by N Felts
the juncture occasionally dripping upward. Taking the winding path he has yet to traverse, Mai finally breaks the silence.
“What’s on your mind, sunshine?” She asks, Rift’s spaced-out visage becoming easier and easier to recognize.
“Are all the goddesses pretty?” He asks, surprising himself with his boldness, emphasizing the second word of the question.
“That’s sweet,” Mai blushes, mildly susceptible to flattery. “In their own way, I suppose so.”
“Could they change the way they look if they wanted to?”
“Of course, but honestly, we all settled on our appearances eons ago. It’s so rare anyone sees us but each other. Kind of defeats the purpose,” she admits, not considering such things for ages.
“Sorry, I don’t know where that came from,” Rift apologizes, nervously scratching at his neck.
“Don’t be,” Mai comforts with a chuckle. “It’s been so long. I’ve missed just talking like this from time to time. All this chatter probably gets on your nerves, huh?”
“No, it’s not that,” Rift retorts more seriously. “I’ve just never had anyone to talk to.”
“I like you, Rift,” Mai asserts after a moment. “You just say what you’re feeling.”
“Th-thanks,” he mumbles with a blush, finally reaching the end of the path. A circular platform overlooks the first room of the entire temple. The very last of the water trickles upward and is slurped into the ceiling the moment he enters the chamber, the red sand below glistening as it dries. Unsure what the purpose of such a platform could be, the boy continues forward to get a better look at the area below. Suddenly, a third glyph reveals itself beneath him, the elaborate pattern seeming to burn itself into the limestone permanently just as the others did. The entire temple shakes far more violently, the earthquake nearly throwing Rift from his lofty position. Almost seeming bizarre considering the events up until now, a steady rainfall commences, all the water returning to the ground from which it first migrated. Confused by the seemingly pointless event, the boy lines up a convenient spot for a portal just inside the massive hallway far below. Landing back at square one, he squints down the long hallway, not at all looking forward to the potential hardships before him. The long walk through the mighty gorge is twice as bad as the first time, the rain causing a shallow, but powerful current to flow just above his ankles, proceeding gradually down into the first room.
“Look!” Mai exclaims as they finally reach the dome room once again. Stretching down from the ceiling, a pillar, similar to the one holding the chest, hangs just above the treasure. Most importantly of all, the surface is impeccably smooth. With a well-earned smile, Rift lines up his palm with the pillar, dropping right in front of the chest a moment later. Inside he finds a pair of greaves, identical to his gauntlets in color and style. Quickly strapping them on, he finds they are worn like boots, protecting his feet as well as his shins all the way up to the knees. His baggy, black pants now loosely hang about his thighs before tightly conforming to his leg below the knee inside the boots. Discarding his battered sandals without a care, his heart sinks when he sees Link’s silhouette standing in the long hall, his old shoes drifting past the Hylian atop the rushing stream. Somewhere far away, a faint rumbling sounds, and combined with the bizarre storm, it resembles thunder.
“How?” Mai starts, stopping mid-breath once she gets a closer look at the approaching shadow. Drawing his sword, but leaving his shield upon his back, the only features that becomes clearer as he enters the light are his red eyes. The storm becomes even more intense, the downpour shrouding the entire dome as more shifting stone rumbles in the distance. Wading through the shallow water, the Link imposter continues along a direct path in Rift’s direction, his strait blade tracing through the water alongside him.
“Who are you?” Rift asks, feeling significantly tougher in his new armor, but still mildly worried what threat this new challenger poses. Without a word, the shadow of Link draws closer, his slow, purposeful steps closing the distance faster than the boy would prefer.
“I’ve seen this one before,” Mai reveals, her voice all but drowned in dread. “He’s a manifestation of the negative emotions suppressed by a hero,” she explains, noting Dark Link’s identical size and stature compared to the Hylian hero. A translucent sort of black from head to toe, his movements are difficult to discern, worse so in the heavy rain. “We shouldn’t fight him. His presence is much stronger than when I last saw him.”
“You have any other ideas?” Rift asks, leaping backward off the pedestal as the shadow reaches an undesirable proximity. Waiting to see which side his antagonist appears on, he is far from prepared when Mai shouts a warning.
