Seven Years Part Seven

Well, this is a long section, and much darker in many ways. I am VERY intrested to get peoples thoughts. Um, this section does get both violent, bloody, and a few other things though, so be forwarned. Have fun!

It was only a half day’s walk to Lon Lon Ranch if one kept up a quick pace, but Shiek had to get the cave ready to be unoccupied for several days, just in case she experienced unexpected delays. She also had to ready enough food to keep her for at least one meal given that Draq and Malon might not want her to hang around. After finishing the preparations, Shiek arranged her normal outdoor clothes, brought up some low level magical shields to finish off her disguise, and headed out the door.

Taking a deep breath of the afternoon air, Shiek glanced at the sky and figured that Draq had a good two hour start on her. She didn’t really want to overtake him, and so she set a moderate pace, hoping to reach the ranch shortly after nightfall. But her calculations had not taken a few key events into mind.

At around five o’clock Shiek sat down for a quick diner. The ranch was just in sight from where she sat, but Shiek figured it was still a few hours away. Distances could be deceiving on the open flat parts of Hyrule Plains, and she knew a person could often see their destination well before it was close. Shiek was halfway done with the small loaf of bread she had been eating when she felt a tingle run down her spine. It was some sixth sense screaming at her to run and hide. Shiek knew that to ignore such a feeling could result in disaster if ignored, whereas the temporary embarrassment of hiding for no reason could be laughed off later. There wasn’t much in the way of cover on Hyrule Plain, but Shiek had been trained by the greatest master of quick disappearing Hyrule had ever know: her own beloved Impa. Darting over to a large nearby rock, she pushed herself against it near the ground on the shadow side. Her eyes darted around the field to see if she could locate the source of her alarm. She was just about to write it off as a false alarm when she glimpsed the dark figure on horseback. It was him.

The large black stallion was a heavy war-charger. Mettle armor gleamed on its body in the setting sun. the horse and its rider were on a path indicating they had just left Lon Lon Ranch and were on their way to Greudo Valley. The large, powerful shape of the rider was unmistakable, and as a shaft of evening sunlight illuminated him Shiek saw again the face that had haunted so many of her nightmares. The long red hair waved behind him as he galloped closer, his proud, sharp, Greudo features twisted in an evil grin. As he neared the rock something seemed to catch his sharp brown eyes. The thick, muscular, arms hauled back the reigns, causing his horse to paw the air with front legs for a moment. In one dept, agile movement the rider leapt to the ground. Shiek didn’t dare to breath. There, not ten yards away, stood Gannondorf, The Great King of Evil, in all his power.

Gannondorf was dressed as he always was; brown heavy leather and fur lined clothes, with long matching cape. The powerful frame walked towards the hiding Shiek with purpose driven steps, and she felt her heart nearly freeze. But suddenly the warlord stopped.
He doesn’t see me! she thought, hope rising within her. It stopped rising, and then died completely, as her nemesis bent over to pick something off the ground. She nearly groaned out loud when she saw the powerful magus stand, holding a piece of bread!

You stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid, idiot, was the first thing that popped into Shiek’s mind, followed by more colorful, yet less charitable, names for herself. Sharp brown eyes roamed around as Gannondorf sought to catch a glimpse of who might have left the crust. He sniffed the bread and growled something under his breath. Craning his neck to scan the horizon, he crushed the bread to powder in his strong grip. Shiek’s eyes narrowed as thin as possible, wanting to close but unable to tear away from the magus in front of her. She felt her heart race, and it was all she could do to keep from shaking. She knew Gannondorf had magical power beyond her reckoning, but as she watched his thick, strong, frame take a few long strides around his horse she was sure he could kill her with brute strength alone.

“I know you’re still here!”
She had been forced to talk to the Greudo king many years ago before his rebellion, and his growling snarl of a voice had not changed a bit.
“Your bread isn’t old yet, you must be here. Show yourself NOW!”
Shiek felt an odd feeling grip her limbs. It took all her willpower to keep from obeying the order. Gannondorf had found a way to magically make his commands virtually impossible to resist.
“Come out now, or know my wrath!”
Shiek closed her eyes, clinched her fists, and tried to sink into the ground. Gannondorf paused for a second, but he was obviously losing patience.
“Fine… my only regret is that I do not have time to stay for your torment.” Gannondorf raised a massive fist above his head and brought it smashing to the ground with a sharp cry. He swung into the saddle, but Shiek’s attention was drawl away by an odd scratching sound coming from the ground near where Gannondorf had struck. The earth seemed to boil as four Skultoids clawed their way to the surface. The evil wizard threw what was left of the crust at their feet.
“Find him. Make him suffer greatly before he dies.” With that grim command, Gannondorf galloped at a fast pace towards Greudo Valley.

The four skeletons made a weird chattering sound as they gathered around the small piece of bread. They slowly began to circle out from it, as though they meant to carefully scour every inch of the field. Shiek wondered what the best course of action might be. It was very possible she could outrun the four undead, but she didn’t like the idea of four skeletons roaming Hyrule Plain in search of her. It would be better to end it now she thought, and besides, it will make up for my last goof with a Skultiod.

Gannondorf obviously hadn’t expected much of a fight. He had raised four Skultiods, but they were not the large, heavily armed, monsters that guarded the Temples. These were quickly raised, unarmed, skeletons, and Shiek was willing to bet they possessed little to no actual combat knowledge. She waited until the four skeletons drew closer, bracing herself for a spring. When they drew within rang, she launched herself at the lead skeleton. The flying kick connected squarely with its chest, sending it flying backwards. It clattered to the ground, and the remaining Skultiods let out a shrieking howl of rage. They began to surround her, circling slowly as they moved in for the kill. Shiek knew she had to strike quickly. If the three foes moved in as one she would be unable to overcome them. Stepping quickly to intercept one of the circling minions, she delivered a low leg sweep, knocking it to the ground. The skeleton flipped, and fell with a clatter. Shiek quickly drove her heal into the fallen Skultiod’s head, breaking it with a sickening crunch. There was no time to rejoice in the kill though, as the Skultiod she had incapitated first was rising back to its feet. Shiek jumped it before it had a chance to regroup with the others. She delivered two quick left jabs followed by a strong right hook that knocked the head clear off the skeleton. It stumbled backwards, then regained its balance, headless of the fact that it no longer had a skull. Shiek gave it a powerful roundhouse kick to the lower ribcage, which laid it out… this time for good.

Shiek whirled back to face the remaining opponents, at exactly the wrong time; she turned directly into a vicious punch. The bone fist connected squarely with her left cheekbone. The force of the blow sent her staggering backwards, totally off-balance. She felt her feet slip out from under her as stumbled backwards, and sat down hard. The two skeletons rushed her, eager to finish off the job while their opponent was down. Shiek reacted fast, rolling backwards into a headstand. Spinning on her hands, Shiek’s legs struck out like a windmill. One of the undead retreated in time, falling back to avoid the powerful kick. The other was not as quick, and was rewarded by Shiek’s leg crashing into its side. The skeleton fell to the ground like a broken doll. Shiek pushed up with arms, launching herself to her feet. Breathing hard, Shiek took up a fighting stance across from the last Skultiod. The Skultiod hesitated slightly, then savagely rushed her. Reacting quickly, Shiek brought up her knee while throwing out her arms. She caught the skeleton’s shoulders with her hands, at the same time planting her knee on its pelvis and using its momentum to roll backwards. When she lay on her back , Shiek’s limbs shot straight, using the Skultiod’s momentum to send it flipping through the air. It slammed into the rock she had been hiding by with a bone snapping crunch. It clatter to the ground and lay still.

Shiek stood for a moment in the wreckage of the four Skultiods. None of them rose up, so Shiek sank cross-legged to regain her breath. As she took in weary and ragged breaths, Sheik let her tongue run over her dry lips. She started in surprise at the sweet taste of blood. Lifting a hand to her face, she gently probed to feel the injury. A flash of pain confirmed her worst fears. The blow she had taken had reopened her cut, and blood was seeping slowly, but freely, from the wound. Cursing under her breath, Shiek considered her options. She could try to reach Scela at the Hylia Lake Laboratory, but that would mean crossing the entirety of Hyrule Plain, a daunting enough trip even without the knowledge that Gannondorf was running around. In the end she decided to continue on to Lon Lon Ranch. It was nearby, and she figured she would be able to find some medicine there. Her only concern was wondering why exactly Gannondorf had been riding from the direction of the ranch when she met him. Draq was there wasn’t he? She hoped he was alright.

