The Legend of Midna Chapter 3

The Legend of Midna

Chapter 3

Pale orange light filtered through the window, arousing Link from his slumber. Midna lay next to him, one arm draped across his chest as she slept peacefully. He lay in bed, content to watch several clouds roll by, until it hit him - today he would be fighting for his life. Unwilling to wake Midna, he gently eased her arm off his chest and laid it back on the bed. Grabbing his new sword and shield, he headed out onto the balcony and began to stretch gingerly, testing his body's limits. To his surprise, most of his serious injuries had healed; only a few cuts and bruises remained from his battle with Orthos. The Triforce of Courage had done its work, it seemed - the relic of the goddesses endowed the user with the ability to heal all but the most lethal injuries, given time. I didn't think they'd fully heal for another day at least, he thought, then shrugged, unsheathing the Sacred Beast Sword with a single fluid movement. He blinked; both the sword and the shield were as light as a feather. I can't use these, he thought, dismayed. They'll shatter the instant I hit something! He sighed and began to practice, performing every hidden skill and move he knew with ease. Link avoided slamming the sword against the ground as much as he possibly could, afraid it would shatter.

"You know, Link, that sword's unbreakable. It's made of the toughest metal known to the Twili, spelled to be weightless. The shield's the same way," came a soft voice. Link looked over at the entrance to the balcony. Midna leaned against the doorframe, her cloak wrapped around her.

"Did I wake you?" he asked, but she shook her head.

"No. I'm usually up this early, attending to court matters." The princess rolled her eyes. "Hours of sitting in a chair listening to old men argue; honestly, it drives me crazy!"

"How long have you been standing there, anyway?" Link had sheathed his sword and was leaning against the wall, looking out at the orange sky.

"Since you finished stretching. You should have seen your face when you tried using the sword! It was priceless!"

Link let out a mock-groan while Midna giggled. As her laughter subsided she gestured at the sky. "This is dawn in the Twilight Realm. Do you like it?"

Link nodded. "It's beautiful, but..." He had turned to face her. "It pales in comparison to you." Link grinned as she blushed a deep shade of red, then wrapped his arms around her and kissed her softly, enjoying the moment. Midna reluctantly pulled away as a faint voice called for her.

"Princess, it's time; bring the Hylian to the arena."

"All right," she called over her shoulder, and turned back to Link. His face had hardened, becoming an emotionless mask that Midna had seen far too many times throughout their journey. "Link." Though she didn't want to disturb his current state of mind, she had to let him know what he was up against. As they walked down the stairs she summed up everything she knew about his opponent. "Cesar, known to most as the God of War, has never lost a battle. Not one. He's one of the few that rejected magic in favor of weapons, and he's very skilled at using them. Be careful, Link; don't underestimate him," she warned as they approached the arena door. He nodded.

"I won't."

-----

Link walked into the arena. As his clothes and weaponry came into view, a low murmur arose from the crowd of Twili that sat in the stands. Midna and the council members had taken their places at the front row; Balore's eyes narrowed as they caught sight of the Sacred Beast Sword. He turned to Midna, furious. "You gave him the royal family's weapon?!"

Midna shrugged. "What? Do you have a problem with that?" she asked, an impish grin spreading itself across her face. Balore grunted and turned to watch the action. Link walked towards the God of War, taking the time to examine his foe. Cesar stood barechested, his legs covered by several iron plates. His toned muscles glistened in the harsh orange light; in one hand was a curious-looking sword, and in the other was a large axe. The sword did not seem normal; it seemed to be made of pieces of metal connected by a chain. The Hero of Twilight suspected that there was more to his weapon than what he saw, but remained silent, stopping a few inches away from the God of War. Both remained motionless; Link had not even drawn his sword yet.

"Well?" asked Cesar. "Shall we begin?"

Link shrugged. The twilight warrior's eyes narrowed as he raised his sword to strike. At that instant Link's hand flew to his sword. What happened next confused the majority of the Twili - one moment Cesar had been poised to strike, and the next he was flying through the air, a large gash stretching from shoulder to abdomen on his chest. The hero was in his battle stance now, waiting for the God of War to stand up. Dusting himself off, Cesar winced as he got to his feet. "A careless error on my part," he boomed, and swung his sword. Link's eyes widened as the blade extended towards him; if he hadn't already been shielding the blade would have skewered him. It's like a clawshot, thought Link, surprised at such a unique weapon. The Hero of Twilight rolled out of the way of several more attacks as Cesar advanced, twirling his axe. Sparks flew as the axe glanced off Link's shield. Seizing his chance, Link rolled behind the God of War and dealt a savage slash to his back. Cesar roared and swept his chain blade on the ground, snaring Link's foot. He tugged and sent the hero toppling to the ground. "Got you!" roared the warrior, raising his axe to strike. Link winced as axe glanced off his tunic, but did not cut or wound him. Silently thanking Midna for his tunic, Link untangled his leg from Cesar's blade and clawshotted away, bringing out his bow. He loosed several arrows, but to no avail; Cesar blocked them effortlessly as he advanced towards the hero. The God of War unleashed a string of ferocious attacks, determined to drive the Hero of Twilight into the ground; Link found himself using his sword as well as his shield to foil his opponent's attacks.

Finally, with a shout, Cesar raised his axe and attempted to cleave Link in two. The Hylian sidestepped the attack and rolled away, gasping for breath as the twilight warrior attempted to pull his axe out of the ground. It wouldn't budge. Fuming, Cesar turned to face Link, chain sword in hand. The hero had attached bombs to his arrows; lighting the fuse, he took careful aim and fired. The arrows buried themselves in the dirt at Cesar's feet. "What the?" began the twilight warrior as the bomb arrows exploded. A thick veil of smoke rose from the ground, obscuring everything from Cesar's vision. The God of War looked around nervously. Suddenly the Hero of Twilight shot out of the curtain of smoke, slamming his opponent upwards with the flat side of his sword. Link jumped into the air, locking eyes with the warrior for the briefest of seconds, before slamming him back down into the earth. As the smoke cleared the crowd craned their necks to get a better look. Cesar lay on the ground, breathing heavily; Link held the Sacred Beast Sword against his neck.

"You're a better fighter than any I have ever seen," rasped the God of War.

"And you're nearly as good." Link removed the sword from his neck. "You're needed by your people, Cesar; I refuse to be the one to take you away from them." He sheathed his sword, offering to help the warrior up. As Cesar got to his feet an explosion rocked the arena, sending shards of debris hurtling towards the two fighters. Link raised his shield, angled so that it would cover both of them, and weathered the hailstorm of rock, wincing as each large piece glanced off his shield. As the last of the pieces fell to the ground harmlessly the Hylian lowered his shield and checked his surroundings carefully. A large dust cloud swirled in the center of the arena, blotting everything past it from view. As the dust settled both Midna and Link's eyes widened as they stared at the figure at the center of the arena in disbelief.

It was Zant.

His customary headpiece shined sinisterly in the light as he turned to face the hero. "Zant?! You're dead!" shouted Link, reaching for his sword.

"Well met, Hero of Twilight. I did not expect to find you here..." said Zant calmly. Link privately thanked the goddesses that the sane portion of Zant seemed to be talking.

"Why are you here?" asked Link through gritted teeth, his grip on his sword slowly tightening.

"To issue an ultimatum." Zant abruptly turned to the stands, locking eyes with Midna. "Surrender and live under my rule... or suffer as the power of the sorcerer of legend consumes this world!"  

Suddenly Link leaped at him, sword raised, only to be sent flying backwards by Zant's magic. He didn't even move! thought Link, getting to his feet. He eyed the sorcerer warily. Neither he nor Cesar were in any condition to fight; their battle had sapped most of their strength. Midna stood up, drawing the three Fused Shadows hidden in her cloak. The fourth piece emerged from Link's pocket, floating over to join its companions as they circled the princess. She leapt from her seat, landing on the ground soundlessly. Zant smirked as the Fused Shadows locked themselves around her head.

"Have it your way, Princess," he snarled as the huge, spiderlike creature sprouted from her slender form. The Fused Shadow Beast let out a roar, raising its giant spear to attack. Before it could strike Zant lifted his hand, a large black beam from his palm blasting it back. It landed on the far side of the arena with a colossal thud and vanished, replaced by Midna's unmoving form.

"Midna!" screamed Link, sprinting to her side. Dropping to his knees, Link lifted her up by her shoulders and shook her gently. "C'mon, Midna, wake up," he urged. The crowd was silent; even Zant had turned to watch, listening for a response. For a moment it seemed as if there wouldn't be one. Then -

"What are you shaking me for?" Midna opened her eyes, smiling wearily at him. "I'm all right. Just get Zant before he tries something else!" Link nodded and got to his feet, turning to face the sorcerer. Zant had raised his hand again, his palm glowing with dark energy, when Cesar stepped in front of him, swinging his chain blade with every ounce of power he could muster. The weapon struck Zant and bounced off harmlessly; with a flick of his wrist, the warrior was blown backwards into the wall, several shards of stone pinning him upright. The mage returned his attention to Link, who was sprinting towards him, sword raised.

"You dare to defy me? Foolishness," boomed Zant, and raised his palm. The Hero of Twilight froze in mid-stride, as if he were a statue. "Whatever abilities you possessed that allowed you to defeat me before are meaningless! My benefactor has seen to that," he said smugly, raising his hand again. As a nimbus of black energy crowded around his palm a primal scream erupted from the back of the arena. Cesar's chain blade extended towards Zant, smacking the sorcerer in the temple. Blood dripping from a gaping hole on his arm, the God of War called the chain back and lashed out again and again, each attack scoring a solid hit on Zant's forehead.

"You... will... not... hurt them, or my people," he raged, continuing his assault. Link took the time to struggle against the magic that held him; with a whoop of joy the invisible force that held him shattered. Taking out the Gale Boomerang, he threw it at Zant - only to have it batted away.

"Enough! You will all perish -" The sorcerer stopped in mid-sentence, staring up at the sky. He abruptly dropped his hand and began to walk away. "You have a week to think about what I have said. Choose wisely," he said, vanishing in a burst of dark particles.

----

"I don't understand how Zant's still alive," said Link, handing Midna a glass of water. She took it gratefully and struggled to sit up on the mattress. "Don't," he said, easing her back down. "You need to rest," he said sternly as she opened her mouth to argue. "... Fine." Midna propped herself up on a pillow.

"There were only two people who could order our princess around like that: her mother and her father." Balore stood by the open door, looking thoughtfully at Link.

"What are you doing here, High Chancellor?" asked Midna, irritated. "This is my private chamber."

Balore bowed. "Forgive me, Your Highness, but I came to lend my knowledge of the past. You heard Zant talk about the sorcerer of legend, did you not?" The princess hesitated, then motioned for him to sit down. He did so, taking a seat by a small circular table. "Before we start, I'd like to ask something." The High Chancellor eyed the pair. "Am I right in assuming that the two of you... are in love?" Midna shifted uncomfortably.

"How did you...?"

The council member shrugged. "The signs were everywhere; one merely had to look for them. I don't particularly approve of this relationship - he is one from the Light Realm, after all - but... it cannot be helped."
Midna's eyes flashed dangerously. "Link is the one who saved me and the whole of the Twilight Realm from Zant. "

Balore blinked. "You mean he is the one who -" Link stopped him with a wave of his hand. "Look, enough about that. Can you tell us about this sorcerer of legend?"

Balore sighed and closed his eyes, his hands folded on his lap. "This is a tale every Twili is taught when they are young.  Many years ago, when the Twili still lived among those of the Light, there lived a sorcerer by the name of Majora. He was powerful beyond belief, skilled in forbidden arts of destruction. It is said not even the power of the royal family could stop him."

Midna smiled grimly. "If Zant's using Majora's power, then we know that's true; you saw how he batted me aside..." She nodded her head at Balore, who cleared his throat and began his story again. "There's not much to tell after that, but the legend goes that Majora was sealed inside a mask and sent to a distant land... No one knows what happened to the mask after that."

Link sat back in his chair. "So Zant's using the power of Majora's mask?" A chill ran down his spine as he spoke the sorcerer's name.

"I don't know," said Midna, and looked at Balore.  

"He did not seem to be wearing it, as far as I could tell. This bodes ill for the realm..." The High Chancellor trailed off. "There is not a power here or in the Light Realm that can defeat Zant if he is indeed using Majora's power."

The princess shook her head. "We don't know that for sure." She paused. "Link, we need to go visit the Shadow Beasts."

"The what?" asked the hero. Balore sighed.

"The Shadow Beasts are the guardians of the Twilight Realm, just as your Light Spirits are the guardians of the Light Realm. There are 4 of them, one in each province. Shadow to balance Light." The chancellor was looking thoughtfully at Midna. "You may be right, princess; they may know a way to stop Zant."

She nodded. "Then it's settled. We leave tomorrow."

Link blinked. "'We?' Midna, you're not coming with me on this one. You saw what Zant can do; I can't protect you if he finds us..."

The princess shook her head. "I don't care. I'm not going to sit here and do nothing. I'm not Zelda, you know! Besides, how will you find your way to the springs where the Shadow Beasts live?"

"Princess Midna, you can't be serious. You cannot just go traipsing around the country, especially at times like these!" shouted Balore.

"And I'm telling you I'm going!" There was an edge to her voice that Link had only heard rarely. The Hero of Twilight sighed and shook his head.

"There's no point in arguing with her, Balore." Link stood to go. "I'm going to get supplies."

Balore shook his head in resignation. "All right. I shall await your return to the palace, princess." With that he left, leaving the two of them alone.    
  
As Link turned to walk out the door Midna's voice stopped him.

"Link. I'm not going to let you do everything for me this time, and I won't sit back while the man I love risks his life for me and my country... it's why I'm going."

Without turning around, he said,"Still stubborn as ever."

"Yep. I love you, Link."

"I love you too."