MewtwoMaster2002
ミュウツーマスター2002
So does that mean you will be updating in 2 weeks? =P
-
Welcome to Smashboards, the world's largest Super Smash Brothers community! Over 250,000 Smash Bros. fans from around the world have come to discuss these great games in over 19 million posts!
You are currently viewing our boards as a visitor. Click here to sign up right now and start on your path in the Smash community!
Super Smash Bros. Odyssey
- Thread starter ZeekeXIV
- Start date
Spoon
Smash Journeyman
Of course. -cries-
Best101
Smash Ace
I thought this thread had died, but I'm glad it's still here.
Oh well I've made my tracker post, time to read the story again.
Oh well I've made my tracker post, time to read the story again.
socalledmember
Smash Rookie
- Joined
- May 17, 2008
- Messages
- 9
Hey Zeeke so are ya getting close to the chapter being done?
Red the Ghost
Smash Ace
@ Kr3wman: I lol'ed
I'm obligated to say "Don't forget about SV," but it would make me sound desperate or something.
oh wait...
I'm obligated to say "Don't forget about SV," but it would make me sound desperate or something.
oh wait...
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
No need for that, kr3wkid. Remember when I said I'd have the update by the end of August. By "August" I meant "October". I always get those two months confused.
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/1930693/31/Super_Smash_Brothers_Odyssey
Yes, it's a link to FF.net, but that's where the latest chapter is. For now. As you can see by the time of this post, it's REALLY late (at least if you live in NY). I'll bring the chapter here properly when it's not 4AM.
Some things you should know about this chapter: it's #$*@ing long. Maybe even pretentiously long. Twenty-eight pages on Word. I ran back about three times trying to shorten it, but each time, I felt I shouldn't. Maybe you can tell me otherwise when you get through it.
Also, it's all dialogue, all character-development and all exposition. No real action, so for those of you expecting the beginning of the final battle... you still gotta wait. That's not to say this chapter isn't significant. Some important stuff happens here, and hopefully you'll all find it relevant. This chapter turned out to be tougher to write than I thought.
And... I think that's it. I finally updated. Seven months isn't as bad as 1.5 years, right? I'll try to shorten it to five months this time, but you know you can't hold me to that. At this rate, it'll be over by this time next year (you can't hold me to that either).
So there you have it. Enjoy the chapter and let me know if it was worth the wait. You know I'm always revising, so let me know what's good and what's not.
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/1930693/31/Super_Smash_Brothers_Odyssey
Yes, it's a link to FF.net, but that's where the latest chapter is. For now. As you can see by the time of this post, it's REALLY late (at least if you live in NY). I'll bring the chapter here properly when it's not 4AM.
Some things you should know about this chapter: it's #$*@ing long. Maybe even pretentiously long. Twenty-eight pages on Word. I ran back about three times trying to shorten it, but each time, I felt I shouldn't. Maybe you can tell me otherwise when you get through it.
Also, it's all dialogue, all character-development and all exposition. No real action, so for those of you expecting the beginning of the final battle... you still gotta wait. That's not to say this chapter isn't significant. Some important stuff happens here, and hopefully you'll all find it relevant. This chapter turned out to be tougher to write than I thought.
And... I think that's it. I finally updated. Seven months isn't as bad as 1.5 years, right? I'll try to shorten it to five months this time, but you know you can't hold me to that. At this rate, it'll be over by this time next year (you can't hold me to that either).
So there you have it. Enjoy the chapter and let me know if it was worth the wait. You know I'm always revising, so let me know what's good and what's not.
Haha, I clicked on the link and read the first few lines, and it was so weird seeing the curse words in full view. It seemed like a different writer, ha.
But yeah, after I read through it I'll edit this with opinions.
EDIT: Woah, epic plot twist.
But yeah, after I read through it I'll edit this with opinions.
EDIT: Woah, epic plot twist.
Red the Ghost
Smash Ace
It's been too long.
I'll have to read through most of the **** thing again, probably.
...or at least the last chapter.
to hell with it, I remember most of it, surprisingly.
I couldn't for the life of me last time I checked this thread, but most of it is coming back now.
edit: maybe not.
I'll read the entire thing sometime later.
28 pages in Word... that's pretty **** intimidating.
I'll need a long night to stay up.
I'll have to read through most of the **** thing again, probably.
...or at least the last chapter.
to hell with it, I remember most of it, surprisingly.
I couldn't for the life of me last time I checked this thread, but most of it is coming back now.
edit: maybe not.
I'll read the entire thing sometime later.
28 pages in Word... that's pretty **** intimidating.
I'll need a long night to stay up.
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
Man, no one read the chapter yet. That's cool, though. I revised it. Not to be shorter, though. For the moment, this will remain the longest chapter in the story. I fleshed out the ending (if anyone actually gets that far).
And now, to post madness. Just in case you get tired in the middle of the chapter, remember that you don't have to read it all in one shot.
(EDIT: This chapter's been cut in half. Act 10: Part 10 is the second half of this chapter.)
_____________________
_____________________
Act 10: Only the Beginning (Part 9)
"Oh ****... ****, ****, ****..." Bowser repeated over and over as he frantically, though tiredly, ran through the hallway.
He had no idea what to do. Every door he opened led to a dead-end. And to make matters worse, he wasn't alone...
"AAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWOOOOOOOO!!" A threatening howl followed him through the halls. Armored footsteps crept their way closer to Bowser's location. No matter how fast he ran, they always sounded like they were only a heart-beat away...
"****!" Bowser started to run harder.
He came to a cumbrous stop at the first door he found and almost broke it down trying to get in.
"****!!" He shouted as the door led to a dead end. The armored footsteps behind him were close enough for him to feel the shakes each step sent through the ground.
Bowser bulleted off as fast as he could, in search of another door and a potential escape. One quickly showed up right in front of him after he clambered up the stairs. He didn't even care about the doorknob this time. Bowser put his shoulder out and threw all his weight into the entry. He tumbled sloppily into the next room, taking down everything in his path from tables and chairs to Gerudo kings of evil.
"BOWSER, WHAT THE ****?!!" Ganondorf threw his royal counterpart off of him.
"Ganondorf! Holy ****, Ganondorf!" Bowser, though surprised, could only repeat himself as he struggled to catch his breath.
"What the **** is wrong wit' you?" Ganondorf demanded as he rose to his feet and approached Bowser.
"It... the thing... I don't know what the ****... It wants me dead!" Bowser continued to gasp for air as he spoke.
"What the hell are you talkin' about?"
"You didn't hear those howls? ...the footsteps?" Bowser struggled to get to his feet. "The ground shakes! Go****it, the ground shakes!"
"Yo, if you don't calm the **** down and start makin' sense, the ground'll be shakin' 'cause of how hard I'm slammin' yo' head into the floor." Ganondorf threatened. "Now what the **** are you talkin' 'bout?"
"You left me in the ****ing lower level and I got lost looking for a way out!" Bowser burst out. "And I found a ****ing gigantic werewolf dressed in armor down there! Heavy armor! It has claws so sharp that they make me look like some type of go**** blunt object! AND IT HAS A ****ING MACE!! A ****ING SPIKED BALL ON A CHAIN!! WHERE DID IT COME FROM?!!" Bowser wildly shouted as he shook Ganondorf by the shoulders.
Ganondorf immediately sent a Warlock Punch to Bowser's chest, sending him flying back-first into the nearest wall. His spikes kept him pinned to the wall, unable to move from his spot. He could only watch Ganondorf head towards the exit.
"DON'T GO OUT THERE!!" Bowser shouted.
"There's no ****in' time for this bull****, Bowser!" Ganondorf shot back. "**** is so real right now, it's not even funny."
"No kidding! We have a ****ing monster with a mace on the loose in your castle!"
"No, you ****in' idiot... Zelda told me her ****in' premonition. And that **** is ****in' bad." Ganondorf said with a head-shake.
"How bad?"
"I can't believe I'm gonna say this..." Ganondorf started. "Bad enough to make me wanna abandon ship and dead this whole kidnappin' ****."
"WHAT?!!" Bowser shock was so strong that he managed to free himself from his spot on the wall. "Ganondorf, what... You... Did you hear that; what just came out of your mouth? That madness? We didn't go through all this just to give up in the end. Tell me you're not serious."
"There's no jokes here, Bowser. This is real." Ganondorf said, stone-faced. "Zelda said if I fight Link, the Triforce will be destroyed. I'm all for destruction and mayhem and ****, but this is beyond me. If the Triforce is destroyed, Hyrule's ****ed." He began to count off on his fingers. "Gerudo's ****ed. Hylia's ****ed. You're ****ed. I'm ****ed. Every ****in' thing we've been workin' for is ****ed. EVERYTHING." Ganondorf flung his hands out in frustration. "And I can't think of any way to stop this. Link is comin' for blood, and he's not gonna listen if I tell him we're gonna ruin the entire world if we fight."
"So then get Zelda to tell him! He'll listen to her." Bowser hastily suggested, hoping he could talk some sense into Ganondorf and save their scheme.
"You ****in' kiddin' me? You remember what went down a while back? My sword in her sheath. Link's not even gonna look at her when he gets here." Ganondorf shook his head. "This ain't about me kidnappin' Zelda anymore, man. He still saw me as his friend. And I pissed all over that. My death is his priority now. He'll never admit it, though. Noble mother-****s like him wanna keep it righteous and pretend their rightin' wrongs. But deep-down, he knows what this is really about. And on some realness, I couldn't be more jubilant. **** the bull**** pretenses and come see me for real! Come at me wit' the intent to kill so I won't feel bad about sendin' you to see Din, Nayru, and Farore so you could tell 'em how you could never hope to step to me on your own!"
"...that was a run-on sentence." Bowser muttered.
"Shut the **** up!" Ganondorf took a swing at Bowser, who managed to block his fist from colliding with his face. "You understand why I'm so go**** pissed?! I had that mother-****er! Now I gotta step back and find a way to save the ****in' world." He put an exasperated hand to his forehead. "****in' Farore, Bowser, do you realize what jus' happened? Me and Link ****in' switched places! He's the ****in' villain now! He's gonna destroy the world if I don't do somethin'! The ****in' King of Evil has to play the good guy?! BULL****!!" Ganondorf threw his foot through a table, causing it to burst into splinters, as nonsensical as that sounds.
"Ganondorf... take it easy." Bowser was almost in awe of how furious Ganondorf was. "I dunno how you can just sit back and get ready to give up. Can we even believe anything Zelda says?" He wondered. "You gotta admit: Zelda's been acting a little crazy lately. I mean, the biggest tip-off of all is that she cheated on Link. It was all her idea. And neither of us can forget how she came into the room last night screaming the world was gonna end, then suddenly left acting like it was all a mistake. Ganondorf, man, either it's that time of the month or someone's been slipping some weird stuff into her water. Either way, I don't buy a **** word of it. How much do you wanna bet she's just trying to save Link from the most spectacular ***-kicking he'll ever receive."
Ganondorf took a second to absorb Bowser's view. And for that optimistic second, he went along with it. Zelda had been acting uncharacteristically different from what he had come to expect. But as always, time marches on...
"Yo, regardless of how crazy she's been actin', she's still a psychic." Ganondorf muttered.
"More like a psycho." Bowser corrected.
"Either way..." Ganondorf went on. "Her visions happen exactly as she sees 'em, and there's no stoppin' those ****s."
"How does it happen?" Bowser realized he didn't know how it all comes to be.
"Me and Link are under the castle surrounded by lava. We have no choice but to fight until further notice." Ganondorf shook his head.
"That's all?" Bowser asked.
"That's all she remembered." Ganondorf said.
"Ganondorf... You're driving yourself crazy off of that much?" Bowser was once-again left in awe, but for an entirely different reason this time. "Who says it's you or Link that destroys the Triforce? And I don't keep up on my readings when it comes to the legendary relics of Hyrule, but aren't there three pieces of the Triforce?" He pointed out, holding up three fingers. "If the Triforce is ever to be destroyed, I'd think it'd involve you, Link, and Zelda. If she's not there, nothing can happen. You and Link fought a million times before, and nothing ever happened! How could you take Zelda's word so blindly? How do you even know this was an actual premonition and not some little ******* nightmare she had? Give her a teddy bear and tell her to shut the hell up and go back to sleep!"
"Bowser, I know what you're gettin' at, and I feel like a ******* jus' goin' wit' the bull**** this crazy broad is splurtin', but I can't leave anythin' up to chance. I felt somethin' when she said that ****." Ganondorf admitted. "I can't explain it, but I'm takin' that as a sign. I don't usually feel **** when I'm given an ultimatum."
"Ganondorf..." Bowser couldn't think of what to say. But suddenly, he did. Before he even spoke, he smirked.
"How the **** can you smile?" Ganondorf narrowed his eyelids contemptuously. Bowser's grin was almost taunting, as if he didn't take him seriously.
"Ganondorf... my baleful buddy... sometimes, the simplest and best solutions are the most overlooked." Bowser said. "I believe in a thing called Fate. Things are destined to happen. I'm destined to rule over the Mushroom Kingdom with Peach as my queen and Mario as my stuffed towel rack. And you know what? The Triforce might be destined to be destroyed." He said with a tone of regret. "But Fate isn't obvious. It can happen in a thousand different ways. The path to the future isn't set in stone. It's the only way I can explain why I'm not sitting on my throne with Toad as my footstool."
"What the **** does this have to do wit' anythin'?" Ganondorf demanded, growing impatient with Bowser's seemingly pointless rambling.
"Just listen." Bowser calmly suggested. "The Triforce gets destroyed. It's a possibility you and Zelda accepted. Fate is supposed to make it happen under your castle. BUT... who says you'll be around to do your part in Fate's plan? Who says you'll be where Fate wants you?"
Ganondorf could only raise a perplexed eyebrow.
"Put that eyebrow down for a second and follow me." Bowser said. "Zelda's visions supposedly happen exactly as she sees 'em, right? This one happened under your castle in Hyrule. But if you're not in your castle... if you're not even in Hyrule, how can it happen?"
Ganondorf heart skipped a beat upon realization. "Holy ****. Holy ****... Holy ****! Bowser... B-Boss... My ****in' man, B-Boss. If I wasn't so evil, I'd hug you. This is why I **** wit' you. When I'm wildin' out and can't keep it cool, you come through with a steady head and show me the light." He rose his hand to give Bowser a crisp DAP.
"Hey, sometimes I can't help but let my genius shine through." Bowser boasted with a modest shrug. "Fate may get his way most of the time, but the key word is 'most'. We disappear from Hyrule and leave Link and his butt-slamming friends to search for us for a while. In the meantime, you figure out every conceivable way the Triforce could be destroyed and stop it from happening."
"Whoa, whoa, B-boss. I ain't puttin' my plans on hold jus' to save the world. **** that; I'm not a hero." Ganondorf enforced. "We can **** over Fate hard if we change the venue and take out a piece of the equation. I want Link to find me. And with Mario and Luigi as his partners, he'll know exactly where to go."
"Somebody better fill me in quick, then, because at this rate, I'll be the only one who won't know!" Bowser exclaimed.
"No one has to tell you ****. You already know where we're goin'. Exactly where we're goin'." Ganondorf nudged Bowser's chest with two fingers.
"Bull****. I'm not Zelda. Other than here..." Bowser trailed off as it suddenly clicked in his mind. Ganondorf nodded approvingly. There was only one other place they could go.
"This gets me the chance to fight wit' everythin' I got and not worry about bein' responsible for the ****in' Cataclysm. I can worry 'bout that **** after I leave Link slumped over within an inch of his life." Ganondorf said. "Whatever you need to get ready, get to it. As soon as we meet Link and his peeps, we're out. And before you even say anythin'..." He caught Bowser seconds away from speaking. "DK's gonna hold it down here. We'll be long-gone before he even finds out."
"Not to say I'm not in love with this idea, but I thought you respected him. Isn't this a little grim on your part?" Bowser asked.
"In the end, it doesn't even matter." Ganondorf shook his head. "As long as he gets to throw down with Mario then I did everythin' I said I'd do."
"Too bad he's gonna fail so miserably, but that's actually a good thing. It just means I'll never see him again. I'll actually have to thank Mario for that." Bowser said.
"Aight, man, let's get it goin'. Do what you gotta do, then meet me in the throne room." Ganondorf said.
"Can do." Bowser said.
With an affectionate punch to Bowser's arm, Ganondorf sped out the room.
"Brains and brawn. I'm so great it should be illegal." Bowser gloated as he walked out of the room. He looked left, then right, thinking about which way to walk, only to realize "****it... I still don't know where I am."
But that wasn't all...
"Oh ****..." Bowser's heart suddenly sunk as he felt a foreboding aura fill the hall. "OH ****!!"
"AAAAAAWWWWWWWWOOOOOOO!!" A sudden howl echoed through the hallway. The shadow of a mace slowly crept up the stairs as heavy footsteps accompanied it.
"Oh ****... GANONDORF, WAIT UP!!" Bowser shouted as he ran left, then suddenly jetted right, hoping to run into a familiar face.
______________________
"How are they doing?" Nabooru asked, looking at an unconscious Link, Mario, and Luigi.
"I don't even care. I want them up now so I can ask them what the hell they were thinking!" Mida lividly stated. "We could've still salvaged what was left of the Training Grounds. Now there's nothing! Nothing, Nab! And their little stunt sent six more of us to the infirmary. I know we're the strongest girls here, but how the hell are we supposed to protect the fortress with only two able-bodied girls?"
"I'm here too, Mida..." Raznia spoke up.
"Don't worry, sis, I counted you, too. You and Nabooru can't be at a hundred percent yet, so I'm putting you two at fifty. With me being the only one at a hundred, that only makes us as strong as two Gerudo women. Or twenty men. Whichever one you prefer."
"I must be worse off than I thought. I'm usually as strong as twenty men by myself." Nabooru fretted.
"It was a tough battle, Nab. You'll be back to normal soon enough." Mida put a consoling hand on Nabooru's shoulder. "But not too soon, though. I kinda like being the strongest woman in Hyrule." She admitted with a smirk.
"Don't get used to it." Raznia bluntly stated, gaining a smirk from Mida. "But seriously, how did the Training Grounds explode like that?" She wondered as her glance wandered over to Link. "We never stored anything that powerful in there, did we?"
"I don't think there's anything that powerful anywhere in Hyrule. I'm telling you, Raz, we blame these three." Mida asserted, glaring at them menacingly. "Everything was nice and quiet until they disappeared."
"I don't think so." Raznia disagreed. "Think about it. You just said me and Nabi are only at fifty percent. Mario, Luigi, and Link fought harder than both of us, so you know they're in even worse shape. Are you trying to tell me that even at a fraction of their full power, they still had enough to..." Raznia paused to search for the right word. "...obliterate our Training Grounds?"
"Obliterate. I like that word." Mida nodded in approval. "And yes, I'm still blaming them. All fingers point to them. All the bread crumbs lead to them. Their hands were in the cookie jar and we caught them with chocolate chips smeared on their cheeks. What else do you need, Raznia? What other clever metaphors should I come up with?"
"Shut up, Mida!" Raznia snapped, taking a threatening step toward her sister.
"Raznia, calm down." Nabooru moved in between an enraged Raznia and a startled Mida. "She has a point. They were the only ones there. Even if they are responsible, it's okay. We were planning to renovate anyway. Too many of the girls were completing the course, right?" She reminded Raznia, in an attempt to lighten the mood.
"Yeah..." Raznia agreed, though still keeping a vindictive eye on Mida.
"Hey, look, look!" Mida pointed toward Mario. "He's stirring! Start shaking him!"
"Can you leave him alone? Let him get up on his own." Raznia said.
"That's letting him get off easy. I want my answers now." Mida walked up to Mario's bedside.
"Mida, don't touch him!" Raznia nearly shoved Nabooru into a wall to get near Mida, ready to use whatever force necessary to stop her.
"Raz!" Nabooru grabbed her arm before she was out of reach.
"Raz, relax." Mida calmly suggested, holding out a halting hand. A white light suddenly shined from that hand. "Remember what my role is in a battle: I'm the reviver. As long as they aren't too deep in unconsciousness, I can wake anyone up. That's what I'm about to do. I'm not shaking anyone."
"Well... why didn't you just tell me that, then?" Raznia hesitated before asking.
"Why should I have to tell you? You already knew this." Mida stated matter-of-factly. Raznia could only stare back blankly.
Her eyes then wandered over to Nabooru's. Raznia's heart dropped as she met her shocked expression. They both knew she was right. Raznia's reaction was completely out-of-character and uncalled for.
Without a word to anyone, Raznia shook Nabooru's hand off her arm and left the room.
"Mida..." Nabooru uttered as she looked to her.
"Don't worry about it." Mida quickly replied, her tone different from her usual snappy and sarcastic quality as she waved her hand in front of Mario's closed eyelids.
His eyelids twitched as he gradually regained consciousness. Slowly, they finally opened. The first thing he saw was a light, and to his previously-closed eyes, a blinding light. A light so bright, he couldn't regain his other senses. He felt paralyzed, trying helplessly to jump back into action. When all else failed, the only thing left for him to do was continue his long, tortured scream from before he fell into unconsciousness.
