation with Midna.

"No kidding," She was hovering on Link's left, examining the crowd, and quickly lowered to the ground when Link told her to. "What are you going to do?"

"I'm definitely not going to fight them."

"So, sneak through then. I saw you sneak up on those guys outside the giant tree."

"There's too many bulbins and not enough hiding places, and I can't merge with shadows like you. I'd never make it."

"Then what are you going to do?" Link took out his map and darted his eyes between the bulbins and the paper and then to the left.

"We'll have to go around and cut through the center of Hyrule field," Link announced as he put away his map.

"Around?! How long will that take?!"

"A while," Link responded, already walking, "but it's either that or get killed by an army."

"Ugh! I hate this!" Midna merged with Link's shadow, and they began making their way around the bulbins. Nothing else of note happened for a while, aside from arguments about where to rest. Link didn't want to sleep without the high ground, but he sometimes conceded since there weren't always elevated trees in sight, and Midna needed to be in the shade when morning came. When Link reached the center of Hyrule Field, he prepared himself to change direction and start making his way back to Eldin province, but distinct fighting noises caught his attention. Before Link could ask if Midna heard it as well, an unmistakable shriek pierced the air causing him to cover his ears and Midna to cry out. There was only one sound he knew that could cause pain.

It was a Shadow Beast.

Link picked up his speed, running as fast as he could and drawing his weapon. As Link approached, he heard the voice of a man.

"Oh, come on! That's cheating! RAAAAAAHH!" An explosion reached Link's ears, and he finally saw what he was looking for. Two Shadow Beasts could be seen standing next to three others that were dead.

"We're too late…" Midna said sadly from Link's left.

"There's no body. That guy has to be around here somewhere!"

"They don't leave bodies…"

"What are you-" Link's question was interrupted by a Shadow beast rushing him, and he moved aside to avoid the attack. Midna looked at the floor sadly, lost in a daze as she thought of something. She noticed the approach of a Shadow Beast but was not concerned since she was in her shadowy form. Just before the monster could make an attack, a sword pierced its chest, and blood flew out of its wound and through Midna's body, who yelped and turned away in disgust.

"Did you have to kill it right in front of me?! You know it would just phase through me!" The Shadow Beast fell to the ground with a thud and burst into particles, disappearing.

"Yes, I know, sorry about that." Wait, that wasn't Link, "but you provided a great distraction, and I needed to time my strike with your friend's." Midna turned around to see a man standing before her with a kind smile. He had blue eyes, short brown hair, and was wearing leather armor with metal buckles. A blue shirt and pants could be seen between the pieces of his armor, especially at his elbows and knees, and he held a sword and shield much different from Link's. The man's sword seemed to only be sharpened on one side and had two goldish-colored spots on the not-sharp side. His shield was much smaller than Link's, only covering his forearm and a small area beyond it, but the shield had a blade sticking out of the front over his hand. The blade retracted completely before the man sheathed his sword on his back and attached his shield there as well, just like Link, except this man was right-handed. But the most unusual thing to Midna was that he didn't seem surprised at her appearance. Link jogged up to the two of them and darted his eyes between Midna and the strange man, realizing Midna had been revealed.

"Uhm…" Link began, unsure what to say.

"Before you say anything, I want to thank you for helping me," the man extended his hand, which Link took. The man didn't seem to catch on to how surprised Link and Midna were and was treating the encounter like he had just casually met two strangers.

"Uh, no problem?"

"I am Mr. Case, but just call me Justin! Who are you two?"

"Uhm, I'm Link, and this is Midna," Link said, gesturing to his floating companion. "Are you the one I heard screaming just before an explosion?"

"Ah! Yes! I got a bit upset at those things' ability to revive each other, so I blew them up!"

"How? Do you have a bomb?"