“Left!” She calls as the dark warrior springs from the ground behind Rift with a blinding attack. Utilizing the water as a type of portal himself, the shadow has free reign to move throughout the room now that the rain has thoroughly pooled upon the ground. Able to dodge the initial swing, Mai is unable to utter a syllable before the next strike approaches. A heavy clang throws the boy back a step, his arm tossed aside from the force of the blow. Marching directly at him, Dark Link’s enigmatic style baffles both Rift and Mai. Matching the boy’s stance, the shadow holds his blade angled down just in front of his lead leg. His left hand hangs open just beneath his chin, and he never for an instant pauses in his relentless push forward. Already within striking distance once again, Rift doesn’t know how to begin the fight.
“Sssit! Hah! Hyaaat!” The demon bellows, mimicking Link’s battle cries exactly, though his voice is much deeper and distorted. His every slash is a two-handed swing across his frame before he releases the handle with his lead hand, retracing the swing in the opposite direction so quickly, it almost seems the sword never moved from the initial wind up. His shouts seem to echo a single time with each assault, every seemingly individual strike actually two in such rapid succession, the untrained eye couldn’t perceive such a technique. Rift finds himself reeling as Mai’s warnings consistently come too late. With exceptionally masterful skill and flair, Dark Link knocks the boy back another step before slapping each gauntlet aside with the side of his blade, then spinning into a devastating snap kick to the chest. Skipping off the surface of the watery floor, Rift rolls to all fours as he recoils, scowling at the steadily approaching shadow through angry eyes.
“I’m telling you we’ve got to get out of here!” Mai pleads, knowing the boy is outmatched. Shaking off the minor setback, Rift quickly grows obsessed with deciphering the mysterious entity’s style, and more importantly, finding a weakness. Resuming his stance, he remains still, carefully watching his opponent’s sword hand as it skillfully twirls the blade a single time during his approach.
“He’s not going to just let us leave,” Rift declares, his tone leveling as he hones his focus. Knowing the boy is waiting for him to make the first move, Dark Link advances to his ideal range before stopping in his tracks. Both fighters remain still as statues while the rain beats down on them relentlessly. Now much closer than before, another series of thunderclaps sound overhead, the sound of falling rocks now unmistakable. A cold chill quakes down Rift’s spine, but Mai’s comforting touch seems to warm his body from the inside out. A pair of hands wrap around his chest as she speaks calmly into his hear.
“Use your greaves. Strike high and low. If you can get him on the defensive, he might give you an opening,” she strategizes, unsure if even the most unorthodox attack would catch the swordsman off guard. With a battle cry of his own, Rift lunges forward with a predictable left cross. Batting the strike aside with ease, Dark Link reveals the true source of his skill to be his footwork as he eludes the sweeping leg kick that follows. His boots move through the shallow water as if it doesn’t affect him, and by always obtaining his favored range and balance, deflecting the boy’s rapid attacks is like shooing away an exhausted fly. The relentless barrage of punches and kicks are batted aside with peerle
ss efficiency, the shadow’s ability to manipulate a blade proving better than even Link’s. Finally backing his foe to the wall, Rift feigns a punch, thrusting his open hand forward instead.
“Now!” He commands as Dark Link prepares to counter. Dropping through the floor and out of sight, the boy throws the same spinning back-kick he was hit with earlier as he soars out of the wall behind his adversary. Waiting for the satisfying impact, he is confused when his foot collides with nothing but water droplets, a small amount of weight pressing down on his extended leg. Barely able to maintain his balance on one foot, Rift is dumbfounded to find his foe standing atop his outstretched leg, staring down at him with a pair of disappointed red eyes.
“Move!” Mai pleads, but the warning falls on deaf ears. Too shocked to offer a physical response, the boy stands frozen in place until a dark boot connects with his chin. Pushing off of his extended leg, Dark Link forces Rift’s body to compensate for the weight shift, backflip-kicking him into the wall he had just teleported through. Landing flat on his face, the boy feels as if he is drowning at first, the drive knocked from his body temporarily as he lies on the cold