"What'd you do?!" Nabooru demanded, startled by Mario's seemingly unwarranted scream.
"Nothing! He just woke up and started screaming!" Mida shouted back as she threw a hand over Mario's mouth.
Suddenly, Luigi regained his senses as well; with the first being his hearing. Only the sounds of his brother's tormented shrieks filled his ears, causing him to join Mario and turning his solo into a duet of excruciated cries of pain.
"Oh, Din, come on!" Mida shouted in anguish. "Shut him up, Nab!"
Nabooru was already standing over Luigi. Following Mida's example, she put her hand over Luigi's mouth as well, but adding her own touch and running a soothing hand over his hairline and softly shushing him towards tranquility.
And following his partners' example, Link regained his consciousness as well, but unlike his companions, he woke with a start instead of a scream, remembering the last ordeal he faced.
"WHOA!!" Link yelped as he sat up in his bed. "...whoa." He murmured, watching Mida and Nabooru ignore his resurrection and continue to seemingly smother his friends.
Before he decided to take the initiative and save his allies, he realized he'd never have another opportunity like this again. He crept out of his bed, shrugging off the reawakened pain in his shoulder and snuck towards a preoccupied Mida.
"Shut up, **** you! SHUT THE HELL UP!!" Mida tried screaming over a roaring Mario but failed as his bellows sounded even louder than before. "UGH!!" She let out as she was seconds from pulling her hair out.
"BLAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGH!!" Link suddenly boomed crisply right into Mida's undefended ear.
He sounded off so unexpectedly and so loudly that she had no choice but to let out a terrified scream of her own as she fell over Mario's bed and clumsily to the floor. Link had no choice but to drop to his knees and curl up into a ball of hysterics.
"THAT WASN'T FUNNY, YOU HYLIAN HORSEASS!!" Mida shouted, shoving Link over with a strong foot thrust after scrambling to her feet. Even after shouting it at him, it was impossible to tell him that as he continued his uproarious joviality.
And to add insult to injury, Luigi and Mario's uncontrollable screaming came to a calm end.
"...I'm alive." Mario announced, partially in disbelief.
Nabooru let a smile creep onto her face as Mario finally came back to his senses. She looked down to the Mario brother she was tending to, finding him with a grin in his eyes, as well as on his face. With her hand still tenderly on his forehead, he had no reason not to.
"Smile now, sweetie. You'll never wake up to this face again." Nabooru said as she patted Luigi's cheek.
"****, Nabi. Harsh." Link grimly stated, abruptly cutting off his laughter.
"He knows I'm just playing around with him." Nabooru said.
"So then there is a chan--"
"No." Nabooru quickly cut off a hopeful Luigi.
"Harsh." Link repeated with emphasis.
"I'll tell you the same thing I told Raznia; you set 'em up and I'll knock 'em down. It doesn't matter who it is." Nabooru said.
"Speakin' of her, where is she? I saw freakin' Mida three times before I saw Raz once." Link held up three fingers. "Somethin's wrong with that."
"Of course you saw me the most. I'm the one who mended your shoulder back together." Mida said, almost sounded offended. "You should be kissing my feet right now. No one would take as good care of you as I did."
"There's so many things wrong with what you just said, I almost wanna knock myself out so I don't have to tell you everythin' that was wrong." Link said.
"You don't have to go through all that trouble. Just stand back and poke your chin out a little so I can do it for you." Mida offered.
"I would, but you'd probably break your flimsy-*** fist against my face. Gerudo women are strong, and I'm not tryin' to make you look weak. An *******, at least, but not weak."
If there was one thing that could get to not only Mida, but any Gerudo woman, it was being called weak. She couldn't let that challenge slide.
"Then come on, Link. If you really think so, let's test it out. Stick your chin out and I promise I will leave you laid out, seeing stars." Mida guaranteed.
"Here it is, baby." Link taunted Mida by poking his chin out and pointing at it. "Give it your all, but don't cry too hard after my face renders your wack-*** fist useless."
Mida let out a minimally amused giggle. "Keep talking, you cocky *******." She tickled under Link's chin before lining up her fist up with her anticipated point of contact and cocked it back.
"That's enough." Mario put his over Mida's and pushed it down. "Both of you are too stubborn to back down, and I know this won't end well."
Mida looked down at Mario, then looked up to Link, who was still provoking her by pointing at his chin. Reacting just as he hoped, she suddenly wound her fist back, seconds away from burying it into his cheek.
"Mida, don't!" Nabooru grabbed Mida's arm with both hands. "Listen to Mario. It's a bad idea."
"He's asking for it, Nabooru. You know that! Why are you two protecting him?" Mida demanded.
"I don't know about Mario, but I'm protecting you." Nabooru said. "If you touch Link, and Raznia finds out, she's going to flip. And you already know how she feels about you. I don't know if I can protect you from her."
"Whatever." Mida shook off Mario and Nabooru and left the room in a hurry, but not before shoving Link, who purposely stood in front of the exit, out of the way.
"Link, what's wrong with you?" Nabooru demanded, staring daggers into Link.
"You should askin' Mida that question." Link shot back. "After all the bull**** she put me through, she's lucky it wasn't me cocking my fist back."
"Who exactly is Mida?" Luigi wondered.
"A ***** in every sense of the word, Luigi." Link quickly answered.
"Link, enough." Nabooru sternly insisted. "Mida is Raznia's older sister."
"WHAT?!!" Link nearly fell over. "What?! They're related? Get outta here! Them?! Raznia's too sweet to be eternally bonded to a ***** like her!"
"Link, you may not like her, but you have to stop calling her that. She's close enough to me to be my sister, and I don't appreciate anyone talking about my family like that." Nabooru strictly stated.
"...sorry." Link apologetically muttered. "But really? Sisters? The whole time I knew her... Raznia never mentioned any family besides you."
"They have a rocky relationship. If you want to know more, ask one of them." Nabooru suggested. "But you didn't come here just to find out about Mida and Raznia. And, even though we appreciate everything you three have done for us, you didn't come just to help us with our crisis, either."
Link, Mario, and Luigi all looked to each other gravely.
"Ganondorf." Nabooru guessed.
"And Bowser." Mario added.
"Bowser?" Nabooru repeated the unfamiliar name.
"He's the Ganondorf of the Mushroom Kingdom, where me and my brother are from." Mario explained. "He kidnapped Peach and joined forces with Ganondorf, who kidnapped Zelda."
"Heh." Link let out a laugh, which caught everyone off-guard, causing them to turn to him incredulously. "Sorry. I just thought of somethin' else. Perfect timin', right?"
"We need your help as the Spirit sage." Mario requested.
"Well, I'm glad you came to me, but I don't know how much help I can give." Nabooru admitted. "Ganondorf is much more powerful than any sage on their own. It'll take the combined power of all the sages to beat him, including Zelda."
"Not this time." Link stepped in. "Ganondorf made this personal. Since day one, it's been about gettin' to me when I'm most vulnerable. He's been tryin' to prove that I'm weak. That, without everyone's help, I would've never beat him. And you know what? I started to believe him." He said with a low voice and a hanging head. "But because of Mario..." He looked to his comrade in red. "...because of Luigi..." He looked to his comrade in green. "Because of you, Raznia, Samus, Falco, Fox... Because of all my friends, I am strong. You all make me feel strong enough to beat Ganondorf on my own and prove to him that I'm stronger than he can ever imagine. And that's exactly what I'm gonna do."
"Rousing speech, Link." Luigi nodded.
"Yeah." Nabooru agreed. "Strong words. But it makes me wonder... If you're feeling so confident and planning on taking him on by yourself, why do you need my help? What can I give you that you don't already have?"
"Light arrows." Link answered. "I can handle Ganondorf as long as doesn't transform, but we all know that he's gonna do it. It's the only thing he has over me. I need that equalizer if I plan on winnin'. Which I do."
"Hmm." Nabooru hummed. "Well, Link, I'd be happy to add to that strength. ...if I could."
"...what?" Link, Mario, and Luigi gasped after a moment of denial.
"The Light arrows are entrusted to the leader of the seven sages. Only she can give them to you." Nabooru explained.
"Wha... but..." Link stammered. He was so sure Nabooru would be able to help him. "But you can talk to Rauru, right? What about him? The Sage of Light? Light arrows? There's no connection at all?"
"Rauru watches over the Light temple, which is the last sanctuary of the sages and the only place Light arrows are created." Nabooru said. "He prays to the Goddesses constantly to keep the barrier that protects it from evil up. That's his role as a sage. He doesn't distribute the merchandise, he only protects it."
"I can't believe this... Story of our lives." Luigi groaned, finally rising from his bed and leaving the room like the Gerudo sisters before him.
"...I should follow him." Mario decided. "Things like this leave him feeling pretty low."
"He's not the only one, man..." Link sighed. "I'll see you guys in a bit."
With a nod, Mario followed his brother out of the room.
"I managed to clear out an entire room of people..." Nabooru murmured as she took a seat on the edge of one of the beds.
"Not really. I'm still here, Nabi." Link reminded her, taking a seat next to her. "Just look at it this way: at least it wasn't because you farted."
Nabooru could only look at Link incredulously. "How could you insinuate... Girls don't fart!"
"The secret's out, Nabi. Zelda let it 'slip'. I almost died that night..." Link stated with a hint of severity.
"I dunno about Zelda, but the rest of us keep our 'secrets' to ourselves." Nabooru said. "It's better for everyone that way."
"**** right." Link nodded in agreement.
"Let's change the subject..." Nabooru suggested. "Ganondorf's really at it again?"
"Yeah. He's the reason Nightmare came through." Link said.
"Hmm. I never would've thought Nightmare was just a lackey. He was evil and powerful enough to seem self-motivated." Nabooru said.
"Nightmare's story is kinda complicated." Link said. "He was definitely self-motivated in gathering souls. But Ganondorf led him here. You know I'll pay him back for all of you."
"You already kinda paid him back, didn't you?" Nabooru asked.
"What do you mean?" Link wondered.
"Well, when you kill the master-mind's lackey, it kinda sends a powerful message, doesn't it?" Nabooru pointed out.
"Well, yeah... but... I didn't kill anyone." Link pointed out.
"Really? Then how did Nightmare die? Why is there a hole through his throat?" Nabooru interrogated.
"Nabi... What the hell?" Link rose from his seat while staring cautiously at his Gerudian interrogator. "Even if I did kill him, why are you pressin' me so hard?"
"She's going to be so mad at me when she finds out..." Nabooru muttered. "I'm asking because of Raznia. She was up when you ended the battle. She saw you kill him."
"...wha...?" Link couldn't even speak.
"You killed him. Mercilessly, too. She couldn't believe it. So much, in fact, that it broke her for a little while." Nabooru said. "And I know she reacted that way because she has feelings for you."
"She told you about that?" Link said in a low voice.
"She's my 'sister', Link. She tells me about everything." Nabooru stated.
"But... I don't... I don't remember any of this... It couldn't have been me. I blacked out after Nightmare threw Raz's sword through my shoulder." Link recounted.
"I passed out after Nightmare lost control of my soul." Nabooru remembered. "I'd usually take Raz's word unconditionally, but this is something for you two to get straight. This might be more complicated than we think..."
"I'll talk to her." Link said.
"You better." Nabooru agreed with a threatening tone. "But what are you gonna do about Ganondorf? I haven't kept in touch with the other sages, and Mario and Luigi sound like they'll be busy with that Bowser-guy. You'll really be on your own."
"You're talkin' like you don't know Raznia's gonna sneak out at night to follow me and try to help out. Plus, I've gotten a lot stronger since the last time you saw me." Link pointed out. "Honestly, I think I'm only here because Ganondorf tricked me. I would've fought him already if he didn't convince me I couldn't beat him without Light arrows. And he knows me so well, he knew I'd come here first. This whole thing was a trap, and you guys were in the middle of it all. I think he knows I don't need Light arrows this time."
"As much as I hate to remind myself... he's a Gerudo. We're good at what we do. ...no matter what it is." Nabooru begrudgingly stated.
"Well, I just have to be better at what I do. Simple as that." Link said as he got up and made for the door. He came to a sudden stop, however.
"What?" Nabooru wondered as he turned back to look at her.
A smile crept up on his face. "You should go first. Just so you can say you didn't make all five people in this room leave."
"That's sweet, Link." She said with a laugh. Before she exited the room, with a pinch to his cheek, "Just so you know, you don't have to come back and tell me what went on between you two. Raz'll probably tell me soon enough anyway."
"My version would probably be better, though..." Link said.
"Maybe... Your exaggerations were always funny." Nabooru admitted. "I do want to see you and your friends off, though. Let me know when you're leaving."
"I will." Link agreed.
And with a smile, Nabooru left the room.
______________________
"Luigi!" Mario shouted as he finally caught up with his brother.
He slowed to a stop and looked back. He forced himself to greet Mario with a smile.
"Yeah, you're happy to see me now, but you were really trying to kill me back there." Mario said with a huff of a laugh.
"You were trying just as hard as I was. I almost thought you were going to win." Luigi said.
"I probably would've if I didn't suddenly realize it was you." Mario pointed out.
"Pfft, with that overcompensation-ball you were touting?" Luigi let out a laugh. "All I had to do was pull a spin-move on you and the fight would've been over. You may've been fast, but there's no way you'd be able to turn around quick enough to protect yourself."
"You want to go at it again, then?" Mario offered, opening his palm and letting an orb of fire materialize.
"No. One near-death experience before noon is more than enough for me." Luigi declined politely.
"Same here." Mario promptly extinguished the ball of flame. "Besides, we still need to deal with Bowser and Ganondorf. We'll save it for them."
"That, we will." Luigi agreed with a nod.
"So how are you feeling?" Mario wondered. "You looked like you were about to cry after what Nabooru said."
"Hey, I'm like Link. I don't cry." Luigi boasted, though with a wink. "Seriously, though, I was mad before, but then I remembered what he said yesterday: whoever's controlling this gigantic game of screw-worthiness and dumb-luck always seems to let it end in our favor. We're tested over and over again, and no matter how bad it gets, we still pull it off stronger than ever. Especially now." Luigi let stray streaks of electricity jump from his body as a testament to his new powers. "Maybe we don't need the Light arrows."
"I hope not. Otherwise..." Mario trailed off, not even wanting to consider the alternative.
"THERE YOU TWO ARE!!" An angry feminine voice called out.
Mario and Luigi's heads turned towards the source of the call.
"That's Mida, right?" Luigi pondered.
"Yeah. She looks like she's on a warpath." Mario noticed.
"...should we fight?" Luigi wondered, letting sparks of electricity fly from his fingers.
"No... not the best idea." Mario disagreed.
"...should we run?" Luigi wondered, letting sparks of electricity fly from his shoes.
"I feel like she'd chase us to the edge of oblivion. Let's just try to talk to her. She can't be as bad as Link says." Mario thought.
Just in time to test his assumption, Mida stopped in front of the Mario brothers.
"Hey, Mid-"
"You're done talking." Mida clamped her fingers together, signifying what their mouths should be doing. "Right now, I'm asking questions and you're answering them. Nothing else."
Mario's eyes narrowed. Barely a second had gone by and already he was agreeing with Link's assumption.
"Question number one: why the hell did you three destroy the Training Grounds?" Mida spat more than asked.
"Think about that question for a second. Why the hell would we want to destroy the Training Grounds in the first place? There was nothing to destroy!" Mario shot back.
"Which is exactly why I'm asking." Mida said. "Some of our girls saw you hanging around the ruins, looking suspicious. Put that together with the fact that I dragged you, your brother's, and Link's shattered ***** to the infirmary after that explosion. What do you expect me to think? You were obviously plotting against us!"
"Why would..." Mario's growing anger wouldn't allow him to wrap his head around Mida's accusations. Even if people saw him near the Training Grounds, how could they automatically assume he was out to destroy it?
"Okay, you two are getting nowhere." Luigi stepped in. "Both of you are asking the wrong questions. Let's talk about why we were there in the first place."
"Didn't I say you can't talk until I ask you a question? We're doing this my way." Mida snapped at Luigi.
He only smiled in response.
"What the hell are you smiling about?"
"You just asked me not one, but two questions! And I'm not answering either of them!" Luigi shook his head with a beaming smile, which gained a threatening growl from Mida. "Since I can now speak, I'll tell you want you want to hear, but we'll do it the Luigi way. Incidentally, everyone loves the Luigi way."
"Incidentally, I love whichever way gets me what I want. Talk." Mida ordered.
"Mario'll start us off." Luigi turned to his brother. "How'd you get to the Training Grounds?"
"Well, that's actually what made me so angry at first. I don't remember going there at all." Mario admitted.
"But you were there." Mida insisted. "I pulled you out from under the rubble. You can't tell me I didn't."
With a heavy sigh, "...fine. I was there, apparently. Now how'd I get there? I'll say it again, I don't remember going near there."
"Well, what were you doing before then?" Luigi asked his brother.
"Sleeping."
"...sleepwalking?" Mida guessed.
"Makes a lot of sense..." Luigi verified.
"But I don't sleepwalk..." Mario defended.
"You sure do sleep-talk, though. You have some strange, pasta-related dreams sometimes..." Luigi said, gaining a sour look from Mario. Suddenly, his face lit up as if he realized something. "What'd you dream about?"
"Dream? It was more like a nightmare. ...about Nightmare." Mario said.
"Keep talking." Mida urged, intrigued by the mention of the name.
"It was me, Link, Luigi, and Raznia against Nightmare, and we were losing badly." Mario recounted.
"You were the last one left?" Luigi asked.
"Yeah." Mario said.
"You heard snickering, then two orbs appeared?"
"One fire and one lightning."
"Took the fire?"
"And TORCHED Nightmare."
"Woke up in a grand entrance?"
"...more like a dilapidated chamber with a ghost."
"Flambéed foul apparition of the netherworld (trademarked)?"
"I say fricasseed. Either way, he was crispy."
"Then things got crazy."
"Another-me-with-thunder-powers crazy."
"That was me."
"So the other you, meaning the other me, was Link."
"Yep. And I have to admit, I don't look good without a shirt."
"Same here... Love-handles are unbecoming..."
"I don't remember having an outie..."
"Okay... you two lost me." Mida said. "What the hell just happened?"
"I'll recap." Link unexpectedly stepped in from around the corner, as if he was waiting for the prime opportunity to take over. Because he was. "Mario and Luigi had the same dream, kinda. Where Mario took the fire orb, Luigi took the lightning orb. After they defeated Nightmare and woke up, they somehow ended up inside the Training Grounds and found a Poe. They attacked it and thought they killed it, but it only freed them from the illusion of solitude and bought on the new illusion of vengeful jealousy AKA they had to fight the power they rejected, not knowin' they were actually fightin' each other. And just before they could kill each other, I showed up, killed the Poe they thought they killed, ended the illusion, and saved Gerudo Valley."
"You destroyed the Training Grounds and sent nine people, including yourselves, back to the infirmary." Mida pointed out.
"Better nine than EVERYONE. But then again, there would be no infirmary to take anyone to. Everythin' between Hyrule Field and the Desert Colossus would've been a smokin' crater." Link said.
"How'd you know the Poe was still there?" Mario wondered.
"I wanna say my powers give me the ability to see the unseen, but that's not true." Link admitted. "The Poe can make itself disappear, but the lantern it carries never does. It was hidden in a corner. And with you two fightin' each other so hard, you woulda never noticed it."
"...but when I 'killed' my Poe, it dropped its lantern. That's how my fire-copy showed up." Luigi remembered.
"Same thing happened to me." Mario added.
"Guys, what don't you understand about the concept of illusions?" Mida asked. "Poes are masters of illusions. You two got lucky. That one was an ambitious idiot. Giving you new powers to kill each other with? If it were me, I would've just led you to quicksand and called it a day."
"Just go with the sure thing, right?" Luigi nodded.
"Why make things harder than they have to be?" Mida said.
"Because it'd feel that much better when everythin' falls through. Quicksand is borin' as hell. Fire versus lightning? Now that's cool." Link said.
"If you say so, Link." Mida rolled her eyes. "Well now that I know what happened, I'm not as mad as I was before. You guys still need to be more careful, though."
"...we were sleeping." Mario held his hands out in disbelief at the fact that Mida was still blaming them.
"Excuses." Mida shook her head.
"Mario, I'm gonna save you a lotta pain and say 'run away as fast as you can before she drives you crazy'." Link suggested. "I'm actually about to do that. In Raznia's general direction. I gotta find her before we leave."
"She's probably in her room." Mida guessed. "Do you even know where that is?"
"I can stumble into a few wrong rooms before I figure it out. That's how I do things." Link said.
"Why don't I just show you?" Mida offered. "You'd get there faster and you'd look less like an idiot."
"But after you're done with her, shouldn't we... kind of... do some more recovering?" Luigi wondered. "We did just wake up from a near-death experience. And before that, we woke up from another near-death experience."
"Not a problem. You know about Hyrule's Fairies, right?" After Luigi nodded, "We have Great Fairies here in Hyrule. They'll heal any wound. Mida kindly offered to take us to one, but I'm gonna give that job to Raz. We like her more."
