The Legend Of Zelda Fan Fiction ❯ A Ruby Surrounded By Sapphires ❯ A Great Journey ( Chapter 14 )

A Ruby Surrounded By Sapphires

 

Warnings: Um...Angst, yaoi, angst, cute little girls, angst, inner monologues..Oh, did I mention angst?

Disclaimer: Not mine. Don't sue. No more places to hide bodies.

 

Chapter 14

A Great Journey

 

The power I had gathered ran rampant. Fires blazed all around, burning and ripping screams from its victims. Bodies writhed in agony with no hope of survival from the heat of death. Even those on the throne were subject to the terror. And in the center of it all was a shining, bluish orb, scarcely big enough for the man it encased. He punched and kicked the surface, throwing his whole weight at it in his mad try to freedom. Tears raced down his cheeks, his mouth open as he cried out to ears deaf to him.

I lay in it all, eyes rooted to the ceiling as their pained screams filled my ears. I had no energy left for moving, not even when the flames bit at my hands and legs, singing my hair.

So…. I was finally going to die.

As the last of my enemies fell, the flames receded back to the ethereal river as did the orb-shield. He raced to my side, falling to his knees upon the scorched and still hot floor. I felt very little as he pulled me into his arms, murmuring nonsense in hysteria. Around him was a world of death, black clutching to each surface and charred bodies laying still. Even my lovely queen and child were gone, taken by my power.

"Hold on, Sheik," he whispered desperately. "Hold on, love, I'll think of something, just don't die."

He held me against his chest as he fumbled for something from his pocket. His body against mine comforted me. I had no strength to even lift my head and every breath pained me. Slowly, my eyes drifted to see what he was trying for. The shine of an ocarina surprised me, but never the less I watched him put it to his lips and play. It took him a few tries before he got the melody correct. I felt the magic surround us before we were lifted from the ground and taken elsewhere.

I'd never thought of using a transportation song for more than just myself.

When we arrived, he ran past the jewel laden front and on through the Door of Time. My would was darkening, but I still felt reverence for the Temple of Time. We had visited it often, Zelda and I.

Zelda.

I was slipping too quickly. I tried to hang on as long as I could, for his sake. There was no true wish in me to die, but I could see no way I would live this time.

His cry awoke me and I opened bleary eyes. My sight was strange and dark, his fear filled face shining with tears. He held me tightly to him as he unsheathed the sword at his back. My mind was growing too fuzzy for me to even guess at what he intended. Holding the sword tightly in his hand, he slowly lowered it to the pedestal before us. Then, with a jerk, he slammed the blade into it. Once again, I felt magics and let my eyes go to his face once more. I let the smile come to my face and then let everything go as I listed one last time to his voice, strangled in the scream of one name.

"RAURU!"

I drifted for a long time, caught between life and death as my body continued to survive. There was little reason to keep track of time. That was a concept that slipped through my fingers and eventually grew meaningless. I simply drifted, letting rest come finally.

Of course, it was quite a surprise to be jerked away from the dark comfort and back into the light. Pain ran rampant through my body, some dull and some sharp, but all of it forming a blanket of pain. My eyes refused to open, too weak to respond. All of my body was too weak to move. The power I had unleashed had taken a serious toll on me.

I slipped in and out of the darkness, awakening to hushed voices and comforting touches. I could not help but wonder if I had all the time in the world. It seemed to me that I laid there a long time before I could even move a finger. When I did, a hiss left me as pain streaked up my arm. My eyes slid open and I stared upward .

"Sheik!" My eyes redirected to center on a figure sitting beside me. His blue eyes were wide and relieved, soft happiness filling them. "Oh Sheik.I'm so glad you're awake...I thought you were going to die."

I wasn't dead? My wide eyes stared up at him in incomprehension. I'd been skewered! Bleed profusely! Overused magic! And.I wasn't dead? My confusion had no suddenly, it didn't matter anymore as he threw his arms around me and hugged me tightly, his shoulders shacking with dry sobs. Slowly, my heavy arms rose to gently stroke his back, the only comfort I could give him.

"'ve awakened." I lifted my eyes to the elderly man who stood only a small ways from us. He radiated power that hit me like a slap to the face. It enveloped everything around me, containing and manipulating. I was amazed at the sheer power this man then I understood who he was.

"Light," I murmured softly, my voice rough. Link sat up and glanced back at the other before turning to me.

"His name is Rauru. He's the Sage of Light."

I slowly nodded my head, but my eyes were riveted on the Sage's form. Rauru's stern face softened and he came to my bedside.

