To Be Real

Chapter 6 basically wrote itself in a grand total of two days after I uploaded 5. I just suddenly knew exactly where I was going and… I went. The few encouraging reviews I received – although few – were a big help in the creative process, too. I feel so encouraged. Thank you to those who found time to review!

At Fanfiction.net:
ChibiPandaChan: You’ve got your wish! The latest chapter, out as soon as I can muster! Now that I quit my crappy-ass supermarket job I can devote more time to my craft… And no, I didn’t miss Zelda much either. She’s not my favorite.
Xena Minotaur Girl: First of all, that is one kick-ass name. Second of all, I’m not really fond of fics that make Sheik his own person. While it opens up for possibilities with his character… it’s non-canonical. (But how hypocritical of myself to call them non-canonical, when look what I did with Dark, right!? Well let’s look at it this way, at least I remained true to his origins and to where he first appears in the OoT universe.) Thirdly, thank you for your appreciation of my love of adjectives. I, like you, also enjoy seeing the boys get beat up a little. Trust me, you’ll REALLY like this chapter, in that case. Lastly, your review was nicely written and I really appreciate all the time you put into it. It’s great to get lengthy feedback from readers!

At AFF.net:
Guardian Kiune: I know we’ve already spoken after I reviewed your story, but I wanted to thank you again for your review. The plot is getting twistier here and Dark’s change is far from complete. Just as you’re awaiting a new chapter, I’m awaiting another great review! Thanks for reading!
Shadow: Please, if you’re going to take time to review the story, make it worth my time to read it.

That having been said, I reiterate: I’ve had around 3,000 hits on this story and 41 reviews total. If you’re not one of the 80% of America who is obese, or even if you are, then burn some calories. Click review, type some words, press enter. NOT AS HARD AS WRITING THESE TEN PAGES, THAT’S FOR SHURE.

EDIT: AFF.net version comes without italics and such, since uploading an HTML file makes the quotation marks all silly. And I am NOT sitting through editing those things a second time.

This first sentence might make your brain explode.

---


The wooden door of Uula’s cottage was flung open and there in the doorway he stood. Dark Link looked horrible. His torso was wrapped up in bandages, his borrowed pants were a little too short for his lean legs, and his entire body had been bruised and abused by the ferocious Gerudo women. The violent wind tore at him, ruffling his black bangs and whipping his pants against his legs. He bent over slightly in the doorway, clutching his aching abdomen, but he kept his eyes on the sky.

Navi clung to his ear for dear life as her little body was blown about by the gale. She couldn’t keep her eyes open, but the terrified little fairy sensed what was out there.

“Dark!” she cried. “It’s him!”

Dark swallowed hard, putting on the most menacing expression he could muster. A hulking shadow stood before him, completely black save his glinting yellow eyes. The dust storm that had been concealing his body settled and Dark, for the first time in what felt like ages, beheld Ganondorf. The Triforce of Power gleamed brightly in his right fist. He was gigantic in size, towering above even the highest rooftop in the village. He was bedecked in his finest armor and jewels, always nicely polished when he graced the commoners with his presence. His grin was more like a snarl as he loomed over the cowering forms of Link and … Princess Zelda!?

Link was the first to open his eyes, lifting his head and looking at Dark, confused. His back was to Ganondorf and he was unaware of his presence, instead distracted by the appearance of his bedridden twin. Dark’s mouth was agape, his body trembling slightly as he beheld his beloved Master. To him, Ganondorf was breathtakingly beautiful, albeit terrifying. He couldn’t bring himself to move, captivated so by his father’s enormous power. Link was puzzled by Dark’s odd behavior.

It was Navi who had to pipe up, apparently.

“Link!” she yelled. “Behind you!!”

Zelda then lifted her head, looking up toward the beastly king, and she let out a shrill scream. With one great, sweeping motion, Ganondorf scooped up Link in his left hand and Zelda in his right, holding them high above the ground. Once he had them in his grasp he gave them a tight squeeze, asserting his dominance and causing them both to struggle and scream. His great laugh rumbled the village, causing the windowpanes to rattle.

