Among the Ashes Chapter 79

When you were standing in the wake of devastation
When you were waiting on the edge of the unknown
With the cataclysm raining down
Insides crying save me now
You were there impossibly alone

Do you feel cold and lost in desperation
You build up hope, but failure's all you've known
Remember all the sadness and frustration
And let it go, let it go

And in the burst of light that blinded every angel
As if the sky had blown the heavens into stars
You felt the gravity of tempered grace
Falling into empty space
No one there to catch you in their arms

Do you feel cold and lost in desperation
You build up hope, but failure's all you've known
Remember all the sadness and frustration
And let it go, let it go
~Linkin Park "Iridescent"

Chapter 79
Break in the Clouds


A gust of wind blew across the mountainside lake, churning up small, rough waves across the surface. The cold, grey water crept up the rough, pebbled shore. It lapped at the weather-worn rocks, slowly eating away at their already craggy, roughly-hewn faces.

With a quiet rush, a particularly heavy wave heaved its way up the shore, licking against the toes of Manasa's boot. She shivered from the sudden, beckoning touch of cold, and shifted her feet to a higher ridge on the waterside boulder.

In a final attempt, the waves splashed up against the rock, catching a small, icy spray against her cheek before slinking back down the shore into the blackened depths of the lake.

Manasa's eyes roved over the cold, glassy surface of the lake to the darkened shadows of the forest beyond. Thick flakes of snow continued to rain down over the grey-lit landscape, covering the fading remnants of the autumn colors with a blanket of dead white.

She didn't want to raise her eyes any further to the snow-crested mountains beyond the opposite shore. Even then, she couldn't escape their reflection on the water.

The image faded in and out of view with the chopping of the waves, like something out of a dream. She knew each and every peak, every ridge, every deep-rooted vein in the snow.

How many times had she seen the backside of this very mountain range on her way back home to the Fortress after an assignment? Carrying back food and supplies to feed and indulge the appetites of the ravenous beasts that she had once considered the only family she had left.

She stared up at the familiar mountains, their peaks rising up so high that they vanished into the foggy haze of the storm clouds above.

Her eyes stung against each bone-chilling lash of the wind. It hurt too much to cry. To move. To think.

She only knew she hated them.

Every last one of them.

Her skin prickled with each flake of snow that landed on her bare shoulders and she drew her arms more tightly around herself. Her fingers clawed and she dug her nails into her skin, glaring up at the hated mountains.

She was never supposed to see them again. He'd promised her….

Manasa gritted her teeth and let out a hot puff of breath into the frozen air. Her heart gave a lurching squeeze of guilt.

She had promised him.

And yet, here she sat. With the shadow of the mountain looming over her once more. Sitting alone at the edge of the black water, watching the waves roll in and out, reaching for her. Pulling towards the darkness.

She closed her eyes and huddled up tighter, lost to the silence of the snow. Numbed beyond the touch of the cold.

A thin coating of snow slowly collecting over her, covering her in the same cold, dead blanket of white as the world around her. Fading.

Then the hard, biting grit of boots crunching over wet gravel behind her stirred her to life. She turned just in time to see the shadow of a familiar figure step up beside her.

"Here," Link said quietly. He slung his cloak off and laid it across Manasa's shoulders.

The heavy fabric weighed down on her thin figure, melting away the snow.

She shivered violently and gripped at the edges of the cloak, but her rigid, red-raw fingers couldn't manage it.

Without a word, Link pulled the cloak more securely around her and lifted the hood to shield her from the wind.

She looked like a lost child, huddled and hiding under the shadow of the hood in a cloak far too big for her size. It drooped from her shoulders and hung down so long on her that the hem dragged through the water on the rocky shore.

Link paused for a moment, just looking at her, then pulled something from his pack.

"Here." He crouched down beside her and held out a bottle of clear liquid, frosted from the snow. "Drink this."

