Here's Chapter Three guys. :3 I'm trying to shorten the chapters so that they're easier to read now so I hope this is better. Please keep reading and as always, critiques of all kinds are welcome. Thank you!
Chapter Three
I woke up early the next morning, maybe hours before the sun set, and sat down in the middle of the open plain, staring at the sky. Everything inside me was wired with the thought of travelling through the land of Hyrule, and I couldn’t sleep for another second because of it. Luke had done it before… My brother had done it before, and I had proved last night that I can be everything he was. In fact… the thought didn’t scare me or discourage me. It left me even stronger, willing to face what is ahead, and righteous in filling my brother’s place. It felt like it was all that I ever was, and it was all I ever wanted to be.
And… going to Hyrule Castle… did that mean I might meet Princess Zelda? That’d be a huge honor to come face to face with the Princess of Hyrule! And maybe… just maybe… everything will turn out alright. I’ll come home as a representative of Ordon and everything will be perfect.
I sighed, leaning back on my hands and watching as the sky turned from the gold and purples of dawn, to the blues of the morning. I’ve never felt so great in all my life.
Epona was standing next to me, delicately grazing the long grasses of the field. She looked incredibly content, but she also had an ear pricked in my direction. Clearly she sensed the excitement in me.
I laughed and stood up, my movement catching her attention as she raised her head and nickered. I walked over to her, running my fingers through her mane, clicking my tongue and adjusting the new saddle Russell had put on her. This wasn’t the only time that she had to carry a lot of weight, with the new saddle full of supplies being placed on her back, but she didn’t seem to mind. In fact, I was starting to think that maybe she was just as excited as I was.
After making the final adjustments, I mounted her, giving her a small tap to move forward and out of the plain. I was just going to stop at the Mayor’s house to see if it was time to go when Leah ran up to me.
“I can’t believe you’re going!” she said, smiling. “Are you excited?”
I laughed. “Actually, I am. I can’t wait to see Hyrule.” I looked at her. “Is your father up?”
“Yeah, he’ll be out shortly.” She said.
“Ok.” I trotted alongside her in complete silence until we had gotten up to the Mayor’s house. It was then that Bo stepped out and called for me.
“Hey, Link. I have to tell you a few more things before you go!”
I groaned, rolling my eyes and pulling Epona to a stop. I left Epona to Leah as I dismounted and ran up to Bo. “Ok. What is it?”
“You’re the big guy here now, and as the representative of Ordon, you can’t be late for such a task.” He said, nervously rubbing his neck. “It’d be pretty bad if you were even an hour late, lad, so if anything, try to get there early and impress Her Highness, alright?”
I laughed. “Ok ok, I get it. I won’t be late, I promise…”
“Wait a minute… what’s this?” Leah muttered.
By the tone of her voice, I knew it wasn’t going to be good. She had that tilt in her words that clearly warned that she was about to chastise me for hours on end. But, for whatever the reason, I had to face it. Bo and I turned around to see Leah on her knees behind Epona’s right front leg, looking at something on her haunch.
Confused, I bent lower, only to see exactly what she saw. It was nothing but a little scratch on Epona’s skin, hardly even enough to draw blood. With a sarcastic glare securely plastered on my face, I turned to her. “Leah… it’s just a little scratch, she’s fine.”
Naturally, and exactly what I expected, Leah turned around and got directly in my face. “Just a scratch?! Link, how could you?! You were pushing Epona too hard again and cut her leg jumping fences, didn’t you?!”
Just as I was going to respond, Bo cut in. “Now now Leah, there’s absolutely no reason to get so hot with him before he leaves for his big trip…”
Enraged, Leah turned to him, yelling with so much force that I nearly flinched. “FATHER!! Why are YOU so easy on him?! You’re the MAYOR! You should start acting like one!” She turned to Epona, frantically stroking her mane and making her snort in disapproval. “You poor thing…”
I couldn’t blame Epona. With my mouth a gape, I stared at Bo and threw my hands up in frustration, mouthing ‘I didn’t do anything!’ at him.
He just looked at me and shrugged, obviously Leah had struck a nerve by yelling at him.