“Finally, the two missing pieces of the Triforce!” he roared. “At last, my work is nearing fruition!” He turned his malicious gaze down to Dark who still stood, frozen and trembling, in the doorway. “I knew that if I let you wander around long enough, you would help me locate the Triforce. I did not, however, foresee your traitorous behavior.” He closed his glowing yellow eyes as the desert sands began swirling around him again, enveloping both him and the squirming Princess and Hero. “No matter,” scoffed the mighty King, “I will deal with you after my dark fantasies become your grim reality.”

“Daaaark!” Link called out, fighting valiantly for his freedom. Ganondorf, annoyed by his struggle, tightened his iron grip. The Hero cried out as he felt his bones bending within him. He was grasping something in his left hand and with a mighty effort, he flung it away from himself, just as the thickening cloud of sand obscured him from Dark’s sight.

“Link!” his dark twin cried, shielding his eyes as the storm reached its peak. He gripped the doorway with his other hand to brace himself against the gale. As the sands began to settle, he cautiously loped out into the center of the village, staring in disbelief at where Ganondorf’s mighty footprints left giant indentations in the ground.

When all the winds had finally calmed, he heard a soft ‘plink’ on the ground in front of him.

“Dark, look!” Navi whispered, incredulous.

His crimson gaze fell to the earth where, just a few feet in front of him, lay a precious golden triangle smaller than the size of his palm. He bent down, despite his pain, and took it in his left hand, brushing away some dirt.

“Navi,” he whispered, “this is—“

“It’s the Triforce of Courage!” Navi spoke, wide-eyed. “Link must have somehow extracted it from his body and left it for you. Now Ganondorf doesn’t have the entire Triforce. There’s still hope for Hyrule!”

Dark fell to his knees under the burden of such awesome responsibility, staring with disbelief at the Triforce in his hand. Presently, he began to notice that it hurt to hold the holy relic. He hissed, dropping it hastily and nursing new wounds; the Triforce left three burning holes in his palm.

“I can’t touch it, Navi,” he whispered, disappointed in himself. “I’m…still an evil creation. I’m still a monster.”

“That’s not true,” crooned Navi, but her comforting was abruptly interrupted. The Triforce began to glow with a white-hot light. It caused Dark to hiss and stumble back, shielding his eyes with his arm. For an instant, he felt immense pain, as though his left arm was being torn from his body…and in the next instant, the light had faded and it was over.

He heard hurried footsteps behind him. Uula came rushing from her cottage, a worried expression on her face. “Dark, are you alright!?”

Dark opened his mouth to answer her but a shrill, pained cry escaped his lips instead. He suddenly winced, gripping his left hand as pain began to spread up his arm. His entire body tensed up as he growled slightly, biting his lip. Uula rushed to his side, laying her hands on his back, and he took comfort in her caring touch. Gradually the pain subsided, but still a dull ache remained in his hand. “I-I’m okay, Uula,” he began, but he choked on the breath he had begun to draw.

“Dark, what is it?” Uula asked, cautiously withdrawing. His face was frozen in shock and she followed his gaze.

There, embedded in his left hand, was the gleaming mark of the Triforce.

---

Zelda awoke facedown against cold steel, a bed truly unfitting for a princess. Her entire body felt sore after being squeezed so tightly by the giant King. She groaned as she lifted herself up, holding her ribs protectively.

A loud bang against the side of her enclosure made her spring to her feet with a yelp, reaching for her throwing knives. She found none, however; the princess had been completely stripped of her Sheikah weapons. Grinning at her with gleaming eyes, a menacing Stalfos leered down at her.

“Well well,” he rumbled, “looks like th’ Princess ‘as finally awoken.”

A sneering Lizalfos popped up on the other wall of the cage, making her scream with fright.

“’Ave you awakened to entertain our King?” he chuckled. “Yo’ presence has been r’quested in the court immediately!”

“Leave her alone!” barked a stern voice from across the dungeon. The two Stalfos turned, growling, and Zelda looked beyond them to see Link. The Hero was chained to the opposite wall by his wrists and his neck, stripped of his weaponry and items, even his gauntlets. It was obvious that he’d recently taken a beating, as his hair was ruffled, his exposed skin bruised in places including a black eye, and his lower lip cut and bleeding. Despite this, he still defended his beloved Princess with his life.

“’Aven’t you learned your lesson?” snarled the Lizalfos as he advanced upon the Hero. With one swift movement, the lizard turned around and whipped his tail into Link’s abdomen. Link couldn’t double forward, chained as he was, and instead he coughed violently, spraying fresh blood onto the floor in front of him.

“Enough!” commanded the Stalfos, taking firm hold of the cage bars. The cage itself was on wheels, making it easier to transport. He began pushing it toward the dungeon door. “Let’s get ‘em to th’ King, as our lovely guest here is awake. You ‘andle the Hero.”

“Gladly,” sneered the Lizalfos. He unlocked Link’s chains, hooking a thick metal leash to the manacle around his neck. His ankles were chained together loosely enough that he could walk, but firmly enough so that he couldn’t attack his captors. As they hurried through the iron door, the Lizalfos pulled Link close and leered down at him like a hungry predator. When Link sneered, the lizard leaned down and flicked his forked tongue into Link’s ear, making him growl in protest. The hallway was pitch black and the floor was uneven in places. At one point, Link tripped and fell flat on his face, causing the Lizalfos to cackle.

“Get up, y’ clumsy fool!” he roared, kicking Link hard in the side. Zelda screamed, hiding her eyes, but Link’s agonized grunting made her heart bleed.

After a long and winding journey up through the tower, they arrived in Ganondorf’s main chamber. The hall was noisy, filled on either side with the unruly members of Ganon’s dark army. The Poes cackled at Zelda as she passed, waving with their lanterns, and the ReDeads shrieked at Link, making him violently shudder. Zelda’s steel coach was wheeled to a halt and Link was brought up next to it. The Lizalfos shoved him to his knees, reveling in his moment of power. The dark king sat before them on a plush red velvet chair, sneering down at his guests. He straightened from his reclining position, waving his hand to silence the cacophony in the throne room.

“Welcome to my castle,” he rumbled, his voice echoing off the stone walls. “I hope your short stay will be…pleasant.” His menacing wish caused his minions to snicker amongst themselves.

“Ganondorf,” Link snarled, “by the goddesses I swear, your reign of terror is coming to an end!” Clearly amused, the King let forth his low, drawn-out, rumbling laugh. He rose from his throne, throwing his cape back behind him, and strode down toward the mobile cage where Zelda cowered, fearful.

“Oh, on the contrary,” he spoke, “my reign is just beginning to flourish. Soon I will spread my forces far beyond this wretched kingdom and envelop the whole world in darkness! It all starts here,” he crooned, fondling the bars of Zelda’s cage, leering down at her threateningly, “with the three of us. Once I assemble the three parts of the Triforce, my dreams will come true. In order to do that, however,” he spoke with a sadistic grin, “I must first remove the Triforce fragments from your bodies.” He leaned in close, almost pressing his face against the cage, making Zelda squirm against the back of her enclosure. “I hear it’s an…extremely painful procedure…

“And that’s why I’m starting with you!” he roared, pulling back suddenly and laying eyes on the prostrate Hero. Link’s angry expression quickly turned into a defiant smirk and he kept his eyes on Ganon as he drew close. “Yes, I believe I’ll need to cut open your flesh and drain all of your blood to siphon out the essence of the goddesses. Afterward, I think your carcass will make a fine addition to my ReDead army, or perhaps a lovely accent to my trophy hall.”

“Guess again,” Link chuckled, straining forward against his chains. “Don’t tell me you can’t feel it, oh omnipotent one.”

“Feel what?” Ganon spoke, biting the line Link had strung out for him. “What are you prattling about?”

“The Triforce of Courage,” Link spat, almost scornfully. “I don’t have it.”

Ganon’s expression quickly changed from a grin of mirth to a stare of disbelief. A tense moment passed, causing the entire room to fall into silence. He lunged for the Hero, grabbing him by the left arm and heaving him up into the air. Link cried out as his arm became dislocated from its socket. He hung there in midair, writhing in pain, as Ganon inspected his left hand. Sure enough, the mark of the Triforce had vanished and was instead replaced by a gnarled wound. Link had torn his own hand open and removed the Triforce in an effort to keep it out of Ganon’s grasp.

“You insolent little cur!” Ganondorf roared. He switched his grip to hold Link by the throat and balled his other hand into a powerful fist. “Where did you throw it!?” he yelled, bringing his fist hard into Link’s stomach. The Hero made a sickening, guttural sound as his eyes dilated and fresh blood began to pool in his mouth. “To whom did you leave the Triforce of Courage!?” Ganon struck him again and as his attacks escalated, his fist began to glow with a menacing purple fire. “Tell me!!”

Zelda watched in panic as Ganondorf whaled on the Hero. The minions around her cackled loudly, reveling in Link’s torment. She heard his bones breaking and watched his blood spill onto the carpet and Ganon’s garments. Finally, she could stand it no more. She covered her ears, thrashing her head about wildly as she wailed.

“Dark Link!” she cried out. “He gave the Triforce to Dark Link!”

The beating abruptly stopped and all eyes turned to the Princess. Ganon’s gaze was especially fearsome. He walked to the cage, his arm falling limp and dropping the beaten Hero before the Princess. He leaned down and stared at her with a gaze that chilled her to her core. His tone was flat and quiet, but sill as threatening as before.

“What…did you…say?”

“Dark Link,” she spoke, tears streaming down her cheeks. “He is the new holder of the Triforce of Courage.”

“Auuugh!” Ganon roared, reeling and holding his face. “Why does this relic keep escaping me!?” Zelda, although terrified, sprung to the front of her cage and reached through the bars to touch her beloved Hero, listening to his haggard breathing.

“Your Highness,” spoke the Stalfos, taking a slight step forward, “what ‘ould you like us t’ do?”

“That piteous coward won’t set foot near this castle, Triforce or no Triforce,” Ganon reasoned aloud. He turned to face his court, fire in his eyes as he bellowed. “Go, all of you! Find Dark Link and bring him to my chambers, dead or alive!”

The crowd let up a joyous roar and hastened toward the exits. The Lizalfos and Stalfos went to return their captives to the dungeon, but Ganondorf raised a trembling hand.

“No,” he growled. “Leave them with me.”

---

The upside to owning the Triforce of Courage was that, immediately, all of Dark Link’s wounds had healed. The downside to owning the Triforce of Courage was the fact that it created its own wound of sorts.

Dark sat on the bed in Uula’s cottage, gripping his left wrist so tightly that the knuckles on his right hand were bone-white. His arm was shaking slightly but, thankfully, the pain was starting to subside. The acute stabbing pain in his left hand was wearing off, replaced by an unsettling numbness. Pins and needles tingled his arm all the way up to the elbow and he groaned, flexing his fingers, trying to warm up his limb. It was no use; he couldn’t feel a thing, and the effects felt permanent. He lifted his eyes now, rediscovering the other downside to owning the Triforce of Courage.

Looming over him were five of the six holy Sages, staring at him with hopefulness and expectancy in their eyes. Saria, Darunia, Ruto, Impa, and Nabooru had arrived shortly after Dark discovered the Triforce in his body. They were now all crammed into Uula’s tiny one-room cottage, arranged in a semi-circle around the bed, watching intently as Dark adjusted to his new addition.

Dark sighed, shaking his arm in an effort to feel. “It’s dead,” he mumbled. “I can’t feel a thing.”

“Oh Dark,” Uula sadly whispered, putting her hand on his other shoulder. “What’s going to become of you now?”

“Don’t you understand?” grunted Darunia, unfolding his arms and puffing up his chest. “Dark Link has to take Brother Link’s place! He has to go and defeat Ganondorf, or else Hyrule is doomed!”

“Yeah,” Nabooru piped up, grinning broadly. She widened her stance and put up her fists. “You need to get in there and give him a good one-two punch for us!”

Dark looked like a terrified puppy. “B-But I can’t! I can’t possibly hope to defeat Ganondorf!” He lowered his eyes, letting his head hang. “He made me, he knows all of my weaknesses. Going off to fight him would be a march do my death.”

“Don’t say that, Dark,” Saria quietly whispered. She came forward, leaning against his knee and looking up into his downcast eyes. She, like the rest of them, was amazed at how much he looked like Link; the resemblance was uncanny. She smiled reassuringly, resisting the urge to touch his face, to comfort him as she would have the Hero. “You need to believe in yourself.”

“She’s right, Dark Link,” spoke the statuesque Impa. She stood tall above the rest, her arms folded over her broad chest and a confident smile on her lips. “Without the Triforce of Courage, you still took Link’s place in the Shadow Temple and helped rescue me from the darkness. You had the bravery to go up against Ganondorf’s minions and succeeded.” She strode forward, placing a hand on his left shoulder. He winced, as it was slightly tender. “Link chose you because he believes in you. We all believe in you, Dark, and with the Triforce of Courage at your command,” she stood tall again, folding her arms and closing her eyes, “you will be unstoppable.”

Dark looked from Sage to Sage incredulously, watching them all nod in agreement, and then to Uula, who smiled like a proud parent. He could feel the determination welling inside him and he began to sit up taller. His fearful expression hardened slightly into a grin of resolve. “Well,” he spoke, “even if I did have a choice in the matter, I know what I would need to decide.” He nodded to his newfound allies – allies who he’d actually had all along. “I will ride to Ganon’s Tower and defeat him!”

“Dark!” Navi chimed in, flitting around his head. “I’m coming with you. I’ll fight by your side and together we’ll beat Ganondorf!”

“We’ll all be with you,” spoke Impa. “We will lend you our power and help you in any way we can during this battle.”

Dark wasted no time preparing for battle. In a matter of minutes, he was fully clothed in his black tunic and laden down with weaponry, ammunition, and more red potions than he could count. Outside the cottage, Epona stood waiting. Saria had called the mare and she allowed Dark to approach and mount her. He lingered a moment outside the cottage door, taking in the sight of his friends one last time.

“Dark!” Uula called. “Are you sure you don’t want to take any of my special stew with you?”

“Thank you, Uula, but there’s no time,” he spoke. He kept his eyes on her, pursing his lips. “I will return here as soon as I can, I promise.”

He couldn’t bear to watch his mother figure begin to cry, and so he urged Epona out toward Hyrule Field. The Sages and Uula waved him off, watching him ride into the black cloud that surrounded the field.

Ruto, who’d been mostly silent up until this point, grinned mischievously. “He’s kinda cute,” she murmured to no one in particular. “I wonder if he’s single…”

---

Once Epona descended the staircase, she stopped dead in her tracks, snorting in dismay. The field was shrouded in a thick, dark mist. It seemed like a wall of darkness stood between them and the castle.

“Dark, I have a bad feeling about this,” Navi whimpered, alighting on his shoulder. She seemed visibly upset. “I can’t sense anything in this fog.”

“I can,” he grinned, his red eyes flashing. “This is my element, Navi. Leave it to me.”

Dark eased Epona into the mist, keeping his ears up and his eyes wide open. “Ganon’s army is out in full force,” he spoke, his voice no more than a hushed whisper. “I can see them through the mist. They’re pouring out of the Castle Town.”

“What’ll we do?” Navi squeaked, nestling against Dark’s neck.

“We have to stay as quiet as possible. That goes for you, too,” he spoke, patting Epona’s neck. “The other minions can’t see as well as I do in this thick fog. If we stay silent, we can sneak right past them.”

Thus they went forward, sneaking into the fog, closing in on the castle gates. Epona stepped as lightly as she could; Navi held her breath and waited; Dark sat confidently atop his mount, watching the minions pass by within several feet on either side, unaware of their presence. All was going well. He was sure they’d be within the town walls in minutes.

A sudden, strong pang of pain gripped his left arm and Dark drew in a sharp breath, doubling forward and clutching the unruly appendage. Navi squeezed his earlobe to let him know she was there, but she didn’t dare make a sound. The pain was much more intense than before and Dark leaned against Epona’s neck, struggling to stay in control of himself. The numbness was suddenly gone from his left arm and the only thing he could feel was a great stabbing pain, as though someone had caught his hand in a bear trap. That pain was quickly spreading like fire throughout his body, traveling up his arm and settling in his chest. His vision began to blur and for a moment, he feared that he would black out. What would be worse, he quickly asked himself, passing out in the middle of this horde or having to do battle with them all?

Dark threw his head back and let out a wail unlike any they’d ever heard. He released all of his pain, his anger, and his anxiety into one ear-piercing wail, a cry that could be heard at the very edges of the field. Every vile face turned in his direction and Dark, panicking, took hold of Epona’s mane and dug his heels into her sides. She reared, whinnying loud, and charged into the mass of beasts, heading toward the town gates. She trampled several lesser minions but when a wall of Stalfos blocked her path, she came skidding to a halt. Dark drew his black sword, but it was hard to hold in his aching hand. He swung at the skeletal warriors as best he could, but they grabbed him by the legs, pulling him down from his mount in a matter of seconds. Once on the ground, Dark was enveloped by the crowd and swallowed up beneath them. He was quickly overpowered and knew that his only option was to flee. He attempted to melt, to become that shadowy black puddle so that he might more easily sneak away. When he tried, though, the Triforce only gave him more trouble. It resisted his dark magic and burned even hotter, causing him to cry out. As his adversaries raised their weapons, Dark cowered beneath his shield, hoping that if he surrendered he would get away with little harm.

Somewhere close by, he heard a shrill cry, followed by the wails of many wounded minions. The crowd around him broke and a horse came stumbling over, almost trampling Dark beneath its hooves. A strong feminine hand reached down and grabbed him by the shoulder, hauling him up onto the horse’s rear. It took him a moment to get situated on his new mount and when he did, he found himself seated behind the female Gerudo leader!

“None will hamper the progress of the father of the next Gerudo tribe!” she yelled, skillfully maneuvering her horse through the raging battlefield. Dark looked around, astounded to see that the Gerudo tribe was out in full force, battling fiercely with Ganondorf’s army and laying waste to the lot of them. Nabooru must have told them to come, he reasoned. The horse lurched forward and he gave a cry of surprise, clinging to the rider’s hips as they pressed onward toward the Castle Town.

Once inside the gates, there were a few sparse minions standing between him and the tower. Dark dismounted and nodded gratefully up to his newfound friend. “Thanks for the help, I can take it from here!”

The Gerudo winked in return. “When you’re through here, we have a royal welcome waiting for you back at the Fortress.”

Dark laughed nervously, glad that the Gerudo left without assaulting him first. He turned then, setting his sights on Ganon’s tower, looming far above on the horizon. He settled his black shield on his right arm and held his sword with his left. It was hard to stay in control of his own limb, however. It was now numb up to the shoulder and seriously hampered his sword-wielding skills. Despite this, Dark’s rising courage drove him onward. He cut through his enemies with ease as he neared Ganon’s Tower.

“Dark Link!” Navi cried. “We’re almost there, hang on!”

“Don’t worry, Navi,” Dark spoke, ducking under the blade of the last Stalfos before laying him to waste. “We’re going to fight our way to the top. Nothing’s going to stop me!” He stood over the remains of his last adversary, lifting his head and reveling in the chill breeze that blustered over his body. Standing in the shadow of the great tower, his former home, he felt determination swelling within him.

“I will defeat Ganondorf and retake Hyrule tonight!”