I was around midnight when Sheik stumbled into the ranch. She paused to look around in the gleaming moonlight. She had only been to Lon Lon twice, and both times had been years ago, when her father was still alive and she was just a princess longing for a pony. Talon had been running the ranch then, but the hired man, called Indigo, had since taken over the place. It was widely rumored that way Indigo had achieved the hostile property grab was his fierce loyalty to Gannondorf. Shiek had never actually met him, but still remembered the feeling of revulsion that had choked her when she saw one of those times so many years ago.

As she stumbled further into the darkened ranch, Shiek wondered if anyone was still awake. The ranch house was dark, but she noticed a glow coming from under the barn door. She silently slipped in, praying to all three goddesses that she wasn’t about to stumble onto Draq and Malon together. Draq was nowhere to be seen in the barn, but there, standing with her back to the door and gently rubbing a horse’s head, was Malon. She was humming an odd little tune in a sad voice, and Shiek could tell from the weary slump of Malon’s thin shoulders that the poor ranch girl was exhausted. Finishing with the horse, she turned around and saw Shiek standing in the doorway. Giving a startled cry, Malon snatched up a pitchfork that was leaning against the stall she stood by.
“If you even think about stealing a horse, I’ll stick you good!” she challenged, her tired blue eyes flaring up with a fire that matched her flaming fair.

Sheik remember that she was still in costume, and Malon would have good reason to believe that she was here with ill-intent. Raising her hands in a gesture of innocence, Shiek took a cautious step into the barn.
“It’s ok, Malon,” she said, trying to make her voice soothing, while retaining masculinity, “I’m a good friend of Draq… I think you know him,” on several levels, she added mentally.
“Maybe he has mentioned me, my name is Shiek.”

To her surprise, Malon giggled and laid her pitchfork back against the stall.
“You’re exactly like he said you’d be; still, overdramatic, but kind.”
“Draq said that? Wait, how’d you know all that about me from one sentence?”
“Oh please,” the red hair tossed saucily, “It’s a woman’s intuition… you wouldn’t understand.”
“I see…” replied Shiek, trying to sound as skeptical as Toran or Draq did when she offered this as her reasoning. She was glad to find Draq hadn’t blown her cover.
“So, Draq said I’d be coming?”
“Oh yes,” Malon replied, picking up a bucket, “but he did leave out how cute you are… even with your face covered.”
Shiek felt a nervous quirk form in her stomach. She used a bit of magic to make her disguise more convincing, and she thought it was fairly sound, but this was the first time a girl had actually hit on her. She was thrown completely off balance.

“I, um, well, that is to say…”
Malon laughed at the affect she was creating. Smiling with mock innocence, the red-haired beauty stepped closer.
“Oh come now Shiek… surely a cutie like you hears that from all the girls.”
“Actually, I don’t hang around girls much…” Shiek stammered nervously, backing into the wall as Malon advanced well within her personal space. At this, Malon’s shoulder slumped, and she raised a weary eyebrow.
“So you mean you’re gay…”
“Um, yes!” A straight woman disguised as a man is a gay man, right?
“Figures,” she sighed, brushing past Shiek into the yard, “Well, if you ever decide to go straight, let me know first, ok?”
Well, she IS darn good looking… wait, what am I thinking? I REALLY need to stop dressing like a guy…

Running after Malon, Shiek caught up with her in the empty corral, staring wistfully at the full moon.
“Hey, Malon, I really need to talk to Draq. Where is he at?”
Malon sighed and shrugged.
“I have no idea… he never talks about his life. In fact, he doesn’t talk much at all.”
Shiek nodded. She knew all about that.
“He’s the same way with the team, Malon. He just keeps to himself a lot. I had thought he always came here in his free time though.”
Malon gave a small smile and shook her head.
“Nah. He comes to hang out sometimes, mostly to buy milk for those fairy kids. I mostly talk, he mostly acts like he listens, then we have sex, and then I wake up alone. Great relationship, huh?”
Shiek felt a twinge of pain for Malon, but at the same time had heard enough about her reputation to know she might just be on the receiving end of what she had done for years. However, she had to admit that Malon, though obviously a flirt, wasn’t exactly striking her like the rumors had led her to believe.