"Awww, but I wanted to take you guys so badly!" Mida chanted, though obviously sarcastic. "...is that what you wanted to hear? I don't even know where you got the idea that it'd be me taking you."
"You don't have to take it so hard, Mida." Link said, though with the slightest of sneers.
"Let's just go so we can get away from each other." Mida said after a heavy sigh.
"That's probably the best thing you'll ever say to anyone." Link commended her word choice with a nod. "You guys comin'?" He turned to the Mario brothers.
"Actually, me and Luigi are going to sort out exactly what we can do with these new powers." Mario said.
"That's a really good idea." Luigi agreed. "Trial-and-error will only get us so far..."
"As long as you two are far away from the Fortress, I don't care what you do." Mida began to walk down the hall.
"Take it easy guys. Literally! No super-moves that threaten to destroy Gerudo Valley." Link scolded.
"Trust us, we'll keep things simple." Mario guaranteed as both duos parted ways.
_____________________
_____________________
If you made it down here, congratulations. I hope you still enjoyed the chapter, despite its length. Know that the following chapters won't nearly be as long or wordy. This will be the last strictly-dialogue chapter in the story.
As for my schedule... I'll have the next chapter to you in less than seven months. That's as specific as I'll get.
Until then, gimme that constructive criticism.
And now, to post madness. Just in case you get tired in the middle of the chapter, remember that you don't have to read it all in one shot.
(EDIT: This chapter's been cut in half. Act 10: Part 10 is the second half of this chapter.)
_____________________
_____________________
Act 10: Only the Beginning (Part 9)
"Oh ****... ****, ****, ****..." Bowser repeated over and over as he frantically, though tiredly, ran through the hallway.
He had no idea what to do. Every door he opened led to a dead-end. And to make matters worse, he wasn't alone...
"AAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWOOOOOOOO!!" A threatening howl followed him through the halls. Armored footsteps crept their way closer to Bowser's location. No matter how fast he ran, they always sounded like they were only a heart-beat away...
"****!" Bowser started to run harder.
He came to a cumbrous stop at the first door he found and almost broke it down trying to get in.
"****!!" He shouted as the door led to a dead end. The armored footsteps behind him were close enough for him to feel the shakes each step sent through the ground.
Bowser bulleted off as fast as he could, in search of another door and a potential escape. One quickly showed up right in front of him after he clambered up the stairs. He didn't even care about the doorknob this time. Bowser put his shoulder out and threw all his weight into the entry. He tumbled sloppily into the next room, taking down everything in his path from tables and chairs to Gerudo kings of evil.
"BOWSER, WHAT THE ****?!!" Ganondorf threw his royal counterpart off of him.
"Ganondorf! Holy ****, Ganondorf!" Bowser, though surprised, could only repeat himself as he struggled to catch his breath.
"What the **** is wrong wit' you?" Ganondorf demanded as he rose to his feet and approached Bowser.
"It... the thing... I don't know what the ****... It wants me dead!" Bowser continued to gasp for air as he spoke.
"What the hell are you talkin' about?"
"You didn't hear those howls? ...the footsteps?" Bowser struggled to get to his feet. "The ground shakes! Go****it, the ground shakes!"
"Yo, if you don't calm the **** down and start makin' sense, the ground'll be shakin' 'cause of how hard I'm slammin' yo' head into the floor." Ganondorf threatened. "Now what the **** are you talkin' 'bout?"
"You left me in the ****ing lower level and I got lost looking for a way out!" Bowser burst out. "And I found a ****ing gigantic werewolf dressed in armor down there! Heavy armor! It has claws so sharp that they make me look like some type of go**** blunt object! AND IT HAS A ****ING MACE!! A ****ING SPIKED BALL ON A CHAIN!! WHERE DID IT COME FROM?!!" Bowser wildly shouted as he shook Ganondorf by the shoulders.
Ganondorf immediately sent a Warlock Punch to Bowser's chest, sending him flying back-first into the nearest wall. His spikes kept him pinned to the wall, unable to move from his spot. He could only watch Ganondorf head towards the exit.
"DON'T GO OUT THERE!!" Bowser shouted.
"There's no ****in' time for this bull****, Bowser!" Ganondorf shot back. "**** is so real right now, it's not even funny."
"No kidding! We have a ****ing monster with a mace on the loose in your castle!"
"No, you ****in' idiot... Zelda told me her ****in' premonition. And that **** is ****in' bad." Ganondorf said with a head-shake.
"How bad?"
"I can't believe I'm gonna say this..." Ganondorf started. "Bad enough to make me wanna abandon ship and dead this whole kidnappin' ****."
"WHAT?!!" Bowser shock was so strong that he managed to free himself from his spot on the wall. "Ganondorf, what... You... Did you hear that; what just came out of your mouth? That madness? We didn't go through all this just to give up in the end. Tell me you're not serious."
"There's no jokes here, Bowser. This is real." Ganondorf said, stone-faced. "Zelda said if I fight Link, the Triforce will be destroyed. I'm all for destruction and mayhem and ****, but this is beyond me. If the Triforce is destroyed, Hyrule's ****ed." He began to count off on his fingers. "Gerudo's ****ed. Hylia's ****ed. You're ****ed. I'm ****ed. Every ****in' thing we've been workin' for is ****ed. EVERYTHING." Ganondorf flung his hands out in frustration. "And I can't think of any way to stop this. Link is comin' for blood, and he's not gonna listen if I tell him we're gonna ruin the entire world if we fight."
"So then get Zelda to tell him! He'll listen to her." Bowser hastily suggested, hoping he could talk some sense into Ganondorf and save their scheme.
"You ****in' kiddin' me? You remember what went down a while back? My sword in her sheath. Link's not even gonna look at her when he gets here." Ganondorf shook his head. "This ain't about me kidnappin' Zelda anymore, man. He still saw me as his friend. And I pissed all over that. My death is his priority now. He'll never admit it, though. Noble mother-****s like him wanna keep it righteous and pretend their rightin' wrongs. But deep-down, he knows what this is really about. And on some realness, I couldn't be more jubilant. **** the bull**** pretenses and come see me for real! Come at me wit' the intent to kill so I won't feel bad about sendin' you to see Din, Nayru, and Farore so you could tell 'em how you could never hope to step to me on your own!"
"...that was a run-on sentence." Bowser muttered.
"Shut the **** up!" Ganondorf took a swing at Bowser, who managed to block his fist from colliding with his face. "You understand why I'm so go**** pissed?! I had that mother-****er! Now I gotta step back and find a way to save the ****in' world." He put an exasperated hand to his forehead. "****in' Farore, Bowser, do you realize what jus' happened? Me and Link ****in' switched places! He's the ****in' villain now! He's gonna destroy the world if I don't do somethin'! The ****in' King of Evil has to play the good guy?! BULL****!!" Ganondorf threw his foot through a table, causing it to burst into splinters, as nonsensical as that sounds.
"Ganondorf... take it easy." Bowser was almost in awe of how furious Ganondorf was. "I dunno how you can just sit back and get ready to give up. Can we even believe anything Zelda says?" He wondered. "You gotta admit: Zelda's been acting a little crazy lately. I mean, the biggest tip-off of all is that she cheated on Link. It was all her idea. And neither of us can forget how she came into the room last night screaming the world was gonna end, then suddenly left acting like it was all a mistake. Ganondorf, man, either it's that time of the month or someone's been slipping some weird stuff into her water. Either way, I don't buy a **** word of it. How much do you wanna bet she's just trying to save Link from the most spectacular ***-kicking he'll ever receive."
Ganondorf took a second to absorb Bowser's view. And for that optimistic second, he went along with it. Zelda had been acting uncharacteristically different from what he had come to expect. But as always, time marches on...
"Yo, regardless of how crazy she's been actin', she's still a psychic." Ganondorf muttered.
"More like a psycho." Bowser corrected.
"Either way..." Ganondorf went on. "Her visions happen exactly as she sees 'em, and there's no stoppin' those ****s."
"How does it happen?" Bowser realized he didn't know how it all comes to be.
"Me and Link are under the castle surrounded by lava. We have no choice but to fight until further notice." Ganondorf shook his head.
"That's all?" Bowser asked.
"That's all she remembered." Ganondorf said.
"Ganondorf... You're driving yourself crazy off of that much?" Bowser was once-again left in awe, but for an entirely different reason this time. "Who says it's you or Link that destroys the Triforce? And I don't keep up on my readings when it comes to the legendary relics of Hyrule, but aren't there three pieces of the Triforce?" He pointed out, holding up three fingers. "If the Triforce is ever to be destroyed, I'd think it'd involve you, Link, and Zelda. If she's not there, nothing can happen. You and Link fought a million times before, and nothing ever happened! How could you take Zelda's word so blindly? How do you even know this was an actual premonition and not some little ******* nightmare she had? Give her a teddy bear and tell her to shut the hell up and go back to sleep!"
"Bowser, I know what you're gettin' at, and I feel like a ******* jus' goin' wit' the bull**** this crazy broad is splurtin', but I can't leave anythin' up to chance. I felt somethin' when she said that ****." Ganondorf admitted. "I can't explain it, but I'm takin' that as a sign. I don't usually feel **** when I'm given an ultimatum."
"Ganondorf..." Bowser couldn't think of what to say. But suddenly, he did. Before he even spoke, he smirked.
"How the **** can you smile?" Ganondorf narrowed his eyelids contemptuously. Bowser's grin was almost taunting, as if he didn't take him seriously.
"Ganondorf... my baleful buddy... sometimes, the simplest and best solutions are the most overlooked." Bowser said. "I believe in a thing called Fate. Things are destined to happen. I'm destined to rule over the Mushroom Kingdom with Peach as my queen and Mario as my stuffed towel rack. And you know what? The Triforce might be destined to be destroyed." He said with a tone of regret. "But Fate isn't obvious. It can happen in a thousand different ways. The path to the future isn't set in stone. It's the only way I can explain why I'm not sitting on my throne with Toad as my footstool."
"What the **** does this have to do wit' anythin'?" Ganondorf demanded, growing impatient with Bowser's seemingly pointless rambling.
"Just listen." Bowser calmly suggested. "The Triforce gets destroyed. It's a possibility you and Zelda accepted. Fate is supposed to make it happen under your castle. BUT... who says you'll be around to do your part in Fate's plan? Who says you'll be where Fate wants you?"
Ganondorf could only raise a perplexed eyebrow.
"Put that eyebrow down for a second and follow me." Bowser said. "Zelda's visions supposedly happen exactly as she sees 'em, right? This one happened under your castle in Hyrule. But if you're not in your castle... if you're not even in Hyrule, how can it happen?"
Ganondorf heart skipped a beat upon realization. "Holy ****. Holy ****... Holy ****! Bowser... B-Boss... My ****in' man, B-Boss. If I wasn't so evil, I'd hug you. This is why I **** wit' you. When I'm wildin' out and can't keep it cool, you come through with a steady head and show me the light." He rose his hand to give Bowser a crisp DAP.
"Hey, sometimes I can't help but let my genius shine through." Bowser boasted with a modest shrug. "Fate may get his way most of the time, but the key word is 'most'. We disappear from Hyrule and leave Link and his butt-slamming friends to search for us for a while. In the meantime, you figure out every conceivable way the Triforce could be destroyed and stop it from happening."
"Whoa, whoa, B-boss. I ain't puttin' my plans on hold jus' to save the world. **** that; I'm not a hero." Ganondorf enforced. "We can **** over Fate hard if we change the venue and take out a piece of the equation. I want Link to find me. And with Mario and Luigi as his partners, he'll know exactly where to go."
"Somebody better fill me in quick, then, because at this rate, I'll be the only one who won't know!" Bowser exclaimed.
"No one has to tell you ****. You already know where we're goin'. Exactly where we're goin'." Ganondorf nudged Bowser's chest with two fingers.
"Bull****. I'm not Zelda. Other than here..." Bowser trailed off as it suddenly clicked in his mind. Ganondorf nodded approvingly. There was only one other place they could go.
"This gets me the chance to fight wit' everythin' I got and not worry about bein' responsible for the ****in' Cataclysm. I can worry 'bout that **** after I leave Link slumped over within an inch of his life." Ganondorf said. "Whatever you need to get ready, get to it. As soon as we meet Link and his peeps, we're out. And before you even say anythin'..." He caught Bowser seconds away from speaking. "DK's gonna hold it down here. We'll be long-gone before he even finds out."
"Not to say I'm not in love with this idea, but I thought you respected him. Isn't this a little grim on your part?" Bowser asked.
"In the end, it doesn't even matter." Ganondorf shook his head. "As long as he gets to throw down with Mario then I did everythin' I said I'd do."
"Too bad he's gonna fail so miserably, but that's actually a good thing. It just means I'll never see him again. I'll actually have to thank Mario for that." Bowser said.
"Aight, man, let's get it goin'. Do what you gotta do, then meet me in the throne room." Ganondorf said.
"Can do." Bowser said.
With an affectionate punch to Bowser's arm, Ganondorf sped out the room.
"Brains and brawn. I'm so great it should be illegal." Bowser gloated as he walked out of the room. He looked left, then right, thinking about which way to walk, only to realize "****it... I still don't know where I am."
But that wasn't all...
"Oh ****..." Bowser's heart suddenly sunk as he felt a foreboding aura fill the hall. "OH ****!!"
"AAAAAAWWWWWWWWOOOOOOO!!" A sudden howl echoed through the hallway. The shadow of a mace slowly crept up the stairs as heavy footsteps accompanied it.
"Oh ****... GANONDORF, WAIT UP!!" Bowser shouted as he ran left, then suddenly jetted right, hoping to run into a familiar face.
______________________
"How are they doing?" Nabooru asked, looking at an unconscious Link, Mario, and Luigi.
"I don't even care. I want them up now so I can ask them what the hell they were thinking!" Mida lividly stated. "We could've still salvaged what was left of the Training Grounds. Now there's nothing! Nothing, Nab! And their little stunt sent six more of us to the infirmary. I know we're the strongest girls here, but how the hell are we supposed to protect the fortress with only two able-bodied girls?"
"I'm here too, Mida..." Raznia spoke up.
"Don't worry, sis, I counted you, too. You and Nabooru can't be at a hundred percent yet, so I'm putting you two at fifty. With me being the only one at a hundred, that only makes us as strong as two Gerudo women. Or twenty men. Whichever one you prefer."
"I must be worse off than I thought. I'm usually as strong as twenty men by myself." Nabooru fretted.
"It was a tough battle, Nab. You'll be back to normal soon enough." Mida put a consoling hand on Nabooru's shoulder. "But not too soon, though. I kinda like being the strongest woman in Hyrule." She admitted with a smirk.
"Don't get used to it." Raznia bluntly stated, gaining a smirk from Mida. "But seriously, how did the Training Grounds explode like that?" She wondered as her glance wandered over to Link. "We never stored anything that powerful in there, did we?"
"I don't think there's anything that powerful anywhere in Hyrule. I'm telling you, Raz, we blame these three." Mida asserted, glaring at them menacingly. "Everything was nice and quiet until they disappeared."
"I don't think so." Raznia disagreed. "Think about it. You just said me and Nabi are only at fifty percent. Mario, Luigi, and Link fought harder than both of us, so you know they're in even worse shape. Are you trying to tell me that even at a fraction of their full power, they still had enough to..." Raznia paused to search for the right word. "...obliterate our Training Grounds?"
"Obliterate. I like that word." Mida nodded in approval. "And yes, I'm still blaming them. All fingers point to them. All the bread crumbs lead to them. Their hands were in the cookie jar and we caught them with chocolate chips smeared on their cheeks. What else do you need, Raznia? What other clever metaphors should I come up with?"
"Shut up, Mida!" Raznia snapped, taking a threatening step toward her sister.
"Raznia, calm down." Nabooru moved in between an enraged Raznia and a startled Mida. "She has a point. They were the only ones there. Even if they are responsible, it's okay. We were planning to renovate anyway. Too many of the girls were completing the course, right?" She reminded Raznia, in an attempt to lighten the mood.
"Yeah..." Raznia agreed, though still keeping a vindictive eye on Mida.
"Hey, look, look!" Mida pointed toward Mario. "He's stirring! Start shaking him!"
"Can you leave him alone? Let him get up on his own." Raznia said.
"That's letting him get off easy. I want my answers now." Mida walked up to Mario's bedside.
"Mida, don't touch him!" Raznia nearly shoved Nabooru into a wall to get near Mida, ready to use whatever force necessary to stop her.
"Raz!" Nabooru grabbed her arm before she was out of reach.
"Raz, relax." Mida calmly suggested, holding out a halting hand. A white light suddenly shined from that hand. "Remember what my role is in a battle: I'm the reviver. As long as they aren't too deep in unconsciousness, I can wake anyone up. That's what I'm about to do. I'm not shaking anyone."
"Well... why didn't you just tell me that, then?" Raznia hesitated before asking.
"Why should I have to tell you? You already knew this." Mida stated matter-of-factly. Raznia could only stare back blankly.
Her eyes then wandered over to Nabooru's. Raznia's heart dropped as she met her shocked expression. They both knew she was right. Raznia's reaction was completely out-of-character and uncalled for.
Without a word to anyone, Raznia shook Nabooru's hand off her arm and left the room.
"Mida..." Nabooru uttered as she looked to her.
"Don't worry about it." Mida quickly replied, her tone different from her usual snappy and sarcastic quality as she waved her hand in front of Mario's closed eyelids.
His eyelids twitched as he gradually regained consciousness. Slowly, they finally opened. The first thing he saw was a light, and to his previously-closed eyes, a blinding light. A light so bright, he couldn't regain his other senses. He felt paralyzed, trying helplessly to jump back into action. When all else failed, the only thing left for him to do was continue his long, tortured scream from before he fell into unconsciousness.
"What'd you do?!" Nabooru demanded, startled by Mario's seemingly unwarranted scream.
"Nothing! He just woke up and started screaming!" Mida shouted back as she threw a hand over Mario's mouth.
Suddenly, Luigi regained his senses as well; with the first being his hearing. Only the sounds of his brother's tormented shrieks filled his ears, causing him to join Mario and turning his solo into a duet of excruciated cries of pain.
"Oh, Din, come on!" Mida shouted in anguish. "Shut him up, Nab!"
Nabooru was already standing over Luigi. Following Mida's example, she put her hand over Luigi's mouth as well, but adding her own touch and running a soothing hand over his hairline and softly shushing him towards tranquility.
And following his partners' example, Link regained his consciousness as well, but unlike his companions, he woke with a start instead of a scream, remembering the last ordeal he faced.
"WHOA!!" Link yelped as he sat up in his bed. "...whoa." He murmured, watching Mida and Nabooru ignore his resurrection and continue to seemingly smother his friends.
Before he decided to take the initiative and save his allies, he realized he'd never have another opportunity like this again. He crept out of his bed, shrugging off the reawakened pain in his shoulder and snuck towards a preoccupied Mida.
"Shut up, **** you! SHUT THE HELL UP!!" Mida tried screaming over a roaring Mario but failed as his bellows sounded even louder than before. "UGH!!" She let out as she was seconds from pulling her hair out.
"BLAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGH!!" Link suddenly boomed crisply right into Mida's undefended ear.
He sounded off so unexpectedly and so loudly that she had no choice but to let out a terrified scream of her own as she fell over Mario's bed and clumsily to the floor. Link had no choice but to drop to his knees and curl up into a ball of hysterics.
"THAT WASN'T FUNNY, YOU HYLIAN HORSEASS!!" Mida shouted, shoving Link over with a strong foot thrust after scrambling to her feet. Even after shouting it at him, it was impossible to tell him that as he continued his uproarious joviality.
And to add insult to injury, Luigi and Mario's uncontrollable screaming came to a calm end.
"...I'm alive." Mario announced, partially in disbelief.
Nabooru let a smile creep onto her face as Mario finally came back to his senses. She looked down to the Mario brother she was tending to, finding him with a grin in his eyes, as well as on his face. With her hand still tenderly on his forehead, he had no reason not to.
"Smile now, sweetie. You'll never wake up to this face again." Nabooru said as she patted Luigi's cheek.
"****, Nabi. Harsh." Link grimly stated, abruptly cutting off his laughter.
"He knows I'm just playing around with him." Nabooru said.
"So then there is a chan--"
"No." Nabooru quickly cut off a hopeful Luigi.
"Harsh." Link repeated with emphasis.
"I'll tell you the same thing I told Raznia; you set 'em up and I'll knock 'em down. It doesn't matter who it is." Nabooru said.
"Speakin' of her, where is she? I saw freakin' Mida three times before I saw Raz once." Link held up three fingers. "Somethin's wrong with that."
"Of course you saw me the most. I'm the one who mended your shoulder back together." Mida said, almost sounded offended. "You should be kissing my feet right now. No one would take as good care of you as I did."
"There's so many things wrong with what you just said, I almost wanna knock myself out so I don't have to tell you everythin' that was wrong." Link said.
"You don't have to go through all that trouble. Just stand back and poke your chin out a little so I can do it for you." Mida offered.
"I would, but you'd probably break your flimsy-*** fist against my face. Gerudo women are strong, and I'm not tryin' to make you look weak. An *******, at least, but not weak."
If there was one thing that could get to not only Mida, but any Gerudo woman, it was being called weak. She couldn't let that challenge slide.
"Then come on, Link. If you really think so, let's test it out. Stick your chin out and I promise I will leave you laid out, seeing stars." Mida guaranteed.
"Here it is, baby." Link taunted Mida by poking his chin out and pointing at it. "Give it your all, but don't cry too hard after my face renders your wack-*** fist useless."
Mida let out a minimally amused giggle. "Keep talking, you cocky *******." She tickled under Link's chin before lining up her fist up with her anticipated point of contact and cocked it back.
"That's enough." Mario put his over Mida's and pushed it down. "Both of you are too stubborn to back down, and I know this won't end well."
Mida looked down at Mario, then looked up to Link, who was still provoking her by pointing at his chin. Reacting just as he hoped, she suddenly wound her fist back, seconds away from burying it into his cheek.
"Mida, don't!" Nabooru grabbed Mida's arm with both hands. "Listen to Mario. It's a bad idea."
"He's asking for it, Nabooru. You know that! Why are you two protecting him?" Mida demanded.
"I don't know about Mario, but I'm protecting you." Nabooru said. "If you touch Link, and Raznia finds out, she's going to flip. And you already know how she feels about you. I don't know if I can protect you from her."
"Whatever." Mida shook off Mario and Nabooru and left the room in a hurry, but not before shoving Link, who purposely stood in front of the exit, out of the way.
"Link, what's wrong with you?" Nabooru demanded, staring daggers into Link.
"You should askin' Mida that question." Link shot back. "After all the bull**** she put me through, she's lucky it wasn't me cocking my fist back."
"Who exactly is Mida?" Luigi wondered.
"A ***** in every sense of the word, Luigi." Link quickly answered.
"Link, enough." Nabooru sternly insisted. "Mida is Raznia's older sister."
"WHAT?!!" Link nearly fell over. "What?! They're related? Get outta here! Them?! Raznia's too sweet to be eternally bonded to a ***** like her!"
"Link, you may not like her, but you have to stop calling her that. She's close enough to me to be my sister, and I don't appreciate anyone talking about my family like that." Nabooru strictly stated.
"...sorry." Link apologetically muttered. "But really? Sisters? The whole time I knew her... Raznia never mentioned any family besides you."
"They have a rocky relationship. If you want to know more, ask one of them." Nabooru suggested. "But you didn't come here just to find out about Mida and Raznia. And, even though we appreciate everything you three have done for us, you didn't come just to help us with our crisis, either."
Link, Mario, and Luigi all looked to each other gravely.
"Ganondorf." Nabooru guessed.
"And Bowser." Mario added.
"Bowser?" Nabooru repeated the unfamiliar name.
"He's the Ganondorf of the Mushroom Kingdom, where me and my brother are from." Mario explained. "He kidnapped Peach and joined forces with Ganondorf, who kidnapped Zelda."
"Heh." Link let out a laugh, which caught everyone off-guard, causing them to turn to him incredulously. "Sorry. I just thought of somethin' else. Perfect timin', right?"
"We need your help as the Spirit sage." Mario requested.
"Well, I'm glad you came to me, but I don't know how much help I can give." Nabooru admitted. "Ganondorf is much more powerful than any sage on their own. It'll take the combined power of all the sages to beat him, including Zelda."
"Not this time." Link stepped in. "Ganondorf made this personal. Since day one, it's been about gettin' to me when I'm most vulnerable. He's been tryin' to prove that I'm weak. That, without everyone's help, I would've never beat him. And you know what? I started to believe him." He said with a low voice and a hanging head. "But because of Mario..." He looked to his comrade in red. "...because of Luigi..." He looked to his comrade in green. "Because of you, Raznia, Samus, Falco, Fox... Because of all my friends, I am strong. You all make me feel strong enough to beat Ganondorf on my own and prove to him that I'm stronger than he can ever imagine. And that's exactly what I'm gonna do."
"Rousing speech, Link." Luigi nodded.
"Yeah." Nabooru agreed. "Strong words. But it makes me wonder... If you're feeling so confident and planning on taking him on by yourself, why do you need my help? What can I give you that you don't already have?"
"Light arrows." Link answered. "I can handle Ganondorf as long as doesn't transform, but we all know that he's gonna do it. It's the only thing he has over me. I need that equalizer if I plan on winnin'. Which I do."
"Hmm." Nabooru hummed. "Well, Link, I'd be happy to add to that strength. ...if I could."
"...what?" Link, Mario, and Luigi gasped after a moment of denial.
"The Light arrows are entrusted to the leader of the seven sages. Only she can give them to you." Nabooru explained.
"Wha... but..." Link stammered. He was so sure Nabooru would be able to help him. "But you can talk to Rauru, right? What about him? The Sage of Light? Light arrows? There's no connection at all?"
"Rauru watches over the Light temple, which is the last sanctuary of the sages and the only place Light arrows are created." Nabooru said. "He prays to the Goddesses constantly to keep the barrier that protects it from evil up. That's his role as a sage. He doesn't distribute the merchandise, he only protects it."
"I can't believe this... Story of our lives." Luigi groaned, finally rising from his bed and leaving the room like the Gerudo sisters before him.
"...I should follow him." Mario decided. "Things like this leave him feeling pretty low."
"He's not the only one, man..." Link sighed. "I'll see you guys in a bit."
With a nod, Mario followed his brother out of the room.
"I managed to clear out an entire room of people..." Nabooru murmured as she took a seat on the edge of one of the beds.
"Not really. I'm still here, Nabi." Link reminded her, taking a seat next to her. "Just look at it this way: at least it wasn't because you farted."
Nabooru could only look at Link incredulously. "How could you insinuate... Girls don't fart!"
"The secret's out, Nabi. Zelda let it 'slip'. I almost died that night..." Link stated with a hint of severity.
"I dunno about Zelda, but the rest of us keep our 'secrets' to ourselves." Nabooru said. "It's better for everyone that way."
"**** right." Link nodded in agreement.
"Let's change the subject..." Nabooru suggested. "Ganondorf's really at it again?"
"Yeah. He's the reason Nightmare came through." Link said.
"Hmm. I never would've thought Nightmare was just a lackey. He was evil and powerful enough to seem self-motivated." Nabooru said.
"Nightmare's story is kinda complicated." Link said. "He was definitely self-motivated in gathering souls. But Ganondorf led him here. You know I'll pay him back for all of you."
"You already kinda paid him back, didn't you?" Nabooru asked.
"What do you mean?" Link wondered.
"Well, when you kill the master-mind's lackey, it kinda sends a powerful message, doesn't it?" Nabooru pointed out.
"Well, yeah... but... I didn't kill anyone." Link pointed out.
"Really? Then how did Nightmare die? Why is there a hole through his throat?" Nabooru interrogated.
"Nabi... What the hell?" Link rose from his seat while staring cautiously at his Gerudian interrogator. "Even if I did kill him, why are you pressin' me so hard?"
"She's going to be so mad at me when she finds out..." Nabooru muttered. "I'm asking because of Raznia. She was up when you ended the battle. She saw you kill him."
"...wha...?" Link couldn't even speak.
"You killed him. Mercilessly, too. She couldn't believe it. So much, in fact, that it broke her for a little while." Nabooru said. "And I know she reacted that way because she has feelings for you."
"She told you about that?" Link said in a low voice.
"She's my 'sister', Link. She tells me about everything." Nabooru stated.
"But... I don't... I don't remember any of this... It couldn't have been me. I blacked out after Nightmare threw Raz's sword through my shoulder." Link recounted.
"I passed out after Nightmare lost control of my soul." Nabooru remembered. "I'd usually take Raz's word unconditionally, but this is something for you two to get straight. This might be more complicated than we think..."
"I'll talk to her." Link said.
"You better." Nabooru agreed with a threatening tone. "But what are you gonna do about Ganondorf? I haven't kept in touch with the other sages, and Mario and Luigi sound like they'll be busy with that Bowser-guy. You'll really be on your own."
"You're talkin' like you don't know Raznia's gonna sneak out at night to follow me and try to help out. Plus, I've gotten a lot stronger since the last time you saw me." Link pointed out. "Honestly, I think I'm only here because Ganondorf tricked me. I would've fought him already if he didn't convince me I couldn't beat him without Light arrows. And he knows me so well, he knew I'd come here first. This whole thing was a trap, and you guys were in the middle of it all. I think he knows I don't need Light arrows this time."
"As much as I hate to remind myself... he's a Gerudo. We're good at what we do. ...no matter what it is." Nabooru begrudgingly stated.
"Well, I just have to be better at what I do. Simple as that." Link said as he got up and made for the door. He came to a sudden stop, however.
"What?" Nabooru wondered as he turned back to look at her.
A smile crept up on his face. "You should go first. Just so you can say you didn't make all five people in this room leave."
"That's sweet, Link." She said with a laugh. Before she exited the room, with a pinch to his cheek, "Just so you know, you don't have to come back and tell me what went on between you two. Raz'll probably tell me soon enough anyway."
"My version would probably be better, though..." Link said.
"Maybe... Your exaggerations were always funny." Nabooru admitted. "I do want to see you and your friends off, though. Let me know when you're leaving."
"I will." Link agreed.
And with a smile, Nabooru left the room.
______________________
"Luigi!" Mario shouted as he finally caught up with his brother.
He slowed to a stop and looked back. He forced himself to greet Mario with a smile.
"Yeah, you're happy to see me now, but you were really trying to kill me back there." Mario said with a huff of a laugh.
"You were trying just as hard as I was. I almost thought you were going to win." Luigi said.
"I probably would've if I didn't suddenly realize it was you." Mario pointed out.
"Pfft, with that overcompensation-ball you were touting?" Luigi let out a laugh. "All I had to do was pull a spin-move on you and the fight would've been over. You may've been fast, but there's no way you'd be able to turn around quick enough to protect yourself."
"You want to go at it again, then?" Mario offered, opening his palm and letting an orb of fire materialize.
"No. One near-death experience before noon is more than enough for me." Luigi declined politely.
"Same here." Mario promptly extinguished the ball of flame. "Besides, we still need to deal with Bowser and Ganondorf. We'll save it for them."
"That, we will." Luigi agreed with a nod.
"So how are you feeling?" Mario wondered. "You looked like you were about to cry after what Nabooru said."
"Hey, I'm like Link. I don't cry." Luigi boasted, though with a wink. "Seriously, though, I was mad before, but then I remembered what he said yesterday: whoever's controlling this gigantic game of screw-worthiness and dumb-luck always seems to let it end in our favor. We're tested over and over again, and no matter how bad it gets, we still pull it off stronger than ever. Especially now." Luigi let stray streaks of electricity jump from his body as a testament to his new powers. "Maybe we don't need the Light arrows."
"I hope not. Otherwise..." Mario trailed off, not even wanting to consider the alternative.
"THERE YOU TWO ARE!!" An angry feminine voice called out.
Mario and Luigi's heads turned towards the source of the call.
"That's Mida, right?" Luigi pondered.
"Yeah. She looks like she's on a warpath." Mario noticed.
"...should we fight?" Luigi wondered, letting sparks of electricity fly from his fingers.
"No... not the best idea." Mario disagreed.
"...should we run?" Luigi wondered, letting sparks of electricity fly from his shoes.
"I feel like she'd chase us to the edge of oblivion. Let's just try to talk to her. She can't be as bad as Link says." Mario thought.
Just in time to test his assumption, Mida stopped in front of the Mario brothers.
"Hey, Mid-"
"You're done talking." Mida clamped her fingers together, signifying what their mouths should be doing. "Right now, I'm asking questions and you're answering them. Nothing else."
Mario's eyes narrowed. Barely a second had gone by and already he was agreeing with Link's assumption.
"Question number one: why the hell did you three destroy the Training Grounds?" Mida spat more than asked.
"Think about that question for a second. Why the hell would we want to destroy the Training Grounds in the first place? There was nothing to destroy!" Mario shot back.
"Which is exactly why I'm asking." Mida said. "Some of our girls saw you hanging around the ruins, looking suspicious. Put that together with the fact that I dragged you, your brother's, and Link's shattered ***** to the infirmary after that explosion. What do you expect me to think? You were obviously plotting against us!"
"Why would..." Mario's growing anger wouldn't allow him to wrap his head around Mida's accusations. Even if people saw him near the Training Grounds, how could they automatically assume he was out to destroy it?
"Okay, you two are getting nowhere." Luigi stepped in. "Both of you are asking the wrong questions. Let's talk about why we were there in the first place."
"Didn't I say you can't talk until I ask you a question? We're doing this my way." Mida snapped at Luigi.
He only smiled in response.
"What the hell are you smiling about?"
"You just asked me not one, but two questions! And I'm not answering either of them!" Luigi shook his head with a beaming smile, which gained a threatening growl from Mida. "Since I can now speak, I'll tell you want you want to hear, but we'll do it the Luigi way. Incidentally, everyone loves the Luigi way."
"Incidentally, I love whichever way gets me what I want. Talk." Mida ordered.
"Mario'll start us off." Luigi turned to his brother. "How'd you get to the Training Grounds?"
"Well, that's actually what made me so angry at first. I don't remember going there at all." Mario admitted.
"But you were there." Mida insisted. "I pulled you out from under the rubble. You can't tell me I didn't."
With a heavy sigh, "...fine. I was there, apparently. Now how'd I get there? I'll say it again, I don't remember going near there."
"Well, what were you doing before then?" Luigi asked his brother.
"Sleeping."
"...sleepwalking?" Mida guessed.
"Makes a lot of sense..." Luigi verified.
"But I don't sleepwalk..." Mario defended.
"You sure do sleep-talk, though. You have some strange, pasta-related dreams sometimes..." Luigi said, gaining a sour look from Mario. Suddenly, his face lit up as if he realized something. "What'd you dream about?"
"Dream? It was more like a nightmare. ...about Nightmare." Mario said.
"Keep talking." Mida urged, intrigued by the mention of the name.
"It was me, Link, Luigi, and Raznia against Nightmare, and we were losing badly." Mario recounted.
"You were the last one left?" Luigi asked.
"Yeah." Mario said.
"You heard snickering, then two orbs appeared?"
"One fire and one lightning."
"Took the fire?"
"And TORCHED Nightmare."
"Woke up in a grand entrance?"
"...more like a dilapidated chamber with a ghost."
"Flambéed foul apparition of the netherworld (trademarked)?"
"I say fricasseed. Either way, he was crispy."
"Then things got crazy."
"Another-me-with-thunder-powers crazy."
"That was me."
"So the other you, meaning the other me, was Link."
"Yep. And I have to admit, I don't look good without a shirt."
"Same here... Love-handles are unbecoming..."
"I don't remember having an outie..."
"Okay... you two lost me." Mida said. "What the hell just happened?"
"I'll recap." Link unexpectedly stepped in from around the corner, as if he was waiting for the prime opportunity to take over. Because he was. "Mario and Luigi had the same dream, kinda. Where Mario took the fire orb, Luigi took the lightning orb. After they defeated Nightmare and woke up, they somehow ended up inside the Training Grounds and found a Poe. They attacked it and thought they killed it, but it only freed them from the illusion of solitude and bought on the new illusion of vengeful jealousy AKA they had to fight the power they rejected, not knowin' they were actually fightin' each other. And just before they could kill each other, I showed up, killed the Poe they thought they killed, ended the illusion, and saved Gerudo Valley."
"You destroyed the Training Grounds and sent nine people, including yourselves, back to the infirmary." Mida pointed out.
"Better nine than EVERYONE. But then again, there would be no infirmary to take anyone to. Everythin' between Hyrule Field and the Desert Colossus would've been a smokin' crater." Link said.
"How'd you know the Poe was still there?" Mario wondered.
"I wanna say my powers give me the ability to see the unseen, but that's not true." Link admitted. "The Poe can make itself disappear, but the lantern it carries never does. It was hidden in a corner. And with you two fightin' each other so hard, you woulda never noticed it."
"...but when I 'killed' my Poe, it dropped its lantern. That's how my fire-copy showed up." Luigi remembered.
"Same thing happened to me." Mario added.
"Guys, what don't you understand about the concept of illusions?" Mida asked. "Poes are masters of illusions. You two got lucky. That one was an ambitious idiot. Giving you new powers to kill each other with? If it were me, I would've just led you to quicksand and called it a day."
"Just go with the sure thing, right?" Luigi nodded.
"Why make things harder than they have to be?" Mida said.
"Because it'd feel that much better when everythin' falls through. Quicksand is borin' as hell. Fire versus lightning? Now that's cool." Link said.
"If you say so, Link." Mida rolled her eyes. "Well now that I know what happened, I'm not as mad as I was before. You guys still need to be more careful, though."
"...we were sleeping." Mario held his hands out in disbelief at the fact that Mida was still blaming them.
"Excuses." Mida shook her head.
"Mario, I'm gonna save you a lotta pain and say 'run away as fast as you can before she drives you crazy'." Link suggested. "I'm actually about to do that. In Raznia's general direction. I gotta find her before we leave."
"She's probably in her room." Mida guessed. "Do you even know where that is?"
"I can stumble into a few wrong rooms before I figure it out. That's how I do things." Link said.
"Why don't I just show you?" Mida offered. "You'd get there faster and you'd look less like an idiot."
"But after you're done with her, shouldn't we... kind of... do some more recovering?" Luigi wondered. "We did just wake up from a near-death experience. And before that, we woke up from another near-death experience."
"Not a problem. You know about Hyrule's Fairies, right?" After Luigi nodded, "We have Great Fairies here in Hyrule. They'll heal any wound. Mida kindly offered to take us to one, but I'm gonna give that job to Raz. We like her more."
"Awww, but I wanted to take you guys so badly!" Mida chanted, though obviously sarcastic. "...is that what you wanted to hear? I don't even know where you got the idea that it'd be me taking you."
"You don't have to take it so hard, Mida." Link said, though with the slightest of sneers.
"Let's just go so we can get away from each other." Mida said after a heavy sigh.
"That's probably the best thing you'll ever say to anyone." Link commended her word choice with a nod. "You guys comin'?" He turned to the Mario brothers.
"Actually, me and Luigi are going to sort out exactly what we can do with these new powers." Mario said.
"That's a really good idea." Luigi agreed. "Trial-and-error will only get us so far..."
"As long as you two are far away from the Fortress, I don't care what you do." Mida began to walk down the hall.
"Take it easy guys. Literally! No super-moves that threaten to destroy Gerudo Valley." Link scolded.
"Trust us, we'll keep things simple." Mario guaranteed as both duos parted ways.
_____________________
_____________________
If you made it down here, congratulations. I hope you still enjoyed the chapter, despite its length. Know that the following chapters won't nearly be as long or wordy. This will be the last strictly-dialogue chapter in the story.
As for my schedule... I'll have the next chapter to you in less than seven months. That's as specific as I'll get.
Until then, gimme that constructive criticism.
We need more Linkus.
IE : Very good chapter. Better than the couple of last ones...
Those were kinda average.
Raznia loves Link, Dark Link loves Mida, Link loves Raz and Samus...
Where are you going with this?
YOU´RE MAKING MY HEAD HURT!
IE : Very good chapter. Better than the couple of last ones...
Those were kinda average.
Raznia loves Link, Dark Link loves Mida, Link loves Raz and Samus...
Where are you going with this?
YOU´RE MAKING MY HEAD HURT!
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
Woo, reply! I was starting to worry for a second...
Yep, love-... quadrilaterals (?) for the win. As for your question... you're gonna have to stay tuned. Questions will be answered eventually.
I'm wondering how long it took for you to read it all. It took me about an hour (but I'm always revising as I read, so that's not really accurate). I'm gonna do what I shoulda done in the first place and break the chapter in half.
Do you know what this means? I updated twice in a week. I'm amazing, I know. The idea came to me in my sleep. Or actually, right before I fell asleep...
_____________________
_____________________
Act 10: Only the Beginning (Part 10)
*SLAM*
Raznia quickly turned around to find Link breathing heavily as he leaned against her door, fumbling with the lock on the doorknob.
"Link?" Raznia asked.
"I ditched her." Link mischievously giggled as he finally locked the door.
"Who?" Raznia wondered.
"Your annoyin' sister."
Raznia's face almost turned at the mention of her sibling. "Why were you with her?"
"It wasn't like I wanted to chill with her." Link quickly clarified. "I was just gonna search you out on my own, but the all-knowin' Mida said you'd be in your room and decided to show me the way. I wasn't havin' that, though. I told her we should stop by my room first so I can put on the rest of my clothes. Thanks for the new tunic, by the way." He smiled as he pecked Raznia on the cheek.
Raznia was admittedly caught off-guard by Link's gratitude. She actually had nothing to do with his new wardrobe. But even so...
"You're welcome." She replied after replacing her puzzled look with a polite smile.