She shook her head and drew herself in tighter, refusing to look him in the eyes.

"It's fairy water," he coaxed. "It will help."

Manasa didn't move.

"Come on." Link leaned in a little closer, holding the rim close to her mouth. "Manasa, you're hurt. You need it."

"I'm fine," she whispered, her voice so dead and flat she barely recognized it herself.

"No, you're not."

"Don't tell me what I am!" she snapped, looking up with sudden fury in her bloodshot eyes.

Link stared at her in unflinching silence, patiently holding the bottle of fairy water before her until her face cracked and she started to cry.

"Here." Link tried again. "Please?"

"I don't deserve it," she sobbed, choking on her own words. "I promised him – it should have been me!"

She gasped and took in a shuddering breath, then huddled back up under the cloak with her eyes locked on the ground.

Link paused a long moment. He sat absolutely still, didn't make a sound. He barely even seemed to breathe.

Manasa shifted uncomfortably, but kept her gaze fixed in the distance.

She sat, and he sat. And she waited.

Until she could feel the frustration boiling up inside of her with such fury she had to knot her fists and clench her nails into the cloak to keep herself from bursting.

She wanted to scream. She wanted him to scream. Just talk – do something.

What was the silence all about? It was worse than torture.

What was he doing? Why were they just sitting here?

Blood pumped through her veins and the tears in her eyes turned hot.

Finally, she lifted her head and let out a growl.

"What?"

Link stared back at her with the same untouchable calm in his eyes that made her want to throw something at him and cringe away in shame at the same time.

"You ready to go help him or do you want to stay here?" Link asked.

Manasa perked up slightly. "Go – we're going?"

She stopped and looked back through the trees to where the rest of the rogue band of Sentei had gathered to regroup and take care of their wounded.

Link just nodded and sloshed the bottle of fairy water a little, extending it to her.

Manasa reached for it tentatively.

"What about you?" She sniffed and wiped the tears from her sore, red cheeks. "You… you got burned."

"What? Oh, that?" Link brushed it off. "Don't worry, I already downed a whole bottle myself." He clicked his fingers against the glass of the bottle. "And I had someone patch me up."

He twisted his back a little and bit back a wince from the strain.

"Good as new." He forced a smile.

Manasa looked from his face to the thick bandages visible through the singed hole in his tunic.

"Now it's your turn," Link prompted, readjusting his position to hide the wound.

She hesitated, then took a sip of the fairy water. The cool liquid slid down her throat, leaving a strangely warm sensation in her stomach. She sighed and licked her lips a little, then took a deep draught, letting the warmth of the fairy water's healing power spread out through her veins to the very tips of her fingers and her toes.

Link smiled as she gulped it down, not stopping until she had drained the entire bottle.

Manasa let out a deep breath followed by a small belch that she only just managed to catch in the back of her throat.

Her eyes widened and her cheeks turned even redder than they had been from the cold.

"Sorry." She looked at Link sheepishly.

But Link just let out a quiet laugh. "No need to apologize. Glad you enjoyed it."

Manasa smiled a little then tipped her head down and handed him back the bottle.

Link tucked it away, still looking Manasa over carefully. "Feel any better?"

She nodded, wiping her eyes again.

"All right." Link stood up straight. "Let's go talk to – "

"Hey, Link!" Terak poked his head out of the trees and shouted. "Roy just woke up and he's… a little upset. You'd better get over here!"

"Oh, great," Link muttered. "Okay, we're coming!"

Manasa kept close to him as they hurried over the pebble-strewn beach and up under the canopy of snow-covered trees right into the thick of the gathering.

Sentei and wyverns covered every inch of ground between the trees, talking, resting, treating wounds or having wounds treated.

They all seemed to look up as Manasa walked past. She dropped her head and kept behind Link's shoulder, using him as a shield as they walked through the crowd.

"So." Terak gave her a warm grin that lit up his wide, already rosy-red cheeks. "How you feeling, Manko?"