“Fairy kids?” She asked, hoping to get a lead of Draq’s location.
“Yeah… the Kohria forest children out by the Lost Woods? I know he acts like he doesn’t care about anybody or anything, but he loves those Kohria with all his heart. He takes them milk, plays with them, and keeps all the monsters they can’t beat out of the forest. He really is a softy under it all…” Malon sank to her knee and sat on her heals. Folding her hands in her lap, she gazed up at the moon with her large blue eyes. Shiek felt a swell of pity for the young woman. She sat down beside the wistful ranch girl and gently let a comforting arm slide over her slooping shoulders.
“I’m sorry these have to be such rough times Malon, but if it helps, I know he cares a lot for you.”
Malon gave a sniff and a slight mirthless laugh.
“Please Shiek… I might come across as a little spacey and a flirt, but I know Draq would NEVER tell anyone that.”
“Well, he didn’t exactly say it, but he flared up like I have never seen to defend you.”
Malon’s sad blue eyes took on a gleam of hope.
“He did? What happened?”
“Well, you got called a name-”
“Let me guess,” said Malon, sighing again, “slut…”
“Whore actually," said Shiek, leaving out that she was the person, "and Draq nearly used his axe.”

Malon swooned happily, falling back onto the long grass.
He really is wonderful…” she sighed, bliss written plainly on her tired face. Propping herself up on her elbows, Malon sobered a bit.
“I guess I am one though… no sense in denying it.”
Shiek was not sure how to respond. She was starting to like Malon, but had spent enough time around the young men of Castle Town and the village to know Malon’s assessment of herself was probably true.
“Well, if you’re worried about that, maybe you should back off the guys a little, you know?” she offered after some thought. The same tired expression flitted over Malon’s face.
“Maybe… it’s just that I get so lonely now that dad is gone.”
“And Indigo?”
Malon shivered slightly, an odd look coming into her eyes. Shiek instantly read the reaction that a male might have missed.
“He doesn’t…” her voice trailed off, uncertain of what exactly to say.
“Oh no, not like that… Indigo only gets pleasure out of beating things it seems.”
“Oh…” again Sheik was at a loss for words. Malon was the first female company her own age she had experienced in years, and the ranch girl was turning out quite different then what she had expected.

If Indigo is hitting her I should do SOMETHING, she thought, looking over at the pretty girl beside her.
“Why don’t you come live with us, Malon? You wouldn’t have to fight, just get away from this place, you know?”
Malon smiled and shook her head.
“Thanks, but I can’t leave. If I weren’t here, Indigo would end up killed the weaker horses. He knows how to train rough battle charges as well as anyone, but he thinks the smaller horses are worthless and would, at best, neglect them. I have to be here for them,” she sat up straighter, hugging her knees to her chest.
“It would be so wonderful to move in with you guys though…” she sighed, resting her chin on her knees, “you probably think me silly for staying.”
Shiek gave a thoughtful look at her, then shook her head.
“Actually, it makes a lot of sense. I imagine it’s a lot like Draq and those kids. Both of you have hearts for those who can’t help themselves.”
“Maybe…” Malon said, more to herself then Shiek.
“Well, I should get to bed… you want to hold up in the barn?”

Shiek wanted to find Draq, but also figured it was too late for the long trek over to the Lost Woods. Malon and Shiek walked in silence over to the barn. It was not the horse stables that Malon led her to, but a small loft at the back of the ranch.
“This is where we keep the hay for the cows. Don’t worry, Indigo never comes up here; feeding the cows is my job…” Malon pushed open the door and gestured at a large pile of hay in the corner.
“It’s quite comfortable… of course, more so if you have a nice, soft, pillow,” a playful smile crossed the pretty lips.
“Thanks for the offer Malon, but like I said, women aren’t really my style…”
The young woman shrugged, and left, humming the same odd tune.

After the door closed, Shiek dropped her low-level magic shields, and began to unwind her headgear. Gannondorf could monitor magic use in Hyrule, having some kind of ability to sense all mystic power around him. This meant Shiek had to keep the magic aiding in her disguise at a nearly non-existent level. She mainly used magic to change her eye color and give her upper body a flatter appearance. She pulled off her turban, but rather then feeling the veil fall away, Shiek found it clinging to her face. Wincing, she gingerly touched the cloth and felt it stiff and board like. It was as she had feared: the blood had dried, causing the cloth to stick. Pulling it away would be very painful, and probably reopen the cut. Gritting her teeth, Shiek gave the cloth a quick tug. It pulled away, and a stab of pain burned through her. After washing out the wound with some more of Scela’s water, Shiek nestled down into the hay. It was a matter of seconds before she was asleep.

Shiek’s military life had made her accustom to rising early... but apparently Malon woke earlier.