"Yeah, so right after I put on my hood just the way I like it, I jumped out the window, thinkin' I could escape her just like I did earlier. But NO, Mida got wise and was waitin' right at the bottom. She called me an idiot and we started walkin'. I was gonna make the most of it and get her side of the story, but I decided to make her look over there." Link suddenly burst out laughing. "I still can't believe she fell for that. I pointed at a wall!"
"What story?" Raznia asked.
"The one about your bad relationship." Link said. "You have a sister, Raz. All this time, I thought you were like me; the only family you had were your friends."
"Why should it matter?" Raznia rose her voice.
"Raz... she's your sister." Link pointed out.
"HALF-sister." Raznia quickly corrected. "Meaning what she knows about me couldn't fill half a bottle."
"She has to know at least that much." Link insisted, shaking her head. "You two are related by blood!"
"Link..." Raznia let out a frustrated sigh. "You don't understand. Just because we came from the same mother doesn't make us best friends. I don't like Mida and I never will. I don't even like to talk about her. So, having said that, let's stop talking about her."
"Raz... wow... I never woulda thought anyone could get to you." Link was admittedly shocked by Raznia reluctance.
All she did was let out a huff.
"I don't hide the fact that I don't like Mida. She thinks she's sooo great, but there's no proof of it! She thinks she's always right and dares you to prove her wrong."
"That's exactly what I don't like about her." Raznia agreed. "I've been dealing with that for years, Link! And guess what? Her attitude problem never grew on me. Why would I ever like someone like that, regardless of whether we're related or not?"
"There's way more to it than that." Link said. "I'm payin' attention to the little things: the way your face turned when I first mentioned her, the way your mood swung when I bought up the fact that she's your sis--"
"Half-sister." Raznia corrected once again.
"Whether you're drinkin' half a bottle of LonLon milk or a whole bottle, you're still drinkin' LonLon milk, right?" Link bought up with a convincing eyebrow. "What I'm gettin' at is you two are still sisters. What happened between you two? It's like you literally have somethin' against her. It's almost like you hate her."
"Link, just stop." Raznia demanded. "If this is all you came to talk about, you're better off just going."
"You're kickin' me out?" Link gasped, almost sounding shocked.
"If that's what it takes to get you off that subject." Raznia said.
"Fine, we'll change the subject." Link agreed. "Nab told me you were up when I finished my battle with Nightmare."
"She what?!" Raznia's eyes went wide with shock.
"She also told me you'd be mad about that. I guess she was right about both things." Link determined. "She said you think I killed him."
"You did kill him..." Raznia muttered, unable to look at Link's face momentarily. "I saw your sword go right through his neck."
"Raz..."
"Link, I should let you know we're treading thin ice here."
What do you mean?
"You said you wanted to save the man behind the evil sword, and yet you killed him anyway. Why would you do that?"
I'm guessin' this has somethin' to do with you.
"Sharp as always. The same way you have a plethora of powers you now can't use, so do I. After you found Raznia's weapon in your shoulder, your consciousness left the pilot's seat opened. I figured out how to take control. So I did just that and finished what you started."
...why does this make me feel so uncomfortable all of a sudden?
"It shouldn't. I just said it's a power I can't use anymore. It can help my madness-side take over again. Something neither of us want.
"Now, what I meant by treading thin ice: I can see you figuring out I had a hand in the battle's end and you'd end up telling Miss Raznia about it. Remember what I said in that long talk we had: there'll be that air of mistrust. You're already seeing it and you didn't even tell her about me yet. Let's not forget the fact that you didn't even see her once while you were bedridden. You bought that fact up yourself."
I was just jokin' around. She was goin' through her own episode. I'm not gonna read too deeply into that.
"Well, I will because it's a possibility. She was afraid of you. Hell, just now, she couldn't even look you in the eye."
You're overreactin', Dark Link.
"If you think so. You still can't tell her about me, no matter how badly you want to."
Then how do I explain why I killed Nightmare?
"Simple. Tell the truth. After I took over, Nightmare was about to kill Raznia. He had her by the throat with his monstrous hand. I had to kill him. Nothing he could do would convince me otherwise. And I just felt your heart shift. You would've done the same thing."
I would've...
"There you go. And that's what you tell Raznia."
Despite their conversation, Link only seemed like he hesitated to speak momentarily.
"Link, what?" Raznia wondered as she finally turned to Link and watched his eyes wander away from her.
"Raz... I had... to kill him." Link forced himself to say. "He had you by the neck. You couldn't defend yourself. What else was I supposed to do? I couldn't forgive him for that."
Raznia couldn't argue against that. She remembered what she felt at that moment: pure helplessness. Back then, she wished with all her heart that something, anything, would save her and send that menace back to whatever twisted, undiscovered level of Hell he came from. And her wish came true in its entirety. Even if he was apologetic, Nightmare's deeds couldn't be forgiven by a fleeting moment of regret.
"You did save me. Just like I'd expect my hero to." Raznia closed in on Link, wrapping her arms around him. "I'm sorry I reacted the way I did. You did what you had to do. Who knows where I'd be if you didn't?"
"It definitely wouldn't be in my arms." Link said, putting his hands on Raznia's waist.
"How do I make it up to you?" Raznia said with a suggestive smile.
Link couldn't help put let a grin take over his face as well. "There's only one thing I want, baby."
"Anything." Raznia's voice gained a sultry tone.
"Come here." Link bought Raznia's face close to his. He kissed her lips gently, then worked his way to her ear. With a whisper, "...tell me about Mida."
Link face was so close to Raznia, even his peripheral vision would've never saw the angry fist sailing right to his cheek. Looking up to flustered girlfriend from the floor, "...I (ow) probably should've (ow! Hurts to talk...) bought that up in a different way."
"And I probably should've made you leave a long time ago." Raznia decided, unlocking the door and opening the path for Link's exit.
Standing directly in that path was Mida, however. Raznia's brow instantly furrowed.
"I heard my name a few times." Mida answered before Raznia could ask. "You'd want to know what others are saying about you, wouldn't you?" She asked rhetorically in her usual malapert tone.
"Do me a favor: get your imprudent, eavesdropping-*** away from my room." Raznia grabbed Link by the back of his shirt and threw him into the hallway. "And take him with you." She promptly slammed the door, leaving no room for discussion.
Still facing the closed door, Mida could only laugh.
"How could you laugh now? Raz probably just broke my face and, dependin' on how long you've been listenin', she seems to have a really low opinion of you." Link pointed out with a tender hand on his cheek.
"I figured you'd find your way here after you ditched me, so I thought I'd wait here. You're pretty fast. I got here right when you said 'look over there'." Mida said.
"Did you?" Link asked with a giggle, then an immediate grimace because of the pain a simple smile caused him.
"That's why I'm laughing. Payback is such a *****." Mida taunted, noticing Link's pained expression. "If it wasn't me that'd knock you flat on your ***, it'd be my sister. Or my half-sister, as she made so clear."
"Crystal... But why does it seem so one-sided? The way you just reacted to what she just did..." Link just shook his head. "This is doesn't make any sense. If there's anyone you'd actually be nice to, it'd be Raznia, but if there's anyone Raznia would be straight-up rude to, it's you."
"That's basically it. Raznia hates me, but I love her." Mida admitted with an uncharacteristic fondness. "It's probably my only weakness. I'd do anything for my family, no matter what."
"An affectionate Mida and a venomous Raznia... My world is slowly crumblin'..." Link groaned. "How the hell does somethin' like that happen? In these types of situations, the feelin' is usually mutual; there's either love all-around or hate."
"It's complicated... I don't even like to talk about it. It didn't affect only me and Raz, you know. The whole fortress was in an uproar." Mida said.
"Well, since I won't be hearin' it from Raz, you'll have to do." Link settled with a shrug.
"I don't know if I want to talk to you." Mida hesitated. "Can I even trust you with something like this? Now that I think about it, this might even strain what we have, as if it wasn't strangled enough."
"Look at it this way; I can't like you any less." Link pointed out.
"And that's your argument to convince me to tell you about my past... What the hell does Raznia see in you?" Mida wondered sincerely.
"I'm the Hero of Time." Link simply stated as his gallant fanfare blared throughout the relative silence of the fortress's living quarters.
"You've got to be kidding me..." Mida uttered in pure awe.
"Don't make me say it again." Link warned.
"You know what; this is probably giving you too much credit, but I see what you're trying to do. There's obviously no reason for you to know what I'm about to say other than the fact that you're just nosy." Mida said. "But on the other hand, there's no reason for me to not say anything other than the fact that I'm just spiteful."
"As much as I hate to admit it, you're right. You did give me too much credit. I was just tryin' to annoy you." Link admitted.
"Well, you got what you want plus a bonus. I feel like telling a story." Mida actually smiled, much to Link's surprise. "Walk with me." She commanded as she began to move down the hall.
"We better be walkin' to the infirmary. My cheek is still killin' me." Link reminded her, still with a hand on the point of contact.
"Yeah, it's starting to swell up pretty nicely. I taught my little sis well." Mida boasted with a smug grin.
"I thought Nab taught Raz everything she knows." Link remembered Raznia being under Nabooru's instruction when they first met.
"Yeah, that was after Raz decided to distance herself from almost everything that connected me to her: including fighting style. She can't unlearn how strong I made her, though." Mida said. "It all happened during our sparing session in the Haunted Wasteland."
"How the hell could you have a good fight there?" Link almost shouted. "You can't see anythin' but sand and madness!"
"Me and Raz used to be so evenly matched, we started battling in ridiculous places and set up even crazier stipulations: at Gerudo Valley's Bridge, we used to jump off with Cuccos and battle to the bottom, trying to knock each other into the river. At Death Mountain Crater, we fought until one of us had our clothes burned off. And, of course, the loser had to walk home half-naked." Mida snickered at the memory of Raznia begging for a shirt to borrow. "We even fought right in the middle of Hyrule Castle Town. The stipulation there was the first person to injure a Hylian lost. Don't worry, we bought plenty of fairies for that one."
"You two were crazy." Link determined, shaking his head.
"We were young and carefree. Well, we still are, but even moreso back then. We never thought about the consequences. We just had fun." Mida warmly stated. "The battle in the Haunted Wasteland was actually pretty straight-forward: we just fought until one of us couldn't anymore. The stipulation was the environment. It's like you said: all we could see was sand, so we had to get creative. Raznia was into exotic perfume back then, so I just concentrated on her scent, which was easier said than done because of all the sand that got blown up my nose. She never told me how she was able to find me, but she caught me off-guard pretty often. Whenever I got back the upper-hand, she'd disappear into the sandstorm. She was so sneaky... the perfect Gerudo thief.
"At one point, I heard footsteps in the sand. I thought I finally had a chance to surprise her for a change. I was gonna get her with a kick to the back, but when I made contact, it was like kicking a stone wall. Suddenly, the sand cleared like someone pulled back some curtains. I almost wanted to cough up my own heart after I realized who I was looking up to: Ganondorf!"
"Ganondorf?!" Link gasped.
"The King of Evil in the flesh, and I just kicked him in the back. Before he even did anything, he smirked at me, almost like he approved."
"You sure it was a smile of pity? A smile like he was thinkin' 'someone's gonna die today'?" Link suggested.
"It was weird. For a second, I thought he was gonna give me a hug. But, like he heard my thoughts and wanted to prove me wrong, he drew his sword. I had two scimitars to pit against him, but the numbers weren't on my side." Mida shook her head. "I couldn't run, though. I had to face him."
"Foolish Gerudo pride?" Link wondered.
"Shut up and no. It was... something else." Mida said. "I had to throw my best moves at him right off the bat. I jumped at him with my Moonsault Slayer. He literally stopped me in mid-air and threw me backward with his darkness. Just when I looked up, I saw a wave of sand coming at me. I had no idea whether he was using it as a veil to hide himself or if there was some other nasty surprise waiting if I got hit. I hopped to my feet and clamped my swords together at the hilt for my Blade Fusion. Right when the wave was in my face, I slashed right through it with my new double-edge scimitar. Ganondorf was ready with a ball of darkness in his hand and threw it at me as soon as he saw my face. He acted so fast, I didn't know what to do. When the ball was close enough, I spun around with a Gerudo Tornado and hit it as hard as I could, hoping for the best."
"You have names for all your moves?" Link wondered about the strange titles Mida was giving all her actions.
"Hey, I'm telling the story and you're listening. Shut up and stay on the edge of your seat." Mida commanded.
"But we're walkin'..."
"You want me to end it here?" Mida threatened.
"Fine, fine. I'm done talkin'. Your turn." Link gave the figurative mic back to her.
"Thank you. Now where was I? Before some Zero of Time decided he had a problem with my narrative." Mida vindictively glared at her one-man audience.
"You deflected Ganondorf's attack back at him." Link reminded her with a groan. "Just so you know, I've been doin' that to him since the dawn of time."
"Shut up, Link. For those of us who haven't fought Ganondorf before, I was surprised that I actually made contact. I think even he was surprised because it took him a second to react. That's all I needed to make my move: I ripped my scimitars apart and used them to burrow through the sand. Before he could even guess I was behind him, I exploded from the sand and came down on him as hard as I could, screaming louder than I probably ever will. But it wasn't enough... He reminded me why he was the most feared Gerudo in our history. He managed to catch his own attack and timed it so that when I showed up, he could bury it in my chest. I got the wind and probably some other stuff knocked out of me. Right then, I thought I was gonna die."
"But then Raz came and saved you." Link concluded.
"Who's telling the story, Link? Were you there?" Mida huffed.
"Mida, it's obvious. You know how many times I've been through somethin' like that? Hell, when me and my peeps took on Nightmare, that happened probably..." Link trailed off a bit to think of a reasonable number. "...a hundred times."
"Just let me tell my story." Mida requested. "Contrary to what you think, Raznia did not save me. I was still with my face in the sand, waiting for Ganondorf to finish me off. Instead, I felt myself get yanked up by my wrists."
"Raznia?" Link guessed.
"No. Ganondorf clamped both my wrists in his hand. He lifted me up so I was staring him in the face. We both know he's really tall, so I was just dangling in the wind, feeling small and helpless. For the record, I hate feeling helpless." Mida growled. "Suddenly, he just started laughing. 'That's it? You done?' he asked me. I was confused. He sounded like he was waiting for me to get him with another Moonsault Slayer. 'What, you scared of me? Talk! I know you know who I am. You probably have a whole lot to say.' He kept urging me to speak, and yeah, I did have a bunch of things to ask him, but at that time, I was speechless. I never ever would've thought I'd be face-to-face with him. I did finally think of something to say, though. 'BOOOOOOOOM!!'"
Mida nearly jumped into Link's face as she suddenly sounded off.
"...what the hell was that?" Link wondered with a perplexed eyebrow, not even faltering despite Mida's unexpected outburst.
"You're supposed to be fearfully clutching your heart."
"From that? If that was supposed to be payback for screamin' in your ear, you're gonna have to try harder. You fell on the floor. There's really no comin' back from that." Link laughed.
"Shut up..." Mida grumbled. "It didn't work like I wanted (because you suck...), but that actually is part of my story. Before I could even say anything, there was suddenly an explosion at the side of Ganondorf's head. We both hit the floor, but I was left in much better shape than he was. Raznia finally saved me by kicking Ganondorf right in the temple with a bomb flower. Don't ask me where she found it. She didn't say anything to me afterward, though. She went straight for Ganondorf. I knew exactly what she was gonna do."
"But you didn't let her. Even after gettin' macked by Ganondorf, you jumped up and stopped Raznia from killin' him." Link narrated as if he was there.
"God **** it, Link, why do you keep doing that?!" Mida pounded Link's arm with a frustrated fist.
"You're not too good at tellin' stories. It's pretty easy to figure out what happens next. Sorry." Link shrugged, though his tone didn't sound very apologetic.
"Fine. I'm no wordsmith and I can't tell a story. But remember that this really did happen. Why would I save Ganondorf, the King of Evil? Do you know, Mr. Know-It-All?" Mida poked Link's chest with her finger as she asked.
"I don't." Link simply stated.
"...that's it?" Mida almost seemed surprised at Link's surrender. "No witty guesses?"
"I can predict a story but I suck at figurin' out motives. They only turn obvious after I look back and think about it. I hate retrospect because of that..." Link admitted with a bitter tone.
Mida suddenly found herself grinning. "You're gonna wanna kick yourself in the back for this one. If everyone calls Ganondorf the King of Evil, then I'm the princess."
Link suddenly found himself puzzled. "...why? You'd have to be his... daugh...ter... Hold on..."
"No, you're right." Mida nodded.
"You... ...you? His daugh... ...you say it." Link could only request.
"Why? You guessed it and I verified. But if it means that much: Ganondorf is my dad." Mida stated.
"But... but..." Link sputtered, looking for words to convey his utter disbelief. "...how old are you?"
"What does that have to do with anything?" Mida wondered, screw-faced with confusion. "I wouldn't lie about this. There's no reason to. Why would anyone pretend to be the daughter of pure diabolical intent incarnated?"
"I'm not sayin' you're lyin'. I'm obviously in shock." Link said. "Not only at the fact that you're my worst enemy's daughter, but at the fact that someone would actually... have his child." Link euphemistically explained.
"Is it really that hard to believe?" Mida asked. "Women and men are supposed to have kids. With us Gerudo, it's a little tough since we get a man of our own every hundred years. Most of us resort to settling with Hylians. But when we finally do get a real Gerudo man..."
"Say no more. Please say no more." Link nearly begged.
"You'd think a guy would want to hear about sexy Gerudo women in heat." Mida shook her head.
"I would, but the Gerudo man I'd be imaginin' with all you women is Ganondorf. I don't want to imagine Ganondorf. PLEASE don't make me imagine Ganondorf." Link pleaded urgently.
"You're such a baby..." Mida concluded.
"Just get back to the **** story." Link demanded. "I see why Raznia hates you so much. For more reasons than one."
"Hmph." Mida huffed. "The fact that I revived Ganondorf from unconsciousness didn't help things either." She opened her hand to reveal a bright white light. "It was the first time Raznia saw me do that. I'm pretty sure it freaked her out at first, but there's also the fact that I actually had to put Ganondorf before her. I had to put a man who spread terror and mayhem, who just happened to be the father I never knew, before my own sister. Before then, I never wanted to use that power. It reminded me of where I came from."
"But you saved where you came from..." Link reminded her.
"Yeah... I did say I'd do anything for my family, right? No matter what." Mida shook her head. "I don't think I'll ever have a good reason for why I did it. The best thing I can come up with is the fact that I finally met him; my father. And he knew who I was. The way he smirked before we faced each other... the way he didn't kill me when he could've... I was thought that he didn't know he had a daughter until then. He even spared Raznia when I asked. Sort of... When he came to, he immediately rocketed toward her and grabbed her by the throat before I could even blink. I screamed for him to stop, and to my surprise, he did. I guess he knew who Raznia was, too. He slammed her into the sand and disappeared without a word into the sandstorm. I wish he stayed. Remember the question Raznia interrupted? I was going to ask him why he did what he did; taking over Hyrule. I just wanted to hear his side of the story. Everyone just blurts out that he's evil. I want to think my father is a little more complicated than that."
"Trust me, Ganondorf doesn't need a reason to do what he wants." Link said. "Believe it or not... I was actually friends with him after me and Zelda trapped him in the Sacred Realm. I tried to figure him out, but he never took the question seriously. What a *******..."
"Wow..." Mida was actually surprised by that bit of information. "I never would've thought you'd be friends with him, if any of the stories I heard were true."
"I dunno what I was thinkin'. It seemed like a good idea back then. ****in' retrospect..." Link growled.
"Well, maybe he didn't say for a reason. Some things are better left unsaid."
"I dunno, Mida... Your dad is not that deep."
"I still don't know him, so it's alright for me to be a little naïve." Mida said. "As for the rest of the story... I told Raznia about my relationship to Ganondorf, and in turn, she told the fortress about what happened. Connections were severed and I lost a lot of friends. Just so you know, they didn't hate Ganondorf because of what he did to Hyrule, but because of what he did to Nabooru.
"The worst of my friends-turned-enemies was Raznia. Hearing her put so much emphasis on the fact that we were only half-sisters hurt me so much. Before then, you couldn't tell either of us we weren't fully related. We'd kill anyone who'd say otherwise. I would've left Gerudo Fortress if it wasn't for Nabooru. She was the only person who looked at me the same way. And it only made sense, since she's the one who told me who my father was, so long ago."
"Talk about 'some things are better left unsaid'..." Link groaned.
"Tell me about it... I hated Nabooru for a week when she told me that. I thought it was a cruel joke, but she told me it was because she knew about my power, and I should know what I'm capable of."
"Was she expectin' you to become the female-version of Ganondorf?"
"Back then, it might not've been a bad thing." Mida said. "Nabooru was Ganondorf's second-in-command and actually worked to impress him. It's even rumored they had a one-night stand. Oh, and before you get any ideas, Nabooru is not my mother. Besides Ganondorf, I don't think anyone knows who she is.
"But as far as Nabooru telling me about Ganondorf... I do think she wanted me to become the most powerful woman in Hyrule. I think I let her down, though. Raznia holds that title now, and I don't think I can catch up. I never practiced with my power, even after everyone found out about it, so it still only has one function."
"You know what I just realized?" Link asked.
"Hmm?"
"You're puttin' on a gigantic act. You're not half the ***** you want everyone to think you are." Link said.
"That's a sudden revelation. What makes you think so?" Mida wondered.
"It's all in your tone. You're likin' this. You actually sound friendly. Completely different from what I got used to." Link pointed out.
Mida could only smile, adding a little blush to her cheeks as a bonus. "I had to act. Everyone hated me. They expected me to suddenly turn into an ice-hearted ***** full of scorn and malice. So that's what I gave them. What you saw before was nowhere near as bad as how I used to act. After a while, the hate turned into fear, so I used that to my advantage. Pretty soon, it was fun to act like that, so I kept it up. I made third-in-command in no time, right up there with Raznia in second and Nabooru standing at the top."
"You still get to stay close to Raznia that way." Link pointed out.
"That's the way I look at it." Mida nodded. "Why did you bring that up anyway? Your opinion on me is changing?"
"Yeah, actually." Link admitted. "You were in a situation where things about you couldn't be known, or else no one would trust you. It happened, and yet, you still came out on top. I'm in the same situation. I have a lot to lose if this gets out, but I don't think I can turn tragedy into triumph."
"You know you have to tell me now, right?" Mida said. "It's only fair."
"I promised I wouldn't. Hell, just by sayin' what I said, I already said too **** much." Link wore a troubled expression on his face.
"Link..." Mida put a hand on his shoulder. "You can tell me. I'm not gonna think any different of you. You'll be an idiot regardless of what you tell me."
Link actually managed a laugh despite his inner turmoil.
"A kind hand on the shoulder. You still the same Mida I met earlier?" Link wondered.
"Maybe. The Mida you met didn't offer kind hands on the shoulder. This Mida doesn't either." She stated. Suddenly, Link realized where her hand was resting. "This is your injured shoulder, remember? If you don't tell me, I'll squeeze it so hard, you'll be telling me things you wouldn't tell Din, Nayru, or Farore."
"You think she's serious?"
It's Mida, man. She still gets what she wants. I'm gonna be cryin' in a few seconds.
"I'll save you some pain. Go ahead and tell her."
Whoa... that's not the solution I was expectin'. You sure?
"You've been wanting to tell someone about me ever since I told you not to. If there's only one person I'd let you tell, it's Mida. She's the only one that'll truly understand. I trust her."
You wanna tell her that yourself?
"And that wasn't the response I was expecting. You sure about that?"
Hey, we're both breakin' rules, so it evens out. We'll be alright.
"Three more seconds, Link." Mida warned, adding a little more pressure to her hold.
"Take it easy, Mida." Link took her by the hand and led it away from his injury.
"So that means you're talking." Mida determined.
"No, that means I'm talking." Link said.
Mida noticed a subtle change in Link's tone. She looked him in the eye with a questioning brow, especially after noticing their new color. "Since when were your eyes red?"
"Since I trusted you."
"That's a little more scary than charming..."
"Maybe I should introduce myself... Right now, you aren't speaking to Link. I'm his... alter-ego. Kinda... Call me Dark Link." He introduced himself.
"Creative..." Mida complimented sarcastically.
"Yeah, yeah, shut up." He grumbled as he stretched his limbs a little. "Whew, feels good to stretch. It's a little claustrophobic in Link's head."
"Really? I didn't think he had that much going on up there." Mida said, snidely.
"Hehe. You should know that he's actively cursing you out right now." Dark Link laughed.
"Hmm, so you really are someone else. I'd be hearing all those kind words if it was Link out here." Mida realized. "So you're his dark side or something?"
"'Dark' has gained a bad rep over the years..." Dark Link almost sounded apologetic. "Yeah, I had a hand in the stereotyping back in the day, but those days are over. The sun rose to shed light on a new day, dispersing the darkness."
"...your point being?" Mida wondered with crossed arms.
"Hey, I sat through your story, so you can at least pretend to be mystified by how deep I can be." Dark Link said. "Long-story short, yeah, I was his dark side, but not how you think. I existed separately from him, and only to kill him, but through a ridiculous twist of fate we now share his body, risking death if we ever separate."
"Wow... what a way to gain a friend..." Mida muttered.
"Yeah, neither one of us were too happy about it, but I got over it quicker than Link did." Dark Link shook his head. "Even so, I'm the one who suggested we keep my existence a secret. Like I said, my past isn't nearly as admirable as my counterpart's, and people will look at him differently if they knew about me. People are fickle... friends... family... You know this better than anyone."
"Yeah..." Mida's tone grew low and sullen. "Is that why you're telling me this? Because I can relate?"
"Two reasons, actually, and that's a big one." Dark Link nodded. "The other reason is because Link just needed to tell someone. It'd have to be someone that not only he could trust, but someone I could trust as well. You should be feeling pretty special. We were feeling a whole different sentiment a few hours ago..."
"I can only imagine." Mida smiled, contrary to what that knowledge would typically make someone feel. "But you know what? I do feel pretty special. As stupid as this sounds..." She hesitated, almost embarrassed by what she was about to say. "You would be my first new friend in a long time. But... I also feel a bit... weird about this. I'm glad that you two trust me so much, but shouldn't you be telling Mario and Luigi about this? Or even Raznia?"
"They're the last people I want to know about this." Dark Link said. "Before me and Link merged, I kind of tortured the brothers and sorta planned on killing them. I doubt that'll be forgiven. Ever. As for Raznia... She won't be able to handle this. She sees in black and white, and once she finds out about me and my past, she'll change on Link like she changed on you."
"Hmm..." Mida looked to the ground, knowing all too well what Dark Link spoke of. "This is how relationships break, you know. Once you start keeping secrets from each other, you're doomed."
"Link'll probably hate me for saying this, but I hope they do break up." Dark Link said. "Raznia's cute and all, but I think there are way better women out there. As far as a million light-years away..." He paused for a second, as if looking off into the distance. "...or..."
"...or?" Mida repeated, waiting for him to complete his thought.
Dark Link then looked into Mida's eyes with a provocative grin. "Right under your nose."
Mida couldn't help but let her lips curl into a smile. Her lips had no idea what to do, though, when they suddenly found Dark Link's lips pressed against them. Without even thinking, she grabbed him by the tunic with both hands, trying to somehow pull him closer to her. Then, just as soon as it happened, Mida pushed him back, still with her hands clutching his tunic.
"I can't... believe... we just did that." Mida
"Neither can I." Dark Link admitted, though with a satisfied smile.
"Neither can I."
To their heart-wrenching dismay, Raznia stood there, looking for the words to say but instead spoke through her tears. Mida struggled to squeak an apology but was too overwhelmed by her own sickening grief to even open her mouth. All Dark Link could do was simply turn away from her.
...only because he didn't want her to see the subtle smirk he couldn't hide.
_____________________
_____________________
There. I can rest a little easier now that I don't have a massive chapter floating around. As always, read and reply.
Yep, love-... quadrilaterals (?) for the win. As for your question... you're gonna have to stay tuned. Questions will be answered eventually.
I'm wondering how long it took for you to read it all. It took me about an hour (but I'm always revising as I read, so that's not really accurate). I'm gonna do what I shoulda done in the first place and break the chapter in half.
Do you know what this means? I updated twice in a week. I'm amazing, I know. The idea came to me in my sleep. Or actually, right before I fell asleep...
_____________________
_____________________
Act 10: Only the Beginning (Part 10)
*SLAM*
Raznia quickly turned around to find Link breathing heavily as he leaned against her door, fumbling with the lock on the doorknob.
"Link?" Raznia asked.
"I ditched her." Link mischievously giggled as he finally locked the door.
"Who?" Raznia wondered.
"Your annoyin' sister."
Raznia's face almost turned at the mention of her sibling. "Why were you with her?"
"It wasn't like I wanted to chill with her." Link quickly clarified. "I was just gonna search you out on my own, but the all-knowin' Mida said you'd be in your room and decided to show me the way. I wasn't havin' that, though. I told her we should stop by my room first so I can put on the rest of my clothes. Thanks for the new tunic, by the way." He smiled as he pecked Raznia on the cheek.
Raznia was admittedly caught off-guard by Link's gratitude. She actually had nothing to do with his new wardrobe. But even so...
"You're welcome." She replied after replacing her puzzled look with a polite smile.
"Yeah, so right after I put on my hood just the way I like it, I jumped out the window, thinkin' I could escape her just like I did earlier. But NO, Mida got wise and was waitin' right at the bottom. She called me an idiot and we started walkin'. I was gonna make the most of it and get her side of the story, but I decided to make her look over there." Link suddenly burst out laughing. "I still can't believe she fell for that. I pointed at a wall!"
"What story?" Raznia asked.
"The one about your bad relationship." Link said. "You have a sister, Raz. All this time, I thought you were like me; the only family you had were your friends."
"Why should it matter?" Raznia rose her voice.
"Raz... she's your sister." Link pointed out.
"HALF-sister." Raznia quickly corrected. "Meaning what she knows about me couldn't fill half a bottle."
"She has to know at least that much." Link insisted, shaking her head. "You two are related by blood!"
"Link..." Raznia let out a frustrated sigh. "You don't understand. Just because we came from the same mother doesn't make us best friends. I don't like Mida and I never will. I don't even like to talk about her. So, having said that, let's stop talking about her."
"Raz... wow... I never woulda thought anyone could get to you." Link was admittedly shocked by Raznia reluctance.
All she did was let out a huff.
"I don't hide the fact that I don't like Mida. She thinks she's sooo great, but there's no proof of it! She thinks she's always right and dares you to prove her wrong."
"That's exactly what I don't like about her." Raznia agreed. "I've been dealing with that for years, Link! And guess what? Her attitude problem never grew on me. Why would I ever like someone like that, regardless of whether we're related or not?"
"There's way more to it than that." Link said. "I'm payin' attention to the little things: the way your face turned when I first mentioned her, the way your mood swung when I bought up the fact that she's your sis--"
"Half-sister." Raznia corrected once again.
"Whether you're drinkin' half a bottle of LonLon milk or a whole bottle, you're still drinkin' LonLon milk, right?" Link bought up with a convincing eyebrow. "What I'm gettin' at is you two are still sisters. What happened between you two? It's like you literally have somethin' against her. It's almost like you hate her."
"Link, just stop." Raznia demanded. "If this is all you came to talk about, you're better off just going."
"You're kickin' me out?" Link gasped, almost sounding shocked.
"If that's what it takes to get you off that subject." Raznia said.
"Fine, we'll change the subject." Link agreed. "Nab told me you were up when I finished my battle with Nightmare."
"She what?!" Raznia's eyes went wide with shock.
"She also told me you'd be mad about that. I guess she was right about both things." Link determined. "She said you think I killed him."
"You did kill him..." Raznia muttered, unable to look at Link's face momentarily. "I saw your sword go right through his neck."
"Raz..."
"Link, I should let you know we're treading thin ice here."
What do you mean?
"You said you wanted to save the man behind the evil sword, and yet you killed him anyway. Why would you do that?"
I'm guessin' this has somethin' to do with you.
"Sharp as always. The same way you have a plethora of powers you now can't use, so do I. After you found Raznia's weapon in your shoulder, your consciousness left the pilot's seat opened. I figured out how to take control. So I did just that and finished what you started."
...why does this make me feel so uncomfortable all of a sudden?
"It shouldn't. I just said it's a power I can't use anymore. It can help my madness-side take over again. Something neither of us want.
"Now, what I meant by treading thin ice: I can see you figuring out I had a hand in the battle's end and you'd end up telling Miss Raznia about it. Remember what I said in that long talk we had: there'll be that air of mistrust. You're already seeing it and you didn't even tell her about me yet. Let's not forget the fact that you didn't even see her once while you were bedridden. You bought that fact up yourself."
I was just jokin' around. She was goin' through her own episode. I'm not gonna read too deeply into that.
"Well, I will because it's a possibility. She was afraid of you. Hell, just now, she couldn't even look you in the eye."
You're overreactin', Dark Link.
"If you think so. You still can't tell her about me, no matter how badly you want to."
Then how do I explain why I killed Nightmare?
"Simple. Tell the truth. After I took over, Nightmare was about to kill Raznia. He had her by the throat with his monstrous hand. I had to kill him. Nothing he could do would convince me otherwise. And I just felt your heart shift. You would've done the same thing."
I would've...
"There you go. And that's what you tell Raznia."
Despite their conversation, Link only seemed like he hesitated to speak momentarily.
"Link, what?" Raznia wondered as she finally turned to Link and watched his eyes wander away from her.
"Raz... I had... to kill him." Link forced himself to say. "He had you by the neck. You couldn't defend yourself. What else was I supposed to do? I couldn't forgive him for that."
Raznia couldn't argue against that. She remembered what she felt at that moment: pure helplessness. Back then, she wished with all her heart that something, anything, would save her and send that menace back to whatever twisted, undiscovered level of Hell he came from. And her wish came true in its entirety. Even if he was apologetic, Nightmare's deeds couldn't be forgiven by a fleeting moment of regret.
"You did save me. Just like I'd expect my hero to." Raznia closed in on Link, wrapping her arms around him. "I'm sorry I reacted the way I did. You did what you had to do. Who knows where I'd be if you didn't?"
"It definitely wouldn't be in my arms." Link said, putting his hands on Raznia's waist.
"How do I make it up to you?" Raznia said with a suggestive smile.
Link couldn't help put let a grin take over his face as well. "There's only one thing I want, baby."
"Anything." Raznia's voice gained a sultry tone.
"Come here." Link bought Raznia's face close to his. He kissed her lips gently, then worked his way to her ear. With a whisper, "...tell me about Mida."
Link face was so close to Raznia, even his peripheral vision would've never saw the angry fist sailing right to his cheek. Looking up to flustered girlfriend from the floor, "...I (ow) probably should've (ow! Hurts to talk...) bought that up in a different way."
"And I probably should've made you leave a long time ago." Raznia decided, unlocking the door and opening the path for Link's exit.
Standing directly in that path was Mida, however. Raznia's brow instantly furrowed.
"I heard my name a few times." Mida answered before Raznia could ask. "You'd want to know what others are saying about you, wouldn't you?" She asked rhetorically in her usual malapert tone.
"Do me a favor: get your imprudent, eavesdropping-*** away from my room." Raznia grabbed Link by the back of his shirt and threw him into the hallway. "And take him with you." She promptly slammed the door, leaving no room for discussion.
Still facing the closed door, Mida could only laugh.
"How could you laugh now? Raz probably just broke my face and, dependin' on how long you've been listenin', she seems to have a really low opinion of you." Link pointed out with a tender hand on his cheek.
"I figured you'd find your way here after you ditched me, so I thought I'd wait here. You're pretty fast. I got here right when you said 'look over there'." Mida said.
"Did you?" Link asked with a giggle, then an immediate grimace because of the pain a simple smile caused him.
"That's why I'm laughing. Payback is such a *****." Mida taunted, noticing Link's pained expression. "If it wasn't me that'd knock you flat on your ***, it'd be my sister. Or my half-sister, as she made so clear."
"Crystal... But why does it seem so one-sided? The way you just reacted to what she just did..." Link just shook his head. "This is doesn't make any sense. If there's anyone you'd actually be nice to, it'd be Raznia, but if there's anyone Raznia would be straight-up rude to, it's you."
"That's basically it. Raznia hates me, but I love her." Mida admitted with an uncharacteristic fondness. "It's probably my only weakness. I'd do anything for my family, no matter what."
"An affectionate Mida and a venomous Raznia... My world is slowly crumblin'..." Link groaned. "How the hell does somethin' like that happen? In these types of situations, the feelin' is usually mutual; there's either love all-around or hate."
"It's complicated... I don't even like to talk about it. It didn't affect only me and Raz, you know. The whole fortress was in an uproar." Mida said.
"Well, since I won't be hearin' it from Raz, you'll have to do." Link settled with a shrug.
"I don't know if I want to talk to you." Mida hesitated. "Can I even trust you with something like this? Now that I think about it, this might even strain what we have, as if it wasn't strangled enough."
"Look at it this way; I can't like you any less." Link pointed out.
"And that's your argument to convince me to tell you about my past... What the hell does Raznia see in you?" Mida wondered sincerely.
"I'm the Hero of Time." Link simply stated as his gallant fanfare blared throughout the relative silence of the fortress's living quarters.
"You've got to be kidding me..." Mida uttered in pure awe.
"Don't make me say it again." Link warned.
"You know what; this is probably giving you too much credit, but I see what you're trying to do. There's obviously no reason for you to know what I'm about to say other than the fact that you're just nosy." Mida said. "But on the other hand, there's no reason for me to not say anything other than the fact that I'm just spiteful."
"As much as I hate to admit it, you're right. You did give me too much credit. I was just tryin' to annoy you." Link admitted.
"Well, you got what you want plus a bonus. I feel like telling a story." Mida actually smiled, much to Link's surprise. "Walk with me." She commanded as she began to move down the hall.
"We better be walkin' to the infirmary. My cheek is still killin' me." Link reminded her, still with a hand on the point of contact.
"Yeah, it's starting to swell up pretty nicely. I taught my little sis well." Mida boasted with a smug grin.
"I thought Nab taught Raz everything she knows." Link remembered Raznia being under Nabooru's instruction when they first met.
"Yeah, that was after Raz decided to distance herself from almost everything that connected me to her: including fighting style. She can't unlearn how strong I made her, though." Mida said. "It all happened during our sparing session in the Haunted Wasteland."
"How the hell could you have a good fight there?" Link almost shouted. "You can't see anythin' but sand and madness!"
"Me and Raz used to be so evenly matched, we started battling in ridiculous places and set up even crazier stipulations: at Gerudo Valley's Bridge, we used to jump off with Cuccos and battle to the bottom, trying to knock each other into the river. At Death Mountain Crater, we fought until one of us had our clothes burned off. And, of course, the loser had to walk home half-naked." Mida snickered at the memory of Raznia begging for a shirt to borrow. "We even fought right in the middle of Hyrule Castle Town. The stipulation there was the first person to injure a Hylian lost. Don't worry, we bought plenty of fairies for that one."
"You two were crazy." Link determined, shaking his head.
"We were young and carefree. Well, we still are, but even moreso back then. We never thought about the consequences. We just had fun." Mida warmly stated. "The battle in the Haunted Wasteland was actually pretty straight-forward: we just fought until one of us couldn't anymore. The stipulation was the environment. It's like you said: all we could see was sand, so we had to get creative. Raznia was into exotic perfume back then, so I just concentrated on her scent, which was easier said than done because of all the sand that got blown up my nose. She never told me how she was able to find me, but she caught me off-guard pretty often. Whenever I got back the upper-hand, she'd disappear into the sandstorm. She was so sneaky... the perfect Gerudo thief.
"At one point, I heard footsteps in the sand. I thought I finally had a chance to surprise her for a change. I was gonna get her with a kick to the back, but when I made contact, it was like kicking a stone wall. Suddenly, the sand cleared like someone pulled back some curtains. I almost wanted to cough up my own heart after I realized who I was looking up to: Ganondorf!"
"Ganondorf?!" Link gasped.
"The King of Evil in the flesh, and I just kicked him in the back. Before he even did anything, he smirked at me, almost like he approved."
"You sure it was a smile of pity? A smile like he was thinkin' 'someone's gonna die today'?" Link suggested.
"It was weird. For a second, I thought he was gonna give me a hug. But, like he heard my thoughts and wanted to prove me wrong, he drew his sword. I had two scimitars to pit against him, but the numbers weren't on my side." Mida shook her head. "I couldn't run, though. I had to face him."
"Foolish Gerudo pride?" Link wondered.
"Shut up and no. It was... something else." Mida said. "I had to throw my best moves at him right off the bat. I jumped at him with my Moonsault Slayer. He literally stopped me in mid-air and threw me backward with his darkness. Just when I looked up, I saw a wave of sand coming at me. I had no idea whether he was using it as a veil to hide himself or if there was some other nasty surprise waiting if I got hit. I hopped to my feet and clamped my swords together at the hilt for my Blade Fusion. Right when the wave was in my face, I slashed right through it with my new double-edge scimitar. Ganondorf was ready with a ball of darkness in his hand and threw it at me as soon as he saw my face. He acted so fast, I didn't know what to do. When the ball was close enough, I spun around with a Gerudo Tornado and hit it as hard as I could, hoping for the best."
"You have names for all your moves?" Link wondered about the strange titles Mida was giving all her actions.
"Hey, I'm telling the story and you're listening. Shut up and stay on the edge of your seat." Mida commanded.
"But we're walkin'..."
"You want me to end it here?" Mida threatened.
"Fine, fine. I'm done talkin'. Your turn." Link gave the figurative mic back to her.
"Thank you. Now where was I? Before some Zero of Time decided he had a problem with my narrative." Mida vindictively glared at her one-man audience.
"You deflected Ganondorf's attack back at him." Link reminded her with a groan. "Just so you know, I've been doin' that to him since the dawn of time."
"Shut up, Link. For those of us who haven't fought Ganondorf before, I was surprised that I actually made contact. I think even he was surprised because it took him a second to react. That's all I needed to make my move: I ripped my scimitars apart and used them to burrow through the sand. Before he could even guess I was behind him, I exploded from the sand and came down on him as hard as I could, screaming louder than I probably ever will. But it wasn't enough... He reminded me why he was the most feared Gerudo in our history. He managed to catch his own attack and timed it so that when I showed up, he could bury it in my chest. I got the wind and probably some other stuff knocked out of me. Right then, I thought I was gonna die."
"But then Raz came and saved you." Link concluded.
"Who's telling the story, Link? Were you there?" Mida huffed.
"Mida, it's obvious. You know how many times I've been through somethin' like that? Hell, when me and my peeps took on Nightmare, that happened probably..." Link trailed off a bit to think of a reasonable number. "...a hundred times."
"Just let me tell my story." Mida requested. "Contrary to what you think, Raznia did not save me. I was still with my face in the sand, waiting for Ganondorf to finish me off. Instead, I felt myself get yanked up by my wrists."
"Raznia?" Link guessed.
"No. Ganondorf clamped both my wrists in his hand. He lifted me up so I was staring him in the face. We both know he's really tall, so I was just dangling in the wind, feeling small and helpless. For the record, I hate feeling helpless." Mida growled. "Suddenly, he just started laughing. 'That's it? You done?' he asked me. I was confused. He sounded like he was waiting for me to get him with another Moonsault Slayer. 'What, you scared of me? Talk! I know you know who I am. You probably have a whole lot to say.' He kept urging me to speak, and yeah, I did have a bunch of things to ask him, but at that time, I was speechless. I never ever would've thought I'd be face-to-face with him. I did finally think of something to say, though. 'BOOOOOOOOM!!'"
Mida nearly jumped into Link's face as she suddenly sounded off.
"...what the hell was that?" Link wondered with a perplexed eyebrow, not even faltering despite Mida's unexpected outburst.
"You're supposed to be fearfully clutching your heart."
"From that? If that was supposed to be payback for screamin' in your ear, you're gonna have to try harder. You fell on the floor. There's really no comin' back from that." Link laughed.
"Shut up..." Mida grumbled. "It didn't work like I wanted (because you suck...), but that actually is part of my story. Before I could even say anything, there was suddenly an explosion at the side of Ganondorf's head. We both hit the floor, but I was left in much better shape than he was. Raznia finally saved me by kicking Ganondorf right in the temple with a bomb flower. Don't ask me where she found it. She didn't say anything to me afterward, though. She went straight for Ganondorf. I knew exactly what she was gonna do."
"But you didn't let her. Even after gettin' macked by Ganondorf, you jumped up and stopped Raznia from killin' him." Link narrated as if he was there.
"God **** it, Link, why do you keep doing that?!" Mida pounded Link's arm with a frustrated fist.
"You're not too good at tellin' stories. It's pretty easy to figure out what happens next. Sorry." Link shrugged, though his tone didn't sound very apologetic.
"Fine. I'm no wordsmith and I can't tell a story. But remember that this really did happen. Why would I save Ganondorf, the King of Evil? Do you know, Mr. Know-It-All?" Mida poked Link's chest with her finger as she asked.
"I don't." Link simply stated.
"...that's it?" Mida almost seemed surprised at Link's surrender. "No witty guesses?"
"I can predict a story but I suck at figurin' out motives. They only turn obvious after I look back and think about it. I hate retrospect because of that..." Link admitted with a bitter tone.
Mida suddenly found herself grinning. "You're gonna wanna kick yourself in the back for this one. If everyone calls Ganondorf the King of Evil, then I'm the princess."
Link suddenly found himself puzzled. "...why? You'd have to be his... daugh...ter... Hold on..."
"No, you're right." Mida nodded.
"You... ...you? His daugh... ...you say it." Link could only request.
"Why? You guessed it and I verified. But if it means that much: Ganondorf is my dad." Mida stated.
"But... but..." Link sputtered, looking for words to convey his utter disbelief. "...how old are you?"
"What does that have to do with anything?" Mida wondered, screw-faced with confusion. "I wouldn't lie about this. There's no reason to. Why would anyone pretend to be the daughter of pure diabolical intent incarnated?"
"I'm not sayin' you're lyin'. I'm obviously in shock." Link said. "Not only at the fact that you're my worst enemy's daughter, but at the fact that someone would actually... have his child." Link euphemistically explained.
"Is it really that hard to believe?" Mida asked. "Women and men are supposed to have kids. With us Gerudo, it's a little tough since we get a man of our own every hundred years. Most of us resort to settling with Hylians. But when we finally do get a real Gerudo man..."
"Say no more. Please say no more." Link nearly begged.
"You'd think a guy would want to hear about sexy Gerudo women in heat." Mida shook her head.
"I would, but the Gerudo man I'd be imaginin' with all you women is Ganondorf. I don't want to imagine Ganondorf. PLEASE don't make me imagine Ganondorf." Link pleaded urgently.
"You're such a baby..." Mida concluded.
"Just get back to the **** story." Link demanded. "I see why Raznia hates you so much. For more reasons than one."
"Hmph." Mida huffed. "The fact that I revived Ganondorf from unconsciousness didn't help things either." She opened her hand to reveal a bright white light. "It was the first time Raznia saw me do that. I'm pretty sure it freaked her out at first, but there's also the fact that I actually had to put Ganondorf before her. I had to put a man who spread terror and mayhem, who just happened to be the father I never knew, before my own sister. Before then, I never wanted to use that power. It reminded me of where I came from."
"But you saved where you came from..." Link reminded her.
"Yeah... I did say I'd do anything for my family, right? No matter what." Mida shook her head. "I don't think I'll ever have a good reason for why I did it. The best thing I can come up with is the fact that I finally met him; my father. And he knew who I was. The way he smirked before we faced each other... the way he didn't kill me when he could've... I was thought that he didn't know he had a daughter until then. He even spared Raznia when I asked. Sort of... When he came to, he immediately rocketed toward her and grabbed her by the throat before I could even blink. I screamed for him to stop, and to my surprise, he did. I guess he knew who Raznia was, too. He slammed her into the sand and disappeared without a word into the sandstorm. I wish he stayed. Remember the question Raznia interrupted? I was going to ask him why he did what he did; taking over Hyrule. I just wanted to hear his side of the story. Everyone just blurts out that he's evil. I want to think my father is a little more complicated than that."
"Trust me, Ganondorf doesn't need a reason to do what he wants." Link said. "Believe it or not... I was actually friends with him after me and Zelda trapped him in the Sacred Realm. I tried to figure him out, but he never took the question seriously. What a *******..."
"Wow..." Mida was actually surprised by that bit of information. "I never would've thought you'd be friends with him, if any of the stories I heard were true."
"I dunno what I was thinkin'. It seemed like a good idea back then. ****in' retrospect..." Link growled.
"Well, maybe he didn't say for a reason. Some things are better left unsaid."
"I dunno, Mida... Your dad is not that deep."
"I still don't know him, so it's alright for me to be a little naïve." Mida said. "As for the rest of the story... I told Raznia about my relationship to Ganondorf, and in turn, she told the fortress about what happened. Connections were severed and I lost a lot of friends. Just so you know, they didn't hate Ganondorf because of what he did to Hyrule, but because of what he did to Nabooru.
"The worst of my friends-turned-enemies was Raznia. Hearing her put so much emphasis on the fact that we were only half-sisters hurt me so much. Before then, you couldn't tell either of us we weren't fully related. We'd kill anyone who'd say otherwise. I would've left Gerudo Fortress if it wasn't for Nabooru. She was the only person who looked at me the same way. And it only made sense, since she's the one who told me who my father was, so long ago."
"Talk about 'some things are better left unsaid'..." Link groaned.
"Tell me about it... I hated Nabooru for a week when she told me that. I thought it was a cruel joke, but she told me it was because she knew about my power, and I should know what I'm capable of."
"Was she expectin' you to become the female-version of Ganondorf?"
"Back then, it might not've been a bad thing." Mida said. "Nabooru was Ganondorf's second-in-command and actually worked to impress him. It's even rumored they had a one-night stand. Oh, and before you get any ideas, Nabooru is not my mother. Besides Ganondorf, I don't think anyone knows who she is.
"But as far as Nabooru telling me about Ganondorf... I do think she wanted me to become the most powerful woman in Hyrule. I think I let her down, though. Raznia holds that title now, and I don't think I can catch up. I never practiced with my power, even after everyone found out about it, so it still only has one function."
"You know what I just realized?" Link asked.
"Hmm?"
"You're puttin' on a gigantic act. You're not half the ***** you want everyone to think you are." Link said.
"That's a sudden revelation. What makes you think so?" Mida wondered.
"It's all in your tone. You're likin' this. You actually sound friendly. Completely different from what I got used to." Link pointed out.
Mida could only smile, adding a little blush to her cheeks as a bonus. "I had to act. Everyone hated me. They expected me to suddenly turn into an ice-hearted ***** full of scorn and malice. So that's what I gave them. What you saw before was nowhere near as bad as how I used to act. After a while, the hate turned into fear, so I used that to my advantage. Pretty soon, it was fun to act like that, so I kept it up. I made third-in-command in no time, right up there with Raznia in second and Nabooru standing at the top."
"You still get to stay close to Raznia that way." Link pointed out.
"That's the way I look at it." Mida nodded. "Why did you bring that up anyway? Your opinion on me is changing?"
"Yeah, actually." Link admitted. "You were in a situation where things about you couldn't be known, or else no one would trust you. It happened, and yet, you still came out on top. I'm in the same situation. I have a lot to lose if this gets out, but I don't think I can turn tragedy into triumph."
"You know you have to tell me now, right?" Mida said. "It's only fair."
"I promised I wouldn't. Hell, just by sayin' what I said, I already said too **** much." Link wore a troubled expression on his face.
"Link..." Mida put a hand on his shoulder. "You can tell me. I'm not gonna think any different of you. You'll be an idiot regardless of what you tell me."
Link actually managed a laugh despite his inner turmoil.
"A kind hand on the shoulder. You still the same Mida I met earlier?" Link wondered.
"Maybe. The Mida you met didn't offer kind hands on the shoulder. This Mida doesn't either." She stated. Suddenly, Link realized where her hand was resting. "This is your injured shoulder, remember? If you don't tell me, I'll squeeze it so hard, you'll be telling me things you wouldn't tell Din, Nayru, or Farore."
"You think she's serious?"
It's Mida, man. She still gets what she wants. I'm gonna be cryin' in a few seconds.
"I'll save you some pain. Go ahead and tell her."
Whoa... that's not the solution I was expectin'. You sure?
"You've been wanting to tell someone about me ever since I told you not to. If there's only one person I'd let you tell, it's Mida. She's the only one that'll truly understand. I trust her."
You wanna tell her that yourself?
"And that wasn't the response I was expecting. You sure about that?"
Hey, we're both breakin' rules, so it evens out. We'll be alright.
"Three more seconds, Link." Mida warned, adding a little more pressure to her hold.
"Take it easy, Mida." Link took her by the hand and led it away from his injury.
"So that means you're talking." Mida determined.
"No, that means I'm talking." Link said.
Mida noticed a subtle change in Link's tone. She looked him in the eye with a questioning brow, especially after noticing their new color. "Since when were your eyes red?"
"Since I trusted you."
"That's a little more scary than charming..."
"Maybe I should introduce myself... Right now, you aren't speaking to Link. I'm his... alter-ego. Kinda... Call me Dark Link." He introduced himself.
"Creative..." Mida complimented sarcastically.
"Yeah, yeah, shut up." He grumbled as he stretched his limbs a little. "Whew, feels good to stretch. It's a little claustrophobic in Link's head."
"Really? I didn't think he had that much going on up there." Mida said, snidely.
"Hehe. You should know that he's actively cursing you out right now." Dark Link laughed.
"Hmm, so you really are someone else. I'd be hearing all those kind words if it was Link out here." Mida realized. "So you're his dark side or something?"
"'Dark' has gained a bad rep over the years..." Dark Link almost sounded apologetic. "Yeah, I had a hand in the stereotyping back in the day, but those days are over. The sun rose to shed light on a new day, dispersing the darkness."
"...your point being?" Mida wondered with crossed arms.
"Hey, I sat through your story, so you can at least pretend to be mystified by how deep I can be." Dark Link said. "Long-story short, yeah, I was his dark side, but not how you think. I existed separately from him, and only to kill him, but through a ridiculous twist of fate we now share his body, risking death if we ever separate."
"Wow... what a way to gain a friend..." Mida muttered.
"Yeah, neither one of us were too happy about it, but I got over it quicker than Link did." Dark Link shook his head. "Even so, I'm the one who suggested we keep my existence a secret. Like I said, my past isn't nearly as admirable as my counterpart's, and people will look at him differently if they knew about me. People are fickle... friends... family... You know this better than anyone."
"Yeah..." Mida's tone grew low and sullen. "Is that why you're telling me this? Because I can relate?"
"Two reasons, actually, and that's a big one." Dark Link nodded. "The other reason is because Link just needed to tell someone. It'd have to be someone that not only he could trust, but someone I could trust as well. You should be feeling pretty special. We were feeling a whole different sentiment a few hours ago..."
"I can only imagine." Mida smiled, contrary to what that knowledge would typically make someone feel. "But you know what? I do feel pretty special. As stupid as this sounds..." She hesitated, almost embarrassed by what she was about to say. "You would be my first new friend in a long time. But... I also feel a bit... weird about this. I'm glad that you two trust me so much, but shouldn't you be telling Mario and Luigi about this? Or even Raznia?"
"They're the last people I want to know about this." Dark Link said. "Before me and Link merged, I kind of tortured the brothers and sorta planned on killing them. I doubt that'll be forgiven. Ever. As for Raznia... She won't be able to handle this. She sees in black and white, and once she finds out about me and my past, she'll change on Link like she changed on you."
"Hmm..." Mida looked to the ground, knowing all too well what Dark Link spoke of. "This is how relationships break, you know. Once you start keeping secrets from each other, you're doomed."
"Link'll probably hate me for saying this, but I hope they do break up." Dark Link said. "Raznia's cute and all, but I think there are way better women out there. As far as a million light-years away..." He paused for a second, as if looking off into the distance. "...or..."
"...or?" Mida repeated, waiting for him to complete his thought.
Dark Link then looked into Mida's eyes with a provocative grin. "Right under your nose."
Mida couldn't help but let her lips curl into a smile. Her lips had no idea what to do, though, when they suddenly found Dark Link's lips pressed against them. Without even thinking, she grabbed him by the tunic with both hands, trying to somehow pull him closer to her. Then, just as soon as it happened, Mida pushed him back, still with her hands clutching his tunic.
"I can't... believe... we just did that." Mida
"Neither can I." Dark Link admitted, though with a satisfied smile.
"Neither can I."
To their heart-wrenching dismay, Raznia stood there, looking for the words to say but instead spoke through her tears. Mida struggled to squeak an apology but was too overwhelmed by her own sickening grief to even open her mouth. All Dark Link could do was simply turn away from her.
...only because he didn't want her to see the subtle smirk he couldn't hide.
_____________________
_____________________
There. I can rest a little easier now that I don't have a massive chapter floating around. As always, read and reply.
You get three in a month and we're in business.
But also, parts nine and apparently ten were seriously awesome.
But also, parts nine and apparently ten were seriously awesome.
The gameboy
Smash Rookie
- Joined
- Nov 16, 2008
- Messages
- 8
love the whole **** thing...
been reading since it was introduced to shadedvision...
just got to the final page today...
i was reading on and off though...
been reading since it was introduced to shadedvision...
just got to the final page today...
i was reading on and off though...
The Mano Games VII
Smash Journeyman
Wow, wasn't expecting that little twist in the end. Dark Link did that because he knew that Link would be better off because of it right? Or was that supposed to be foreshadowing, his little smirk I mean.
Ilucamy
Smash Journeyman
Ugh.... spent a whole half-hour reading part one. Gotta save part 2 for tomorrow. I can't believe I'm up til 12 AM on a school night.... Not a good habit to get into.
Great to see you updating again. Love the story. Sleepy. Stupid english. Stupid school. If only school taught smash.
Great to see you updating again. Love the story. Sleepy. Stupid english. Stupid school. If only school taught smash.
The gameboy
Smash Rookie
- Joined
- Nov 16, 2008
- Messages
- 8
then the world would be a better place...
we've all seen where melee can take you by watching survivor...
socalledmember
Smash Rookie
- Joined
- May 17, 2008
- Messages
- 9
Exactly, Dark Link is like his consionce in a way.
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
Good, good, people are reading. Whew... I thought I lost all my fans.
Just to halfway answer the Dark Link question, for now, it's up to interpretation. By saying "for now", I probably gave it away. ...or did I? You should all know by now you can't take anything I say seriously.
With that said, I made progress on the next chapter. That's right; seven months ahead of schedule! I wanted the time between updates to be a month at most this time. Do you think I can do it? I'm taking bets (know that you won't win anything).
Thanks for sticking with me, peeps. The next chapter is coming soon.
Soon
Copyright 2004-2008 ZeekeXIV Entertainment, Inc. All rights reserved. "Soon" does not imply any particular date, time, decade, century, or millennia in the past, present, and certainly not the future. "Soon" shall make no contract or warranty between ZeekeXIV Entertainment and the end user. "Soon" will arrive some day, ZeekeXIV does guarantee that "soon" will be here before the end of time. Maybe. Do not make plans based on "soon" as ZeekeXIV will not be liable for any misuse, use, or even casual glancing at "soon''.
Just to halfway answer the Dark Link question, for now, it's up to interpretation. By saying "for now", I probably gave it away. ...or did I? You should all know by now you can't take anything I say seriously.
With that said, I made progress on the next chapter. That's right; seven months ahead of schedule! I wanted the time between updates to be a month at most this time. Do you think I can do it? I'm taking bets (know that you won't win anything).
Thanks for sticking with me, peeps. The next chapter is coming soon.
Soon
Copyright 2004-2008 ZeekeXIV Entertainment, Inc. All rights reserved. "Soon" does not imply any particular date, time, decade, century, or millennia in the past, present, and certainly not the future. "Soon" shall make no contract or warranty between ZeekeXIV Entertainment and the end user. "Soon" will arrive some day, ZeekeXIV does guarantee that "soon" will be here before the end of time. Maybe. Do not make plans based on "soon" as ZeekeXIV will not be liable for any misuse, use, or even casual glancing at "soon''.
The Mano Games VII
Smash Journeyman
Yeah, that ending was just kinda strange cuz, I could see why Dark Link would care about Link like that, but wow, he was a real ***hole about it.
It woulda been fine as a sort of "man I'm so clever!" or "well, that's one less problem he has to deal with!" sort of thing if Raznia had been more angry. But that's not what happened, cuz now their relationship seems to have been pretty much permanently ruined, Mida is going to be ashamed of herself and full of grief for a long, long time, and Raznia is going to be consumed by jealousy, mistrust of Mida, hatred, and grief.
So, he may have solved what could've been a life ruining problem for Link, but he caused a lot of damage in the process......
It woulda been fine as a sort of "man I'm so clever!" or "well, that's one less problem he has to deal with!" sort of thing if Raznia had been more angry. But that's not what happened, cuz now their relationship seems to have been pretty much permanently ruined, Mida is going to be ashamed of herself and full of grief for a long, long time, and Raznia is going to be consumed by jealousy, mistrust of Mida, hatred, and grief.
So, he may have solved what could've been a life ruining problem for Link, but he caused a lot of damage in the process......
DarkLink567
Smash Journeyman
I'm still around, although this account is so ancient I forget the account details on a quarterly basis. I don't even recall when I first replied here. 2004? Still my favourite fan fiction to date Zeeke. Keep 'em updates rolling.
Good stuff Zeeke. Nice to see more updates 
Spoon
Smash Journeyman
Dude I printed this out at school just to read it during Algebra II.
The gameboy
Smash Rookie
- Joined
- Nov 16, 2008
- Messages
- 8
you would...
i might do that too, i don't get nearly the daily recommended amount of smash bros.
also, whatever happened to Toad?
you just kinda left him there with his fist up his..... well you know...
Spoon
Smash Journeyman
I honestly don't have the attention span to read it at home o___o too much smash to play.
lol
EDIT: Now for my story-related comment!
Wow great. Last words really put a cliffhanger. Link is such a ****.
lol
EDIT: Now for my story-related comment!
Wow great. Last words really put a cliffhanger. Link is such a ****.
Al Da Best
Smash Rookie
Epic story :D
Just read the whole thing in about 3 days, from Act 1 to current.
A few grammar mistakes, but that might just be bcause I'm English, and your not.
Is there a record going or anything for this? 04-08 and still rolling on. :o
I liked the various twists and surprises in it, including that last one with Dark Link. ^_^
I'm sure this is long enough to be made into a novel and sold. Hundreds of pages in there.
Overall, good story, can't wait for the ending and a sequel including Mariomon would be cool.
Just read the whole thing in about 3 days, from Act 1 to current.
A few grammar mistakes, but that might just be bcause I'm English, and your not.
Is there a record going or anything for this? 04-08 and still rolling on. :o
I liked the various twists and surprises in it, including that last one with Dark Link. ^_^
I'm sure this is long enough to be made into a novel and sold. Hundreds of pages in there.
Overall, good story, can't wait for the ending and a sequel including Mariomon would be cool.
DarkLink567
Smash Journeyman
He's revamped it on several occasions, in particular, the early chapters. A sequel (based on the whole Mewtwo/Dr. Mario sidestory) can be pretty much written alongside this story, since they occur in different worlds anyway. They could of course interact in the future (depending on the "conclusion" of this story).
oceanic--ice
Smash Apprentice
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2008
- Messages
- 148
Actually maybe it was unintended but u ruined samus and links relationship...ive only read up to the post im replying to right now but from wat ive read so far u havent patched a major flow....since link and mario traveled back in time and never returned to the original timeline there are 2 marios loooooolzzz......and seeing how the yellow pipe was sealed mario couldnt return so propably he would believe luigi was stuck there or something and after finding link they would propably go on the mission the original link and mario went through.....they wouldnt believe luigi is dead but they would still need samus help to go to green hill zone and find him.....but while doing this the original du....i mean trio would have progressed in the storyline e.g. defeating bowser/ganodorf and when the other trio reached that point everything would go wrong.....i could keep this forever but in short form.....YOU NEED TO EDIT IT SO THAT AFTER THEY GOT LUIGI THEY RETURNED TO THE ORIGINAL TIMELINE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!As simple as that......a simple 2 lines of editting and u save us a huge paradox
And btw keep up the good work......despite that small prob i really enjoyed every second of ur fic!
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
New readers. Gotta love it. Welcome to the show, Oceanic-Ice and Al Da Best. I'm glad you guys enjoyed the story thus far.
As DarkLink567 pointed out, there have been so many edits and revisions to this story, most of the comments I made previously in this thread don't apply. I'm actually still holding out on a few revisions, but I'll hook you guys up after everything's said and done. I think you've all had enough re-edits to last you forever.
As for the plothole/paradox you pointed out, Oceanic, I'm actually amazed you caught that. Don't think I didn't know about it, though. It just might've been what I was saving for the big twist ending of this story. Maybe. But we'll never know now.
For those that were clever enough to notice that little spot, I was hoping you'd look at it like this: since they used the Warp Whistles to jump to a new dimension, you would assume everything was reset, meaning they'd be back in the right timeline. That's how I'm writing the story. Lazy? Yes, but it avoids weird plotholes.
AAAAAANNNNNNNNNDDDDDDD you can think of it this way. The good-ol' Butterfly Effect, the Ripple Theory, whatever you wanna call it. Basically it means the littlest changes can have the most profound effects when it comes to time travel. Remember past-Mario came back out of the warp-pipe after Luigi got killed. When Link and present-Mario saved Luigi, past-Mario never came back out, which changes EVERYTHING. This time, it's not strange to assume the warp-pipe past-Mario was in didn't take him to Hyrule this time (which, in fact, is exactly what happen).
Time-travel is wildly confusing... I could've spent an entire chapter on the trio trying to get back to the right timeline, but why? I like using the Warp Whistle as an assumed reset button. But after I finish this story and get to revising (again!), maybe I'll do something with that...
Also know that the whole Mariomon storyline will be cleaned up thoroughly. Right now, I hate that little sideshow with a passion and I wish I didn't write it, but what's done is done, and everyone loves it (for some reason...). I'll make it worth reading for real.
As DarkLink567 pointed out, there have been so many edits and revisions to this story, most of the comments I made previously in this thread don't apply. I'm actually still holding out on a few revisions, but I'll hook you guys up after everything's said and done. I think you've all had enough re-edits to last you forever.
As for the plothole/paradox you pointed out, Oceanic, I'm actually amazed you caught that. Don't think I didn't know about it, though. It just might've been what I was saving for the big twist ending of this story. Maybe. But we'll never know now.
For those that were clever enough to notice that little spot, I was hoping you'd look at it like this: since they used the Warp Whistles to jump to a new dimension, you would assume everything was reset, meaning they'd be back in the right timeline. That's how I'm writing the story. Lazy? Yes, but it avoids weird plotholes.
AAAAAANNNNNNNNNDDDDDDD you can think of it this way. The good-ol' Butterfly Effect, the Ripple Theory, whatever you wanna call it. Basically it means the littlest changes can have the most profound effects when it comes to time travel. Remember past-Mario came back out of the warp-pipe after Luigi got killed. When Link and present-Mario saved Luigi, past-Mario never came back out, which changes EVERYTHING. This time, it's not strange to assume the warp-pipe past-Mario was in didn't take him to Hyrule this time (which, in fact, is exactly what happen).
Time-travel is wildly confusing... I could've spent an entire chapter on the trio trying to get back to the right timeline, but why? I like using the Warp Whistle as an assumed reset button. But after I finish this story and get to revising (again!), maybe I'll do something with that...
Also know that the whole Mariomon storyline will be cleaned up thoroughly. Right now, I hate that little sideshow with a passion and I wish I didn't write it, but what's done is done, and everyone loves it (for some reason...). I'll make it worth reading for real.
I'm lost.
:/
:/
oceanic--ice
Smash Apprentice
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2008
- Messages
- 148
ive just read through act 10 part 1 and all i have to say is ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOFFFFFFFFLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!
they get lost into the end of time just to finally after getting lost in eternal darkness make it back to the definetely unfriendly 29th century just to get into an even darker dimension .....with all this terrifying stuff and the confusing time-travel stuff....as well as all the tiring adventures they had before it......i really dont think there is much point in returning to their actual mission....i mean its just ganodorf and bowser rolf......compared to what they passed through just having to defeat the same guys which they keep
p0wning over and over in every game shouldnt be that hard lolz......i believe u ODed it begining with the moment they ended up in F-Zero world........or perhaps i should say u started going that way since the multi-attemps to bring luigi back.... and since u ODed at that point the rest started becoming more and more intense up to a point it reached a whole new level above the friendly atmosphere of smash bros universe.... really enjoyed the dialogues though and the jokes.....but that too started getting ruined after 5-6th act... i guess after a certain point u started running out of joke ideas seeing how u used most popular ones used in cartoons/animes/movies/shows/comics/books etc but developped ur own as well.... perhaps if u wanted it to be such a long story u could have saved some of the funny scenes for later.... although i am always sad when a great story ends its much better than keeping forever but in the progress becoming worse and worse......thats my tip to u....... keep up the good work though anyways
OOOOOOOOHHHHHHH Screw the first comment about plot getting pointless........up to where ive read it does apply but its mainly because its quite a break when they set on a journey to find the light arrows...... ofc i dont completely delete my note....just delaying to SEE whether it actually DOES get any more intense......ive just thought that it could actually end battling an even greater force Tabuu-Style which would go further than the time stuff....i guess ill just have to wait and see
*P.S.: dunno if u did but could u plz plz plz plz specify somewhere wat actually happened with fox and how he ended up aged in links cage in case u didnt, perhaps at the end of the final act as a side-note or something?????? i mean if he did avoid the explosion at the race by traveling to the future how did he age (maybe for example since he travelled through that metal thingy which was a natural way of timetraveling instead of using a machine he did age to a percantage? EG he aged 30 years instead of 300)? and also how did he actually know that mario and luigi where on there way to save link? ....and after he told link all that stuff how did he disappear and to where? i know im actually asking all over plot-holes (pun with the Darkness of Time ones unintended) for u to specify the information they lack.....but its just my way of showing how interested i am in the story
**P.S.: where are the other parts of the trilogy if ur making one after all? in this thread? i dont dare check myself......i prefer to read bit by bit through the story first cause if i find out a more advanced spot in the story i wont hesitate reading it and ill spoil everything
***EDIT P.S.: oh and bout that second mario i just got an idea.....maybe instead of having an alternate reality mario who if he had blocked the entrance and luigi hadnt followed him would end intohe poke-world u could make it so that the second mario was actually the one who ended there.... and in one of ur sequels u could develop that story perhaps as the main theme? maybe at some point even meeting with the other mario and as soon as they come in physical contact they fuse gaining the knowledge of both individuals therefore fitting better the story and having only one mario in the end? just an idea :D
DarkLink567
Smash Journeyman
Forgive me oceanic, but your trailing writing (ellipse abuse much?) makes it hard to quote. While I'm all for being lax towards people's writing online, it shouldn't become a chore.
He's Old.
We shouldn't assume that Fox has the life expectancy of us feeble humans. Not to mention the technology in those times. But that's just over-analysis. He just seemed to have decided to visit Link at the point of time that he knew Link was sent to. He's very old. That's it. Period. Seriously, not EVERY, SINGLE, DETAIL, needs to be thoroughly written down. I'm sure that Zeeke would like some of this to be to left to our imagination.
...and leave Peach and Zelda to be held captive by G-Dorf and B-Boss forever?
Here's a thought.
He's Old.
We shouldn't assume that Fox has the life expectancy of us feeble humans. Not to mention the technology in those times. But that's just over-analysis. He just seemed to have decided to visit Link at the point of time that he knew Link was sent to. He's very old. That's it. Period. Seriously, not EVERY, SINGLE, DETAIL, needs to be thoroughly written down. I'm sure that Zeeke would like some of this to be to left to our imagination.
Like he mentioned, the trilogy idea was something he considered in the early days. Whether he fulfills it is entirely up to him. Also, you don't tend to write a sequel mid-way through the story that it follows. Just a thought.**P.S.: where are the other parts of the trilogy if ur making one after all? in this thread? i dont dare check myself......i prefer to read bit by bit through the story first cause if i find out a more advanced spot in the story i wont hesitate reading it and ill spoil everything
Old idea is old.
socalledmember
Smash Rookie
- Joined
- May 17, 2008
- Messages
- 9
What about Captian Falcon will he meet up with he Trio agian. Becuase he was awesome :D
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
Man, Oceanic just might be the most enthusiastic reader I've had in a while. While I can answer all your questions by telling you what I was thinking when I was writing, I'm going to agree with what DarkLink said because it's the truth:
"Seriously, not EVERY, SINGLE, DETAIL, needs to be thoroughly written down. I'm sure that Zeeke would like some of this to be to left to our imagination."
Zeeke does want some of this to be left to your imagination. I definitely was about to say the same thing. You don't need me to tell you everything, do you?
I will take a moment and explain the whole "Fox in the Future" thing, though. I fleshed it out with the latest revision, but the basic idea was always there. From Act 9, Part 5:
"We had nothing to do with that. You know how everything inconceivable happens with us?" Mario asked. After Falcon's nod, "Well, some drunk old guy found his way onto the track and was just walking around in circles. We managed to avoid him, but I'm guessing Fox didn't and, nonsensically, exploded right when he crashed."
"...normally... I'd laugh in disbelief, but I actually believe you. And I know who the old guy is." Falcon said. "Silver Neelsen. He's senile and should be retired. This isn't the first time he's walked out in the middle of a race. Whenever he's not racing, he's getting drunk as hell at the Rest Stop. And when he gets drunk, he does incredibly stupid things, like walking out in the middle of a track during a race.
"I remember one day... he approached me all frantic and whatnot, looking like the world was about to end. He wanted me to enter a bet race with a prize of two million credits. I wasn't gonna do it, but he threw the 'old man's last request' card at me. That's so cheap... Suddenly, I felt obligated. So I beat the crap out of the competition and took the prize for him. He gave me something for my trouble and spent the rest on 'protection'."
The brothers glanced at each other.
"...he bought a lifetime supply of cond--"
"Stop while you're ahead, Luigi." Falcon interrupted with a halting hand. "He bought a walking cane made of dark-matter-infused titanium alloy. He felt that if ever he was in a life-threatening bind, his cane would keep him safe. So much for that plan..."
"...that... makes... no... sense..." Mario could only utter in fragments. Wrapping his head around such an illogical choice was beyond him.
"You can say that again." Falcon nodded.
"Maybe if we check out the scene of the accident, we can find something out." Luigi suggested.
Mario just shrugged. "Why not?"
The three hopped into the Red Fire and made their way to the last spot Fox's Arwing was seen. Upon their arrival...
"...there's nothing here!" Luigi gasped.
Despite the violent explosion rivaling a nuclear blast, there was nothing. No scrap metal, no scorch marks. It was as if nothing happened at all.
"We all saw that explosion, right? I know I'm not going crazy." Mario convinced himself.
"We all saw it." Falcon verified. "But it's all empty... It's like everything got vaporized..."
"So Fox..." Luigi was afraid to complete his sentence.
"Honestly... I don't know." Falcon admitted. "I don't want to jump to conclusions. Me and Fox have gotten pretty cool ever since he started posing as James, even though I didn't know it was him... I'd hate to think he's gone for good..."
"But that explosion was huge..." Mario muttered.
"If anything's keeping me optimistic, it's that I know a little bit about dark matter." Falcon said.
"Tell us what you know. But this time, without having to beat you in a race." Luigi added.
"Don't worry, this one's on the house." Falcon assured them. "We can use dark matter for time-travel. Don't ask me about the intricacies, but all I know is that when you hit it really hard with huge amounts of energy, you can rip a hole through space-time and travel forward or backward in time." Falcon said.
The Mario brothers kept quiet in awe.
"Yeah, I figured it'd be over your heads. But just know that if Fox is still alive, and he probably is, he's not here. He's somewhere in the future, cursing at Neelsen for being in the way." Falcon concluded.
Now, having read that, it's obvious that Fox and Neelsen were sent into the future.
Now, "Old Fox"... Well, Neelsen is old, and we can't forget about that morphing bracelet/armlet/whatever I called it that Fox got from the real James McCloud. Assume that somehow, Fox managed to get some of Neelsen's DNA in order to morph into an old guy (presumably him (I might solidify that fact in future revisions)). With the future Mute City's intolerance to "different-looking" people, Fox's normal form wouldn't be appreciated to say the least. He also could assume Neelsen's well-known, so he manged to hide his new appearance pretty well with a cloak of some sort.
And how he knew about Link? His trial was a public spectacle; being made an example of to show what happens to time-travel offenders, so everyone knew about it. Fox decided to visit Link after seeing his demeanor in court and in an attempt to keep him from giving up.
Sooooo... I think that covers everything there. Clever, huh? I know. I'm good. For any other questions, PM me.
Oh, and next chapter? I'm feeling confident. I know I sorta inferred by the end of the month, but that's not gonna happen. I'm gonna say mid-December this time, so be on the lookout two Sunday's from now.
"Seriously, not EVERY, SINGLE, DETAIL, needs to be thoroughly written down. I'm sure that Zeeke would like some of this to be to left to our imagination."
Zeeke does want some of this to be left to your imagination. I definitely was about to say the same thing. You don't need me to tell you everything, do you?
I will take a moment and explain the whole "Fox in the Future" thing, though. I fleshed it out with the latest revision, but the basic idea was always there. From Act 9, Part 5:
"We had nothing to do with that. You know how everything inconceivable happens with us?" Mario asked. After Falcon's nod, "Well, some drunk old guy found his way onto the track and was just walking around in circles. We managed to avoid him, but I'm guessing Fox didn't and, nonsensically, exploded right when he crashed."
"...normally... I'd laugh in disbelief, but I actually believe you. And I know who the old guy is." Falcon said. "Silver Neelsen. He's senile and should be retired. This isn't the first time he's walked out in the middle of a race. Whenever he's not racing, he's getting drunk as hell at the Rest Stop. And when he gets drunk, he does incredibly stupid things, like walking out in the middle of a track during a race.
"I remember one day... he approached me all frantic and whatnot, looking like the world was about to end. He wanted me to enter a bet race with a prize of two million credits. I wasn't gonna do it, but he threw the 'old man's last request' card at me. That's so cheap... Suddenly, I felt obligated. So I beat the crap out of the competition and took the prize for him. He gave me something for my trouble and spent the rest on 'protection'."
The brothers glanced at each other.
"...he bought a lifetime supply of cond--"
"Stop while you're ahead, Luigi." Falcon interrupted with a halting hand. "He bought a walking cane made of dark-matter-infused titanium alloy. He felt that if ever he was in a life-threatening bind, his cane would keep him safe. So much for that plan..."
"...that... makes... no... sense..." Mario could only utter in fragments. Wrapping his head around such an illogical choice was beyond him.
"You can say that again." Falcon nodded.
"Maybe if we check out the scene of the accident, we can find something out." Luigi suggested.
Mario just shrugged. "Why not?"
The three hopped into the Red Fire and made their way to the last spot Fox's Arwing was seen. Upon their arrival...
"...there's nothing here!" Luigi gasped.
Despite the violent explosion rivaling a nuclear blast, there was nothing. No scrap metal, no scorch marks. It was as if nothing happened at all.
"We all saw that explosion, right? I know I'm not going crazy." Mario convinced himself.
"We all saw it." Falcon verified. "But it's all empty... It's like everything got vaporized..."
"So Fox..." Luigi was afraid to complete his sentence.
"Honestly... I don't know." Falcon admitted. "I don't want to jump to conclusions. Me and Fox have gotten pretty cool ever since he started posing as James, even though I didn't know it was him... I'd hate to think he's gone for good..."
"But that explosion was huge..." Mario muttered.
"If anything's keeping me optimistic, it's that I know a little bit about dark matter." Falcon said.
"Tell us what you know. But this time, without having to beat you in a race." Luigi added.
"Don't worry, this one's on the house." Falcon assured them. "We can use dark matter for time-travel. Don't ask me about the intricacies, but all I know is that when you hit it really hard with huge amounts of energy, you can rip a hole through space-time and travel forward or backward in time." Falcon said.
The Mario brothers kept quiet in awe.
"Yeah, I figured it'd be over your heads. But just know that if Fox is still alive, and he probably is, he's not here. He's somewhere in the future, cursing at Neelsen for being in the way." Falcon concluded.
Now, having read that, it's obvious that Fox and Neelsen were sent into the future.
Now, "Old Fox"... Well, Neelsen is old, and we can't forget about that morphing bracelet/armlet/whatever I called it that Fox got from the real James McCloud. Assume that somehow, Fox managed to get some of Neelsen's DNA in order to morph into an old guy (presumably him (I might solidify that fact in future revisions)). With the future Mute City's intolerance to "different-looking" people, Fox's normal form wouldn't be appreciated to say the least. He also could assume Neelsen's well-known, so he manged to hide his new appearance pretty well with a cloak of some sort.
And how he knew about Link? His trial was a public spectacle; being made an example of to show what happens to time-travel offenders, so everyone knew about it. Fox decided to visit Link after seeing his demeanor in court and in an attempt to keep him from giving up.
Sooooo... I think that covers everything there. Clever, huh? I know. I'm good. For any other questions, PM me.
Oh, and next chapter? I'm feeling confident. I know I sorta inferred by the end of the month, but that's not gonna happen. I'm gonna say mid-December this time, so be on the lookout two Sunday's from now.
oceanic--ice
Smash Apprentice
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2008
- Messages
- 148
Haha! u get caught....u didnt cover everything...and although at some percentage not everything has to be explained i think the fact that fox knew they were on their way does not belong in that category.....
and one more thing...i dunnot accept "it was easy for him to imagine that they WOULD try to save him" as an answer xD..... as much as i like ur fic i really wont quit making ur life harder having to specify some questions....there is one major thing i cant sink......uve written a WHOLE lot of story with all sorts of twists and events....but anyways all this-sort-of-questions u answer are expected to be much more complicated and u really state easy to imagine answers...prob thought on the spot trying to cover the fact that u left some plot-holes uncovered
the only thing i HAVE NEVER BUT EVER liked in any sort of story is such plot-holes!!!!P.S.: No... NOO.... NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! THIS CANT BE TRUE!!!!! I have reached the end of ur yet posted story.... i guess now im doomed in the same fate as everyone having to actually wait for updates, /sigh.... still could be for the better...i really dont wanna finish the story first week! especially since no1 has posted in the other threat im mainly interested at for this long! Pikmin 3: What I think [Unfinished], if ne1 likes that franchise (which id DEFINETELY wanna see included in a chapter) feel free to search for the topic on the site and post...
Hey man, just ginished reading.
Good fic,
Seriously, some people need to learn to SUSPEND THEIR DISBELIEF!
keep up the good work.
Have you got any plans to include the kirby krew in the near future?
Lawl, i can just imagine them as like a street gang.
Good fic,
Seriously, some people need to learn to SUSPEND THEIR DISBELIEF!
keep up the good work.
Have you got any plans to include the kirby krew in the near future?
Lawl, i can just imagine them as like a street gang.
oceanic--ice
Smash Apprentice
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2008
- Messages
- 148
He just stated earlier somewhere (could even be in this page, read most of them quickly as story updates were getting more and more rare so cant really tell where) that he doesnt know sufficient information about the kirby franchise to include it on the story and if he did he would be...erm how did he say it?..... erm....just go find the post urself....MY point is that he already answered that!