"You would have died, had Link not brought you here," he said. "The wounds were grave, , I fear more challenges await you when you are ready to leave this place."

"Where are we?" I asked. He waved a hand and the world around us melted away to another. Sunlight shone down upon we three, warm and comforting, as grass sprung up under. A gentle wind played in our hair and quiet sounds filtered through our ears. I slowly sat up with Link helping to support me, my eyes wide as I gazed upon the flowered field we had appeared in. "I don't understand."

"This is the Sacred Realm," said Link gently. "It can be anything Rauru makes it."

The Sacred Realm.I had never thought that I'd ever see it, much less be enveloped within it's mighty power. I felt humbled by the awesome sight. Link rubbed my hand soothingly before helping me to stand. I leaned against him heavily. My body was very weakened.

"Thank you for healing me," I told Rauru, bowing my head. "I am forever grateful."

"Don't be quick to thank me, child," he said. I looked at him quizzically and he continued. "Time has stopped outside of this place. When Zelda died, her powers came to me until the next Sage of Time could be awakened. I have limited control, but it is enough to help you save this land."

"It's been saved," I said savagely, eyes burning. "Ganondorf is dead! The threat is gone!"

"As are the Sage of Time, Zelda, and the holder of the Triforce of Power, Slade," he countered. I fell silent and turned my angry gaze away. "Without Zelda, Hyrule will plunge into a dark age with no central ruler. Do you understand what this means, Sheik of the Sheikah? It will be as if Ganondorf had won."

"What do you expect me to do about it?" I growled. Link tightened his hold on me.

"He wants us to travel back in time to the point before Ganondorf's spirit was freed," my lover murmured gently to me. I glanced up at him, reading his face, but said nothing. "We could find out how it happened at all, all of this. Slade would never have been possessed, nor Zelda controlled. Kakariko would be standing. Your mother wouldn't have died!"

Aridine. I shut my eyes and let my head drop against his shoulder. All of it... prevented? My home, my family, all restored.

"All right," I said finally in quiet acceptance. "All right, I'll do it."

"Good. Now rest, child. You must go back to your normal self quickly."

Link stayed at my side while I regained my strength. We spent much of our time curled in each other's arms, as if to combat the fear of what we would soon do. I was very afraid, but still determined. There was too much at stake not to try.

Rauru left us be, often disappearing from the strange dreamscape he made for us. We had no need for sustenance there, the magics keeping us healthy. I healed quite quickly in that environment. It refueled my magical reserves and repaired my connection to the ethereal river.

At last, he could leave us no longer. His power was growing weak and keeping time stopped outside the Realm was making him tired. Link and I stood together in the center platform of the Temple, looking upon this would be savior. His old face was more haggard, lines showing where they had not before.

"Once you are back, remove the Master Sword and I will send you back. However. Time is not my true power. My accuracy may not be precise."

"It's okay," Link said to him, smiling softly. "We know you're doing your best. If we don't get to the right time...We'll live with it."

Rauru nodded. "Yes. If I am correct, travel to the clans beyond the Gerudo. It is there you must find Riaru. He is the only one who would know how Ganondorf managed to escape."

"You can count on us," Link grinned. The Sage of Light only chuckled as the world faded into bright lights of white and blue. Link's arm wound around my waist as the ground disappeared from under us. Moments later, we were standing in the Temple once more. Link looked over my face, a small smile on his.

"You get used to it," he said quietly. I nodded.

"Lets go."

Arm still about me, Link wound his hand around the hilt of the Master Sword, his knuckles growing pale as he tightened his grip. He only hesitated a moment, and then pulled it forth with a cry. The magics wound about us once more, surprising me by the warmth of it, yet the icy feeling that crept through my body. I would never get used to that feeling. It was too out of my control, too mysterious.

I didn't know I had closed my eyes until the feeling left me and I opened them once more. The temple looked exactly as it had, but something was different. In a moment, I found myself feet away from my love, having not noticed the movement at all. He stared at me in faint surprise and confusion.

'Is that him? Already?'

The thought surprised me. Of course it was him! Why wouldn't it be? I tried to tell him I was feeling strange, but my mouth wouldn't work.

Link blinked at me, his blue eyes wide. "Hey, your clothes changed, Sheik. You look like you did before."

'He knows me?' came to mind as my eyes widened a fraction.

Cold suddenly made its way down my spine as I felt something else moving in my mind. Something foreign yet... utterly and painfully familiar. I realized what was wrong.

'What's wrong? You're disturbed, Sheik.'