"I had a bomb," Justin said, raising his right hand with his pointer finger extended. After saying that, he spun around without moving much of his body and tilted his wrist to point at the sunset. "It's getting dark," Justin spun around, so his finger pointed at Link, "you shouldn't wander Hyrule field at night. So! Since you helped me with those beats, I will give you guys a free night at the inn!"

"Inn?" Link questioned. Justin pointed his thumb behind him, and both Link and Midna leaned around him and saw some buildings. "Oh."

The three of them started making their way to the buildings, and on the way, Link noticed the portal the Shadow Beasts likely came out of nearby. When they finally reached their destination, Link and Midna noticed the place was surprisingly empty. It was about the size of Ordon but slightly bigger, and everything was in pristine condition, but there wasn't a single person in sight.

"So, is this a village?" Midna asked, floating ahead so she could see Justin's face. She was just waiting for him to freak out, to suddenly realize how unusual she was, and show some reaction. "Where are all the people?"

"Oh, I'm the only one who lives here, so far at least."

"Wait, what?" Midna stopped floating forward and glanced around, "but there are so many buildings!" Justin stopped moving forward and spun around to face Midna, and Link halted his walking.

"I know, and I hope they will be filled with people one day!" Justin turned around and gestured to the buildings around him, "this is my village! I build it! And I hope one day it will see its purpose fulfilled!" Link and Midna exchanged glances before examining their surroundings again. Link questioned how one man had managed to build all of this by himself, but it did explain why it was deserted.

"You built all this?!" Midna questioned with shock.

"Yup!"

"So… what do you call this place?" Link asked.

"I. Have. No idea!" Justin said triumphantly with his fists on his hips. "I suck at names." All three were silent for a while, and Link and Midna waited for Justin to either say something else or resume walking. Just before Link could say something, Justin spoke. "Right! Inn! This way." Justin started walking again and entered a large building.

"He's weird," Midna stated.

"Maybe, but he's giving us a place to stay." Link pointed to the portal in the sky nearby, "can you get that portal before something comes out of it."

"But that guy is right there!" Midna pointed to the building Justin disappeared into, "I don't want him to see me use magic!"

"He's inside! He won't see! Come on, get the portal before more Shadow Beasts show up."

"Ugh! Fine!" Midna darted off to the portal, and Link watched as it changed colors. "There!" Midna said when she returned to Link's side, "I did it!"

"Thank you!" Justin shouted from inside the building.

'Wha-?! How?!" Midna demanded.

"Window?" Link shrugged before walking into the building. Midna floated in place for a few seconds, still trying to figure out how Justin could possibly tell what she did but chased after Link when she realized she was left alone outside. Link entered the inn and looked around. It was an average-sized room with a desk and a few seats for people to wait in and had a door on the left leading into another room. "Justin?"

"Got it!" Justin emerged from under the desk with a key in his hand, startling Midna. Justin made his way up the stairs, and Link moved to follow but stopped to glance behind the desk. "You coming?" Link turned around to see Justin's head, and only his head, peeking out from the roof into the staircase.

"You first," Midna said, nudging Link forward. Link rolled his eyes and followed Justin, who removed his head from Link's view when he reached the stairs. Justin led his guests down a hallway and opened a door on the right side near the end. Inside was a decently sized room with two beds, a table with chairs, and another door that led to a bathroom. A window sat near the table and had its wooden covers open, letting in the last of the setting sun.

"Well, here you go! This two-person room is yours for the night!" Justin handed the key to Link and gestured to the floor below. "If you get hungry, the kitchen is downstairs in the room next to the lobby. Just don't touch the wine on the wall. That's reserved for birthdays." Justin was going to say something else but stopped himself. "It's not your birthday, right?"

"No, not mine. I don't know hers, though."

"You missed it. It was a little while ago."

"Well, if either of you need anything, just call my name. I'll be around somewhere." With that, Justin left, closing the door behind him.

"Your birthday was a little while ago?" Link asked Midna, who cast off her shadowy form and floated over to the left bed.

"Just before I met you, actually."

"Wait, wouldn't that mean your birthday got… trashed?" Link asked. Midna scoffed in a fake amused tone, clearly getting aggravated, but not at Link.

"Yeah. Trashed. You could say that." Midna removed the Fused Shadow from her head and tossed it on the bed. "Worst day of my life."

"So… how old are you now?" Link asked, hoping to make small talk to calm Midna down.

"Nineteen." The quick and cold response told Link Midna was not interested in talking, so Link simply sat on the other bed in silence. He had a question he needed to ask, but he would wait for Midna to calm down a bit. "This bed is way better than those crappy things we've been sleeping on." Link gave a half-hearted chuckle, taking the statement as a sign that Midna was ready to talk again.

"I've got a question, Midna, and something tells me I'm not going to like the answer." Link leaned forward, resting his arms on his knees. "Why don't the Shadow Beasts leave bodies?" Midna turned away from Link, hiding her face.

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean."

"I don't want to talk about this," Midna whispered after a few seconds of silence.

"Midna-"

"Shut up, Link."

"Midna." Link insisted, "why don't they leave bodies?"

"…"

Midna did not want to answer, but Link was determined. He sat with his gaze fixed on Midna, which made her uncomfortable. Even after she floated away and turned around, she could feel Link's gaze on her back.

"It's been a long day. Let's just get some sleep." Midna suggested, turning around to face Link. Link just stared. "Come on. We have to get moving tomorrow." Link just stared. "Stop staring at me like that!"

"…Why. Don't the Shadow Beasts. Leave bodies?"

"Link…" Midna uttered through gritted teeth.

"Why?" Link repeated with more force in his voice.

"BECAUSE THEY ARE THE BODIES!" Link widened his eyes in surprise, unsure what Midna meant, but knew she wasn't done yet. "Is that what you want to hear?! Huh?! You just need to know, don't you?!" Midna floated up to Link and grabbed his green collar, shaking him as she screamed. "Well, here's your answer, Link! The Shadow Beasts turn people into more of themselves! Everyone you've killed was a person once! An innocent person turned into a mindless beast and forced to fight against their will! And no one is safe from that fate! You could have killed an old man, a mother, a father! You could have killed a BABY!" Midna shoved Link back, releasing his shirt and pointing her finger in his face. "But you just go right ahead and kill them! You walk up to them without worrying about being transformed because you're so special! A great hero who murders what was once people in the name of your precious light world!"

As Midna said her last sentence, she began to slam her fists into Link's chest, but he was too stunned to care. He just sat there trying to process what Midna said. Eventually, he slowly stood from where he was sitting and walked out the door, ignoring Midna's demand to know where he was going. Honestly, He didn't know either. Link left the room's door ajar and went down the stairs and through the door into the night air. Everything was numb as he walked down the path, not caring where he ended up.

He had killed people. Innocent people. People who didn't want to fight. People who had families. People who didn't do anything wrong. People who didn't deserve to die. Link was supposed to be a hero. He was supposed to save both his world and Midna's. Instead, he had killed their inhabitants. The blood of innocent people was on his hands. He called what he fought monsters, but who was the real monster here?

Countless thoughts ran through Link's mind, and he felt like he was going mad. He felt such guilt inside, and it turned to anger. Anger that he released on a nearby small tree. He punched the tree as hard as he could over and over again while screaming at the top of his lungs in rage, not noticing he was damaging his hands. Link had taken out his sword at some point, though he wasn't sure when. He swung at the tree and didn't stop until he had completely cut through, cutting it down.

Link stood still for a few minutes, gripping his sword tightly and breathing heavily. His eyes darted down to the sword in his hands, and he swore he could see the blood of innocents on it, hear the screams of people as he cut them down. With a shout, Link threw his sword as hard as he could and watched it fly and land far away before he fell to his knees and held his head in his hands.

Did you realize the joke in Justin's name?