Growling in frustration, I rounded on Leah. I’m not putting up with this before my trip. “Leah. It’s. Just. A. Scratch.” I clipped my words, distinctly separating them. “She’s fine.”
Leah rounded on me again. “No! She’s not just an item, Link. She is an animal that needs to be taken care of.” Firmly grasping Epona’s reigns, she started leading her away, muttering something I couldn’t understand to her.
She jogged away with my horse while I stayed behind trying to get my anger under control. Of all the situations and times she has gotten overprotective with my horse; today is definitely not the right time! Locking my fingers behind my head, I turned to Bo. “Is there any way I could make it to Hyrule Castle without Epona?”
He shook his head. “No, Hyrule is very vast and the tributes you have to deliver are quite heavy. There’s no way you will be able to make it in time.”
With an agitated groan, I turned and found where Leah was disappearing in the forest with my horse and took off, trailing right behind her. I nearly ran into the woods after her when Talo and Malo stepped in my way.
“Hey Link! Yesterday was so awesome! Going into the woods was great! I was just telling Malo here about how me and you caught some nasty monsters but let them go cause he’d be too scared.”
Malo put on the exact same exasperated expression as me, obviously knowing that he was lying his butt off. “Right. Anyway, Leah came through here, I have to see her.”
Talo, put on his biggest “mean face” and looked up at me like he was going to beat me up. (I have to admit, I had to fight in order to keep myself from laughing.) “Leah told us not to let you through.”
I groaned. Of course that’s why they’re here. Thinking quickly, I figured that these kids really aren’t very good guards and would be distracted by anything. So, with a little hesitation, I unsheathed my sword and pointed it away from them. “If I gave you this for a day, would you promise to take good care of it and let me see Leah?”
Talo put away his “face” and tapped his chin. “Give it to me for two days and it’s a deal!” He finally said, grabbing for it.
I quickly raised it out of his reach and shook my finger in his face. “Nope, only a day. I need it too, you know.”
He groaned, rolling his eyes. “Ok ok, fine. One day, I’ll take care of it. Now give me it!” He started jumping for my sword again.
With a hesitant sigh, I finally lowered my arm and handed it to him. He snatched it from my grip, yelling like he won a thousand Rupees, and took off towards one of the scarecrows in front of my house.
“… I really hope he doesn’t break that.” I muttered. I was just going to run for Leah when Colin’s small voice stopped me.
“Link… that was really cool, what you did.” He said, holding his hands behind his back and walking up toward me. “I was going to go tell Leah that she shouldn’t take your horse without your permission, but she told them not to let anyone through and they started picking on me.”
I sighed, getting down on one knee and holding his shoulders. “It’s ok, buddy. Thanks for trying.”
He looked away from me to where Talo was swinging my sword wildly and shook his head. “I don’t like it… the idea of swinging something like that around. It’s scary and dangerous.” He looked back up at me, then quickly looked away. “But someday, I want to be just like you, Link. I want to be strong and learn how to ride a horse sometime. Do you think you can teach me?”
I smiled, feeling weightless knowing that this kid really looks up to me so much. “Yeah. I’ll teach you how to ride a horse sometime. I promise.” I said, hugging him.
He hugged me back. “Ok, I hope you get back soon!” He shouted over his shoulder as he ran back home.
I stood there for a second, letting his words sink in. He wanted to be like me… he said he wanted to be like me. I can’t believe he looks up to me so much. I sighed. I will teach him to ride a horse sometime. I promised him.
Nodding to myself to mentally confirm that promise, I spun on my heel and took off into the forest. There was the dirt path I followed that lead deeper into the forest, but knowing Leah, she probably took a different route. The only other way she could’ve gone was the dirt path that branched off of this one, leading to the Spirit Spring of my hometown.
Figuring that was where she was, I ran down that pathway, only to find the gate to the Spring locked shut with Leah cleaning Epona behind it “Leah!” I called.
She instantly stopped with she was doing and glared at me. “If you came here to take your horse back, you can just forget it. Why don’t you think about what you’ve done for a change?” Then she turned right back to Epona.
Enraged, I grasped the gate and shook it. “It was an accident! I didn’t even know it was there until you pointed it out!”
Cooly, without looking in my direction, she said: “I’m definitely not opening the gate until you change your attitude.”
Taking a deep breath, I stifled the urge to yell at her again and calmed down. Clearly being big and mean wasn’t going to cut it. “I’m sorry. If I knew that there was a cut on her leg, I would’ve fixed it. But you know that I’d never hurt my horse on purpose, it’s all I have left of my family… you can’t just take her from me.”
I knew I had struck a nerve in her when I saw her body jolt. I struck a nerve inside myself too. Epona was a gift given to me by my father; my mother used to always help me care for her and my brother taught me how to ride when I was old enough. With me living in a completely different house than the one I lived in with my family, Epona was all I really had left.
Leah shook her head, finally turning slightly to me. “I’m sorry… you’re right… I can’t take her from you.” Woodenly, she stood up, walked over to the gate and unlocked it. Then abruptly ran right back to where she once stood.
I stepped into the Spring, the cooling water soaking through my sandals and the sun reflecting off the water. This was a beautiful place, full of truth and guidance and love. It housed the Spirit of Light that watches my hometown, Ordona, symbolizing protection and honor… we couldn’t fight here. Not now… not ever.
… Truth…
“You’re scared for me… aren’t you?” I said, taking a few steps forward.
Leah bowed her head, obviously trying to hide her tears. She nodded faintly, not trusting her voice.
I stepped up to her, putting my hand on her shoulder and turning her so that she faced me. “I’m going to be ok. I know it.”
She nodded, still looking away from my gaze. When she finally looked at me, her eyes were full of tears. “Can you promise me something before you leave?” She whispered.
“Anything.” I said, pulling her into my arms.
She buried her head into my shoulder, shuddering, only to raise it a little to talk. “Not matter what happens on your journey, don’t do anything out of your league… Please…” She pulled away just enough to look me in the eyes. “Just come home safely.”
I took her words into my heart, nodding. “I swear, I’ll come back safely. I’ll be home before you know it…”
Suddenly, the ground began shaking. I jumped away from her and directed my attention at the gate where a huge boar and its grotesque looking mount ran right through the gate, sending splintered pieces of wood everywhere.
My first reaction was to stand by Leah and draw my blade, but then I realized it wasn’t on my back anymore. Completely helpless, I went to run to Leah’s side when an arrow struck her side, knocking her to the ground.
“LEAH!” I shrieked. Without second thought, I charged toward her broken body…
A flash of light blinded my vision…
I didn’t understand what it meant… but my body couldn’t hold me up anymore…
…Then the pain…
… The pain was so intense that it swallowed my world in darkness…
... Darkness…
Darkness… and a scarlet pain…
What’s happening?!
…
When I woke up… all I could focus on was the white-hot pain that seared through my skull. My eyesight was clouded… so much that everything I saw appeared to be colored with the scarlet hue of fresh blood…
… Blood…?!
I was lying in the middle of what I could now see as the Spirit Spring of my hometown. But the water was stained crimson with blood… as if there was a sacrifice made here for the Light Spirit… but something teased my mind… something wasn’t right. This blood… my lying in it… I sat up, reaching behind my head to feel a fresh gash in my skull. I pulled my hand back up to my face, wincing at the pain that touching my wound had caused, and wiped my vision clear with my other hand…
It was my blood… something had hit me…
Startled and now on full alert, I shot to my feet, ignoring the wave of nauseating weakness that washed over me. There were two spots of blood in the water… one was a lot smaller than the one I stood in… my mind teased at the image of two people and a horse… they were talking… then this creature…
With a shocked gasp, everything came to me. Leah was shot! I was rendered unconscious and Leah was shot! And they took her!
I didn’t remember my mind processing the command. I was already on my feet, following the dirt pathway into the deeper part of the woods, crossing the bridge before coming to a complete stop.
Where there should be a serene view of Faron Woods was a gigantic black wall blacking the path, distorting my already clouded and spotted vision. As I cautiously drew a little closer, foreign lettering and eye-like designs appeared, written in dazzling gold in comparison to the darkness that seemed to have shrouded the woods.
Panicking, I was anticipating trying to find my way around or even through this threatening obstacle when my instincts began screaming at me. Before I could even react to them, a black arm lashed from the wall, grasped my throat and yanked me inside the darkness.
…
My hands grasped at the demonic creature that held me in a vise-like grip, cutting me from any chances of catching my breath. I could feel my lungs burning from lack of oxygen as my eyes frantically searched the area, looking for some way to escape. What used to be the forest was now a desolate wasteland. Trees were knocked down and the beauty of the forest was absolutely destroyed, made non-existent by the darkness that had covered it. But that wasn’t it… black particles rose from the ground, only to disappear far up into the sky. Colors were all warped and rewritten, leaving no other hue besides the grays, blacks, reds, and browns of death and dying.
Through the fog of my choking mind… I finally conceived one precious thought:
“I have to get out of here!!”
Clutching with all my strength on the creatures hand, I continued to struggle, trying with no effect to pry its fingers from my throat. Unnerved, it continued to watch me with a grotesque head that had no signs of a face, as if I was the most fascinating victim it had caught in its grasp.
Suddenly, I felt a jolt of power surge through my left arm, ending abruptly at my hand. The power disappeared with a quick flash of light, scaring the creature and making it throw me in a panic.
I landed hard on my hands and knees, knocking the already non-existent air out of me. I struggled to my feet, gasping for every breath, but I couldn’t get any air in. It was like I was underwater with millions of pounds of pressure pushing me down. I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t think, I couldn’t move… I was about to give up when a surge of pain shot through my body, making me raise my head towards the blackened sky and scream. I felt my bones grinding together, muscles tearing and renewing themselves, my entire body twisting into a different form. With another blinding surge of pain, I shrieked into the sky once more, only to stop as I heard my weakened voice mix into the howl of another creature…
… Darkness swallowed me again…
… But… This time… I was alone…
… And I understood the danger I was in… I was just too weak…
… I couldn’t move… My body felt crushed… grinded into a bloody pulp…
… I was sure I was dead…
… I was sure that I had died…
Chapter Three
I woke up early the next morning, maybe hours before the sun set, and sat down in the middle of the open plain, staring at the sky. Everything inside me was wired with the thought of travelling through the land of Hyrule, and I couldn’t sleep for another second because of it. Luke had done it before… My brother had done it before, and I had proved last night that I can be everything he was. In fact… the thought didn’t scare me or discourage me. It left me even stronger, willing to face what is ahead, and righteous in filling my brother’s place. It felt like it was all that I ever was, and it was all I ever wanted to be.
And… going to Hyrule Castle… did that mean I might meet Princess Zelda? That’d be a huge honor to come face to face with the Princess of Hyrule! And maybe… just maybe… everything will turn out alright. I’ll come home as a representative of Ordon and everything will be perfect.
I sighed, leaning back on my hands and watching as the sky turned from the gold and purples of dawn, to the blues of the morning. I’ve never felt so great in all my life.
Epona was standing next to me, delicately grazing the long grasses of the field. She looked incredibly content, but she also had an ear pricked in my direction. Clearly she sensed the excitement in me.
I laughed and stood up, my movement catching her attention as she raised her head and nickered. I walked over to her, running my fingers through her mane, clicking my tongue and adjusting the new saddle Russell had put on her. This wasn’t the only time that she had to carry a lot of weight, with the new saddle full of supplies being placed on her back, but she didn’t seem to mind. In fact, I was starting to think that maybe she was just as excited as I was.
After making the final adjustments, I mounted her, giving her a small tap to move forward and out of the plain. I was just going to stop at the Mayor’s house to see if it was time to go when Leah ran up to me.
“I can’t believe you’re going!” she said, smiling. “Are you excited?”
I laughed. “Actually, I am. I can’t wait to see Hyrule.” I looked at her. “Is your father up?”
“Yeah, he’ll be out shortly.” She said.
“Ok.” I trotted alongside her in complete silence until we had gotten up to the Mayor’s house. It was then that Bo stepped out and called for me.
“Hey, Link. I have to tell you a few more things before you go!”
I groaned, rolling my eyes and pulling Epona to a stop. I left Epona to Leah as I dismounted and ran up to Bo. “Ok. What is it?”
“You’re the big guy here now, and as the representative of Ordon, you can’t be late for such a task.” He said, nervously rubbing his neck. “It’d be pretty bad if you were even an hour late, lad, so if anything, try to get there early and impress Her Highness, alright?”
I laughed. “Ok ok, I get it. I won’t be late, I promise…”
“Wait a minute… what’s this?” Leah muttered.
By the tone of her voice, I knew it wasn’t going to be good. She had that tilt in her words that clearly warned that she was about to chastise me for hours on end. But, for whatever the reason, I had to face it. Bo and I turned around to see Leah on her knees behind Epona’s right front leg, looking at something on her haunch.
Confused, I bent lower, only to see exactly what she saw. It was nothing but a little scratch on Epona’s skin, hardly even enough to draw blood. With a sarcastic glare securely plastered on my face, I turned to her. “Leah… it’s just a little scratch, she’s fine.”
Naturally, and exactly what I expected, Leah turned around and got directly in my face. “Just a scratch?! Link, how could you?! You were pushing Epona too hard again and cut her leg jumping fences, didn’t you?!”
Just as I was going to respond, Bo cut in. “Now now Leah, there’s absolutely no reason to get so hot with him before he leaves for his big trip…”
Enraged, Leah turned to him, yelling with so much force that I nearly flinched. “FATHER!! Why are YOU so easy on him?! You’re the MAYOR! You should start acting like one!” She turned to Epona, frantically stroking her mane and making her snort in disapproval. “You poor thing…”
I couldn’t blame Epona. With my mouth a gape, I stared at Bo and threw my hands up in frustration, mouthing ‘I didn’t do anything!’ at him.
He just looked at me and shrugged, obviously Leah had struck a nerve by yelling at him.
Growling in frustration, I rounded on Leah. I’m not putting up with this before my trip. “Leah. It’s. Just. A. Scratch.” I clipped my words, distinctly separating them. “She’s fine.”
Leah rounded on me again. “No! She’s not just an item, Link. She is an animal that needs to be taken care of.” Firmly grasping Epona’s reigns, she started leading her away, muttering something I couldn’t understand to her.
She jogged away with my horse while I stayed behind trying to get my anger under control. Of all the situations and times she has gotten overprotective with my horse; today is definitely not the right time! Locking my fingers behind my head, I turned to Bo. “Is there any way I could make it to Hyrule Castle without Epona?”
He shook his head. “No, Hyrule is very vast and the tributes you have to deliver are quite heavy. There’s no way you will be able to make it in time.”
With an agitated groan, I turned and found where Leah was disappearing in the forest with my horse and took off, trailing right behind her. I nearly ran into the woods after her when Talo and Malo stepped in my way.
“Hey Link! Yesterday was so awesome! Going into the woods was great! I was just telling Malo here about how me and you caught some nasty monsters but let them go cause he’d be too scared.”
Malo put on the exact same exasperated expression as me, obviously knowing that he was lying his butt off. “Right. Anyway, Leah came through here, I have to see her.”
Talo, put on his biggest “mean face” and looked up at me like he was going to beat me up. (I have to admit, I had to fight in order to keep myself from laughing.) “Leah told us not to let you through.”
I groaned. Of course that’s why they’re here. Thinking quickly, I figured that these kids really aren’t very good guards and would be distracted by anything. So, with a little hesitation, I unsheathed my sword and pointed it away from them. “If I gave you this for a day, would you promise to take good care of it and let me see Leah?”
Talo put away his “face” and tapped his chin. “Give it to me for two days and it’s a deal!” He finally said, grabbing for it.
I quickly raised it out of his reach and shook my finger in his face. “Nope, only a day. I need it too, you know.”
He groaned, rolling his eyes. “Ok ok, fine. One day, I’ll take care of it. Now give me it!” He started jumping for my sword again.
With a hesitant sigh, I finally lowered my arm and handed it to him. He snatched it from my grip, yelling like he won a thousand Rupees, and took off towards one of the scarecrows in front of my house.
“… I really hope he doesn’t break that.” I muttered. I was just going to run for Leah when Colin’s small voice stopped me.
“Link… that was really cool, what you did.” He said, holding his hands behind his back and walking up toward me. “I was going to go tell Leah that she shouldn’t take your horse without your permission, but she told them not to let anyone through and they started picking on me.”
I sighed, getting down on one knee and holding his shoulders. “It’s ok, buddy. Thanks for trying.”
He looked away from me to where Talo was swinging my sword wildly and shook his head. “I don’t like it… the idea of swinging something like that around. It’s scary and dangerous.” He looked back up at me, then quickly looked away. “But someday, I want to be just like you, Link. I want to be strong and learn how to ride a horse sometime. Do you think you can teach me?”
I smiled, feeling weightless knowing that this kid really looks up to me so much. “Yeah. I’ll teach you how to ride a horse sometime. I promise.” I said, hugging him.
He hugged me back. “Ok, I hope you get back soon!” He shouted over his shoulder as he ran back home.
I stood there for a second, letting his words sink in. He wanted to be like me… he said he wanted to be like me. I can’t believe he looks up to me so much. I sighed. I will teach him to ride a horse sometime. I promised him.
Nodding to myself to mentally confirm that promise, I spun on my heel and took off into the forest. There was the dirt path I followed that lead deeper into the forest, but knowing Leah, she probably took a different route. The only other way she could’ve gone was the dirt path that branched off of this one, leading to the Spirit Spring of my hometown.
Figuring that was where she was, I ran down that pathway, only to find the gate to the Spring locked shut with Leah cleaning Epona behind it “Leah!” I called.
She instantly stopped with she was doing and glared at me. “If you came here to take your horse back, you can just forget it. Why don’t you think about what you’ve done for a change?” Then she turned right back to Epona.
Enraged, I grasped the gate and shook it. “It was an accident! I didn’t even know it was there until you pointed it out!”
Cooly, without looking in my direction, she said: “I’m definitely not opening the gate until you change your attitude.”
Taking a deep breath, I stifled the urge to yell at her again and calmed down. Clearly being big and mean wasn’t going to cut it. “I’m sorry. If I knew that there was a cut on her leg, I would’ve fixed it. But you know that I’d never hurt my horse on purpose, it’s all I have left of my family… you can’t just take her from me.”
I knew I had struck a nerve in her when I saw her body jolt. I struck a nerve inside myself too. Epona was a gift given to me by my father; my mother used to always help me care for her and my brother taught me how to ride when I was old enough. With me living in a completely different house than the one I lived in with my family, Epona was all I really had left.
Leah shook her head, finally turning slightly to me. “I’m sorry… you’re right… I can’t take her from you.” Woodenly, she stood up, walked over to the gate and unlocked it. Then abruptly ran right back to where she once stood.
I stepped into the Spring, the cooling water soaking through my sandals and the sun reflecting off the water. This was a beautiful place, full of truth and guidance and love. It housed the Spirit of Light that watches my hometown, Ordona, symbolizing protection and honor… we couldn’t fight here. Not now… not ever.
… Truth…
“You’re scared for me… aren’t you?” I said, taking a few steps forward.
Leah bowed her head, obviously trying to hide her tears. She nodded faintly, not trusting her voice.
I stepped up to her, putting my hand on her shoulder and turning her so that she faced me. “I’m going to be ok. I know it.”
She nodded, still looking away from my gaze. When she finally looked at me, her eyes were full of tears. “Can you promise me something before you leave?” She whispered.
“Anything.” I said, pulling her into my arms.
She buried her head into my shoulder, shuddering, only to raise it a little to talk. “Not matter what happens on your journey, don’t do anything out of your league… Please…” She pulled away just enough to look me in the eyes. “Just come home safely.”
I took her words into my heart, nodding. “I swear, I’ll come back safely. I’ll be home before you know it…”
Suddenly, the ground began shaking. I jumped away from her and directed my attention at the gate where a huge boar and its grotesque looking mount ran right through the gate, sending splintered pieces of wood everywhere.
My first reaction was to stand by Leah and draw my blade, but then I realized it wasn’t on my back anymore. Completely helpless, I went to run to Leah’s side when an arrow struck her side, knocking her to the ground.
“LEAH!” I shrieked. Without second thought, I charged toward her broken body…
A flash of light blinded my vision…
I didn’t understand what it meant… but my body couldn’t hold me up anymore…
…Then the pain…
… The pain was so intense that it swallowed my world in darkness…
... Darkness…
Darkness… and a scarlet pain…
What’s happening?!
…
When I woke up… all I could focus on was the white-hot pain that seared through my skull. My eyesight was clouded… so much that everything I saw appeared to be colored with the scarlet hue of fresh blood…
… Blood…?!
I was lying in the middle of what I could now see as the Spirit Spring of my hometown. But the water was stained crimson with blood… as if there was a sacrifice made here for the Light Spirit… but something teased my mind… something wasn’t right. This blood… my lying in it… I sat up, reaching behind my head to feel a fresh gash in my skull. I pulled my hand back up to my face, wincing at the pain that touching my wound had caused, and wiped my vision clear with my other hand…
It was my blood… something had hit me…
Startled and now on full alert, I shot to my feet, ignoring the wave of nauseating weakness that washed over me. There were two spots of blood in the water… one was a lot smaller than the one I stood in… my mind teased at the image of two people and a horse… they were talking… then this creature…
With a shocked gasp, everything came to me. Leah was shot! I was rendered unconscious and Leah was shot! And they took her!
I didn’t remember my mind processing the command. I was already on my feet, following the dirt pathway into the deeper part of the woods, crossing the bridge before coming to a complete stop.
Where there should be a serene view of Faron Woods was a gigantic black wall blacking the path, distorting my already clouded and spotted vision. As I cautiously drew a little closer, foreign lettering and eye-like designs appeared, written in dazzling gold in comparison to the darkness that seemed to have shrouded the woods.
Panicking, I was anticipating trying to find my way around or even through this threatening obstacle when my instincts began screaming at me. Before I could even react to them, a black arm lashed from the wall, grasped my throat and yanked me inside the darkness.
…
My hands grasped at the demonic creature that held me in a vise-like grip, cutting me from any chances of catching my breath. I could feel my lungs burning from lack of oxygen as my eyes frantically searched the area, looking for some way to escape. What used to be the forest was now a desolate wasteland. Trees were knocked down and the beauty of the forest was absolutely destroyed, made non-existent by the darkness that had covered it. But that wasn’t it… black particles rose from the ground, only to disappear far up into the sky. Colors were all warped and rewritten, leaving no other hue besides the grays, blacks, reds, and browns of death and dying.
Through the fog of my choking mind… I finally conceived one precious thought:
“I have to get out of here!!”
Clutching with all my strength on the creatures hand, I continued to struggle, trying with no effect to pry its fingers from my throat. Unnerved, it continued to watch me with a grotesque head that had no signs of a face, as if I was the most fascinating victim it had caught in its grasp.
Suddenly, I felt a jolt of power surge through my left arm, ending abruptly at my hand. The power disappeared with a quick flash of light, scaring the creature and making it throw me in a panic.
I landed hard on my hands and knees, knocking the already non-existent air out of me. I struggled to my feet, gasping for every breath, but I couldn’t get any air in. It was like I was underwater with millions of pounds of pressure pushing me down. I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t think, I couldn’t move… I was about to give up when a surge of pain shot through my body, making me raise my head towards the blackened sky and scream. I felt my bones grinding together, muscles tearing and renewing themselves, my entire body twisting into a different form. With another blinding surge of pain, I shrieked into the sky once more, only to stop as I heard my weakened voice mix into the howl of another creature…
… Darkness swallowed me again…
… But… This time… I was alone…
… And I understood the danger I was in… I was just too weak…
… I couldn’t move… My body felt crushed… grinded into a bloody pulp…
… I was sure I was dead…
… I was sure that I had died…