I wanted to cry. Completely and utterly break down and sob until there was no moisture left inside me. But I couldn't. I couldn't even shed one tear.

"Hey, my clothes changed too," Link mumbled distractedly.

'Sheik? Talk to me.' her voice was filled with worry.

'.Why are you back in my head?' It was pitiful, tearful voice inside me, a voice on the verge of breaking down. She gave off surprise, obviously confused at the feelings she was getting from me. Rauru had made a mistake. He sent us too far. I did the only think I could.

I screamed.

She tried to quiet me as I raged within my mind, throwing everything I had at her. I was terrified of this, going back to being her conscience with no control over my own body. I completely panicked, fighting her as I had done so long ago when we first merged. So unprepared, she had trouble keeping control. Then it slipped and my mouth opened.

"NOT AGAIN! GET OUT OF ME! I CAN'T TAKE IT AGAIN!" my voice screamed as my hands grabbed at my hair and the bandages around my head, body tensing and folding as the fight within brought me to my knees. I could barely feel it as Link rushed to my side and pulled me into his arms, his words too far away to understand.

I was weakening quickly, but so was she. In a last ditch effort, I tried vainly to get complete control, to force her into the darkness of my mind. Anything to keep from being controlled again, but it wasn't enough. I failed. My body fell limp as she subdued me. My muscles were sore after being clinched so tightly for so long. Breath came to me in short, loud jerks, my body shaking with each one. Still, I knew he was holding me even as a bone numbing fatigue washed over. It was enough to soothe me.

"Sheik?" he called hesitantly. My eyes opened to reveal his face, worry etched over his visage. Confusion filled her as she gazed back at him.

'Why?' she wondered. 'Why did you fight so hard suddenly.? Why does he look at us this way.?'

'He loves me,' I murmured tiredly back.

'But how? He doesn't know you!'

'He does. Better than anyone… except you, Princess.'

I felt her hurt at the title. I had almost forgotten what it was like to feel everything she felt, no privacy between us. It reminded me so very suddenly of what I had had to do to her; made me remember how her body writhed as she burned within the fires. Shock radiated through us and I found myself on the dreamscape. It was the Field, the moon overhead and a cool wind ruffling my clothing. I looked down at myself, almost laughing when I found myself in that blue suit. I curbed the urge for I knew if the laughter started, it would only end in tears as I myself.

'Tell me what's going on, Sheik.' I turned my head and gazed at her. Long blonde locks flew and danced in the wind, her blue eyes catching light enough to almost glow. The thin fabric of her dress gently hugged the curves of her body, making her look even more regal than ever. I almost smiled at the innocent _expression on her face.

'Look at the memories, Zelda.' Her eyes went wide with surprise and horror at the suggestion to completely violate my mind. I chuckled softly, but staved it off, for I felt as terrified about giving myself completely as she. 'I give you permission. There's nothing to hide; it's faster this way.'

Her arms slowly, hesitantly dropped around me. I let my head fall against her shoulder and closed my eyes. I could feel the trundles of her mind making their way into my own, seeing and learning as years of our lives she hadn't live yet were unfolded. When it was over, we stayed quietly in the dreamscape, she reveling in what my mind had given her and I acting as her silent comfort.

'We defeated him,' she said at last, 'and he was able to escape again?'

'We only destroyed his body,' I replied quietly. 'His soul was trapped within the Sacred Realm. However, it was somehow freed.'

'I see. Then you will travel time again and try to find this child… Riaru.'

'Yes.'

'He's shouting at us,' she murmured softly after a pause, glancing skyward. 'I had to fall into a half sleeping state to talk to you. He's very worried.'

I sighed softly. 'Wake up and tell him to try the sword again.'

She nodded and the dreamscape faded away as she awoke. My eyes opened. I was surprised by the panicked terror of my love's face, wetness clinging to his eyes. Had he thought I was going to die?

"Link, you have to try the sword again," my voice told him. He stared at me before hugging my body close to his.

"Damn it, stop scaring me like that!" he cried. I felt my lips smile behind the white cloth over the bottom half of my face. She was as amused as I was surprised to affect him so.

"Link, it's all right," she murmured to him. "Come on, let's get going."

"Right." He got up, pulling us up as well.

'He's very warm,' she said to me absently.

'Yes, very,' I replied.

Back up on the platform we went. Link replaced the tip of the sword into it's hole before looking over at me. With a grin, he grabbed my hand and pulled my tightly to him, lips claming mine as the Master Sword slammed back into it's case.