Manasa looked up at Terak in sudden shock.

"Manasa," Link corrected.

"Hm?" Terak furrowed his wide brow in confusion. "Oh, no, I – "

"It means 'little one' in Nali, er, Sentei language," Manasa half-whispered in explanation. "Basically."

Terak smiled even more broadly, and Manasa dropped her eyes.

"Oy, Link!" Jag pushed through the crowd, his face dark with frustration. "You better come talk some sense into your friend here before I knock it into his face!"

"Link!" Roy shoved his way roughly past Jag and stormed forward. "She wasn't there!" He grabbed Link by the collar, fuming, though his knees wobbled so badly he didn't look like he should even be standing.

"I know," Link replied, putting his hand on Roy's shoulder. "But we're going to – "

Roy let out a bellow of pain and staggered back so violently he toppled into the snow.

"Roy?" Link knelt down beside him but Roy only screamed louder and cringed away.

"Will you keep it down?" Jag snapped, pointing back in the direction of the Black Fang Fortress. "We're trying to keep a low profile here!"

Roy let out an obscenity between growls of pain. "Get it away!"

Link's eyes flashed with understanding and he quickly backed up. Roy's breathing eased with every step he took.

"Sorry." Link continued his retreat.

"What?" Jag asked. "What is it?"

Link pulled the silver chain around his neck up just enough to show the tip of the Dragon's Bane Emblem around his neck.

Jag's jaw dropped sheepishly. "Ohhh…."

Roy pushed himself up uneasily against the trunk of a tree, still glowering and short of breath. "That thing… What is that thing? Vale – " he paused and tried to balance himself, but his knees buckled almost instantly.

"Whoa, there." Terak teleported to Roy's side and hefted him up, holding him steady. "You've been through a lot today, buddy."

"Yeah, I know." Roy winced and put a hand to his head, though he didn't fight Terak's grip.

"Here." Link pulled his third bottle of fairy water out of his pack and handed it to Manasa. "Pass this to him?"

"Mhmm." She took the bottle and started towards Roy, but stopped short.

Roy stood gaping at her, eyes widened as the color drained from his face.

Manasa stared back for a moment, seeming to shrink even smaller under Link's borrowed cloak. She could only meet Roy's stunned gaze for a moment before dropping her own.

"Here." She rushed forward and shoved the bottle into his hand then turned in retreat.

Roy stood frozen, barely cohesive enough to grip his hand around the neck of the bottle.

Jag glanced back and forth between Roy's slack-jawed stupor to Manasa hovering behind Link's shoulder with her eyes glued to the ground.

"Take a pictograph, Rex," he chuckled. "It'll last longer."

Roy shook himself out of his daze, his pale complexion quickly shifting to a burning red that spread across his cheeks all the way to his ears.

"Shut up." He shot Jag a defensive glare then quickly threw his head back and emptied half the bottle in one gulp.

He let out his breath and stood for a moment, panting and sweating despite the snow and the freezing mountain air.

But the awkward silence hovered over them with no relief, so he kept the bottle pressed to his lips and his eyes averted.

"So…" Jag dragged the word out as long as he could. "What now, boss?" He looked to Link.

Link hesitated, well aware of every pair of eyes in the group locking onto him.

"Well," he said slowly. "Elice is still a captive of the Black Fang, and Marth's being taken back to Aritia for a public execution. That's where we're at."

Jag pulled up a hesitant smile. "Well, that's a morale-booster of a speech."

"This isn't a speech." Link declined. "This is reality. This is where we stand. The question is, what are we going to do about it?"

He paused again, leaving nothing but the whispering sound of falling snow around them.

"We're with you," Jag replied with a poignant glance around at the faces of his band. "Right men- people?" He corrected instantly, then shot Zaira a smirk.

Zaira returned it with a frown and stuck out her tongue.

"That's how she says yes," Jag informed Link with untouchable confidence.

Roy choked on a mouthful of fairy water and doubled over, coughing and sputtering like mad.

"In any case," Link went on in a loud voice. "Vale has a head start, but they only have four Dragons which means that the rest of them - most of them – are on foot. You think we can overtake them?"

"Easy." Jag shrugged. "Dragons may be powerful buggers, but they're slow. I can have Maryann on their tail by sundown."

Link nodded, his brow creasing with thought.

"One problem there," Zaira cut in. "Half of our fleet is either injured or just too exhausted to go on without rest. Not to mention the rest of us." She gestured out over the group.

"More than one problem." A man with a heavily blackened eye and a bloody rag pressed to his injured shoulder spoke up from the ground. "You're telling me we're going after them now? Seriously Jag?"

Jag shrugged. "Why not? This is it, Bron. We've got them on the run!"

"But we're not an army!" Bron shot back, then recoiled with a wince and clutched at his bleeding shoulder. "This is suicide."

"We don't have to be an army," Link replied with a quiet haste in his voice. "Because Aritia already has one. We don't even need everyone to set out right now. Just a few scouts to move on ahead and warn Aritia of the attack. Their army is massive and their allegiance to Marth is unparalleled. If they know what's coming, especially if Vale thinks that they don't… well, Marth couldn't be in any safer hands than those of his own people. Especially with the rest of our band coming up from behind to close them in. We fly to Aritia… and finish what we started here."

Mumbles of assent ripped through the crowd, though most eyes went to Jag for his reaction.

"Sounds like a plan to me," he agreed, keeping his own gaze steadily fixed on Link.

"We only need a few volunteers - your fastest riders who can slip by Vale's army to give Aritia the warning."

Jag nodded without hesitation. "That'd be me, Zaira and Switch." He gestured over to a heavily scarred man sharpening his blade nearby. "You up for a ride, Switch?"

Switch grunted, his deadpan expression never changing.

"He'd love to!" Jag exclaimed. "Zaira?"

She shook her head with a sigh. "You know you can count me in."

"Perfect." Link approved. "Let's go."

"Right-o." Jag clapped his hands together. "All right, you heard the man," he ordered loudly. "Let's hop to it, guys! Terak, you're in charge. As soon as you can, you get everyone to Aritia to cover our tails."

Terak grinned cheerily. "Got it."

"The rest of you." Jag looked around the group. "Keep your chins up," he instructed with a nod of encouragement. "We've worked long and hard for this opportunity to take out the Black Fang and we're not going to lose it now." He paused, his eyes falling on Bron. "We owe it to our families… to finally go back home and be able to tell them that they're safe. That we don't have to live in fear any more."

Bron looked up at Jag for a long moment, then tipped his chin in silent agreement.

Jag smiled faintly, then puffed his chest. "All right. Let's go."

He shoved his sword into its sheath with the sharp sting of metal against metal, and set off towards Maryann with Zaira right behind him.

Link let out a quiet puff of hot breath against the cold air then looked down at Manasa. "What do you say?"

Manasa nodded sharply, her big, dark rimmed eyes setting with resolution though she shivered under her cloak. "I'm ready."

"But what about Elice?" Roy broke in. "I can't – I know my duty to Aritia… and to Marth, but – "

"He'd never ask you to sacrifice Elice to save him," Link replied with complete assurance. "She's your princess. Go save her."

A tiny smile peeked through the corner of Roy's mouth, though it quickly faded into despair. "I don't know where she is. I don't even know where to start looking."

"Akanea," Manasa spoke up. "Navarre – he struck a deal with their king to hand Elice over."

"But he's working for the Fang again," Link pointed out. "Wouldn't that mean his deal with Zagaro is off?"

Manasa shook her head. "Knowing him, that's probably the leverage he used to worm his way back in."

Link nodded in agreement and looked to Roy.

"Akanea?" Roy repeated distantly. "All right." He took in a deep breath and squared his shoulders, then started to walk forward, following Jag's tracks. "If they're planning an exchange they'd take her to an outpost close to the Akanean border. Make Zagaro come to him and do it on their terms…. I'll start there, and see if I can pick up a trail."

Link nodded. "That sounds like a plan. You two grab whatever supplies you'll need, then we're off."

He cast Roy a poignant glance, then turned, touching Manasa lightly on the shoulder before he stepped away. "I'll be right back."

Manasa nodded, and watched Link move off through the trees, leaving her and Roy alone.

They stood in awkward silence for a long moment before Roy finally cleared his throat and spoke.

"Hey, uh, Manasa?" He scratched at the back of his head, not quite looking her in the eyes. "Before I go, I just… I wanted you to know I'm… I'm glad you're… not… dead." He paused, then winced.

"Uh… thanks." She shifted under her snow-laden cloak. "I'm glad you're not dead, too."

Roy's face cracked with a grin that seemed to bring tears to his eyes. "Yeah," he blurted out, somewhere between a sob and a laugh. "Yeah, me too."

Manasa shifted slightly, drawing her cloak up more tightly around her shoulders. "So, did Nils tell you?"

Roy looked up sharply. "Tell me what?"

"Well, about… me."

"What about you?"

Manasa stared at him for a moment. "That I'm a Sentei?" she said uncertainly. "You don't seem that surprised."

"Oh! Oh, that. Well, I – " Roy scrambled. "Yeah. Yeah, he…." He dropped his eyes and fidgeted. "Yeah."

Manasa hesitated a moment. "What else did he tell you?"

Roy's mouth hung open for a long, heavily silent moment before he found his voice again. "Nothing." He shook his head and looked up at her. "Just… that we're on the same side. That's all we need to know, right?"

He let out a soft, empty laugh then dropped his eyes again as they fell back into an uncomfortable silence.

Roy dug his toe down into the snow and wiped his hand across his beet-red face. "You must think I'm crazy."

"Well…." Manasa smiled gently. "Nothing new there."

Roy laughed again, bringing out another garbled choke of tears. "Just… just promise me…."

He paused, finally bringing his orange eyes up to meet her crimson ones.

Manasa went utterly still, though a chill shivered up her spine.

"Marth." Roy swallowed with a thick bob of his Adam's apple. "He deserves a – well, you deserve…." He smiled with quivering lips. "Well, it'd be just like him to get killed right when he's finally found the right girl, so… don't you go letting him die on you now."

Manasa shook her head vigorously, though she couldn't find the words to respond.

"You two ready?" Link tromped back into the clearing with his pack over his shoulder.

Roy sniffed and let out his breath, then turned away with a short cough. "Yeah, yeah." He wiped his eyes hastily.

"I'm going to go… fill my water pouch." Manasa paused awkwardly. "Yeah…."

She twisted and disappeared into thin air, leaving Link and Roy alone.

Link watched her vanish, then turned to look Roy over. "You all right?"

He took a few steps closer and Roy winced.

"Oh, sorry!" Link immediately withdrew a short distance. "That better?"

"Yeah." Roy let out a sigh of relief, massaging his temples for a moment. "Stupid necklace…." He muttered, then lifted his head with an attempt at a smile. "Well, kick some Fang tail for me, will you?"

"Will do," Link promised. "Good luck, Roy."

Burning resolve sprung back to Roy's eyes. "See you back in Aritia, then."

"It's a deal." Link nodded. "Well… we better get going, huh?"

"Wait," Roy called. "I've been meaning to ask. How's Zelda?"

"She's…" Link hesitated, his voice straining. "I'm sure she's…."

He trailed off and the two men stood in heavy silence under the snow.

"I lost her," Link admitted finally.

"Huh?"

"During the battle." Link ran his hand across his brow, wiping the flecks of snow from his skin. "Our connection was so strong, I could feel how hard she was working just to hold on. Then the roof collapsed and – " He cut off, then burst. "She shouldn't have done it! I told her to let it go, but – "

"You know you're not making any sense, right?" Roy interjected.

"She used too much energy. She was already weak, and now… I've been trying for nearly twenty-four hours and I can't hear anything." He paused and swallowed roughly. "I've lost her."

"You don't mean…."

"I don't know." He shrugged tightly, and started pacing, looking ready to jump out of his skin. "She may just be too weak to make a connection with but… I don't know, Roy." He let out another sharp breath of frustration. "Something's wrong."

"Then why are you standing here? Go get her!"

"Don't you think I want to?" A growl erupted from Link, finally letting out his tension. "But we had a deal. I made her promise that I'd keep her safe, and she made me promise… I promised I'd bring everyone home safe."

"Well that was a stupid thing to do."

Link's eyes narrowed. "What?"

"You can't save the whole world by yourself all the time," Roy replied. "You've gotta pick your battles."

"Yeah," Link replied hoarsely. "Yeah, I know…."

"Then you should follow your own advice. It's pretty good most of the time." A tiny smirk crossed Roy's lips. "She's your princess…."

"Roy…." Link let out his breath in a short, desperate laugh.

"Say hi to Zelda for me." Roy shot Link a quick, bracing smile then burst into a pillar of flames.

He emerged from the fire in his Dragon form, stretched his wings and took to the sky.

"Where's Rex off to in such a hurry?" Jag asked, approaching Link and Manasa with his head tipped back to watch as Roy's form vanished into the clouds above.

Link took his eyes from the sky and cleared his throat. "Off to rescue his princess…."

"Link?" Zaira approached them. "We leaving or not? Come on, time to mount up."

Link nodded vaguely and trudged forward without another word, Manasa following right behind him.

"Too bad," Jag sighed, still watching after Roy. "It would have been nice to have a Dragon on our side for once…."

Zaira slapped him across the shoulder, and he jumped.

"What was that for?" he asked, rubbing his shoulder.

Zaira just rolled her eyes and sighed darkly, then tromped back towards the readied wyvern pack.

"C'mon, Zai!" Jag trailed behind. "What?"

"Figure it out, meathead," Zaira quipped, the turned to Link. "Here." She handed Link the reins of a dark turquoise colored wyvern. "Take Shaz, she's a handful but she's fast."

"Sounds perfect." Link patted the wyvern's thick, scaly neck and she let out a snort. Link stopped and glanced around the clearing. "Manasa?" he called.

"I'm here." She stepped out from the trees and slowly approached Link, though she kept her eyes glued to the large reptilian beast beside him.

"Time to go," Link instructed, stroking Shaz's neck until the wyvern emitted a deep, metallic-sounding purr.

"Uh…." Manasa's jaw hung limply and she looked back and forth from Zaira to Shaz, not sure which one she was more intimidated by. "I can't – I don't even know how to – "

"You won't have to," Link offered instantly. "You can double up."

"Wait." Zaira frowned. "I thought this mission was about speed. Two riders will slow us down."

"Have you seen her, Zaira?" Jag scoffed. "Put her and you together and you still wouldn't weigh as much as me or Switch."

He cuffed Switch on the shoulder, though the tall, stone-faced man didn't even blink in response.

"That's not the point," Zaira argued. "Why do we need her, anyway?"

"Because you'll need someone to get you into the palace to warn the Regent," Link explained firmly. "Without someone they trust with you, their archers will shoot you out of the sky before you make it past the outer wall."

"I thought that's why we have you," Zaira replied obstinately.

"No, that's why you need her. She's going with you." Link looked from Zaira to Jagat. "But I'm not."

"What?" Manasa burst. "Link, no! You have to – I can't – "

"I have to go back to Ostia," Link answered.

"What's the deal, Hyrule?" