The Revival of Shadow Link

32:

"Do you...know where we're going?" she asked me and all I could do was shrug.

"I know where we are," I replied. "As for where we're going...wherever one of the others are? Which is probably somewhere else in this thrice-accursed temple. After all, I found you here."

"Yeah, but...something doesn't feel right."

"What makes you think that?" I asked, not entirely sure if I cared about anything other than finding Vio. 

"I...can't say. I mean, I've never been here before, I couldn't tell you if something was off. But...I feel like there's someone nearby but every time we move, we're getting farther from finding them."

I froze and she noticed.

"What?"

I shook my head. "Maybe you're onto something, I don't know what I'm doing."

"That's what made you stop?"

I didn't say anything. I closed my eyes and tried to take deep breaths-something Vio was struggling to do at the same time-needing to calm down and figure out if I was crazy.

I took a step forward and instantly the space between us seemed to stretch longer, and every step I took after that seemed to put me farther away from him. And then the tree branches were aflame, the air thick with smoke that must have been suffocating him while crimson flames wrapped around him, I couldn't get any closer to him, why couldn't I get closer, I just wanted to be with him, why couldn't I be with him? I didn't care that he was probably dying in the fire if death got me closer to someone who could take me away from torture and isolation, then I'd embrace death and my Vio, and I wouldn't have to worry about being apart from him.

"Shadow, you're shaking, what's wrong?"

It hurts like hell, but it doesn't matter because I find a bit of relief in the amount of pain, in the idea of being away from everything, I could take the pain, just let me...

"I'm fine," I said.

"The staircase...go to the staircase..."

"Did you hear that?" I asked her.

"Hear what...?"

I should have just said nothing, but instead, I said "The voice."

"The voice, or a new  voice?"

"A new one."

She pursed her lips, probably not knowing how to react, I didn't know how to react either. 

"What did it say?"

"Something about the staircase...it didn't sound threatening, but..."

"Do you know where any staircases are?"

"There's a stairwell I think it's talking about."

"...Then we should find it...we don't have any other ideas, do we?"

I shook my head. "Another darn voice."

"Hearing voices is really common in Hyrule," she said as if it was comforting.

"Oh, really?"

"I hear voices."

I didn't hear her right, right? There was no possible way, Her Highness Princess Zelda of Hyrule--who should have the best health, physical and mental, in all of Hyrule heard voices in her head.

"I'm...sorry, I think I misheard you."

"I said I hear voices," she said, smiling gently. "I think...a lot of people hear voices, and the voices say different things. Sometimes it's because people are trying to communicate with you, and...well, I was always told my voices were the past rulers of Hyrule, or important people who were once allies and are now dead, I was told it'd help give me the wisdom to be a ruler. I've...never told anyone outside of the castle."

"...what do they say?"

"One likes to remind me not to jump off cliffs again--long story, don't ask--but my favorite thing they have ever said is 'Wow, every girl in Hyrule's name ends with an a.' And then they continued to list names that ended with a, and most of them weren't even girl names before continuing and saying, 'every name with an a is now feminine.' And for some reason, I found that entertaining."

She looked at me then giggled, possibly because now every time a name had an a, she thought of that, and my name had an a. Nothing better than an inside joke with those voices in your head.

"...Did you make this up?" I asked, noting that my tone was hostile, I hadn't meant to be angry, had I? "Did you lie about this and make it up on the spot to make me feel better?"

"I did about my favorite thing they've said, it's actually 'it's not illegal if you don't get caught,'" she said and gave me a smile. "I know how you get all offended when people try to show you any empathy."

"I'm offended because it's not empathy, it's pity."

"No, it's sympathy. Hey, did you hear that?"

I had; one of the others was nearby, the staircase didn't matter anymore, we had both heard a groan from one of the doors. And I think we both realized there were four doors in front of us and four people we were searching for.

And we both stopped. 

The groan had come from the closest door, and it only made sense to go into that door and go help whichever one was in there, because they sounded like they were in pain. I recognized that one of the doors would take me to the staircase I knew the voice was directing me to, but I hoped that maybe Vio would be behind that door.

Zelda was the one who opened it and I followed after her. The door closed by itself behind us, and I had a sickening feeling we weren't gonna be exiting out of it for a while.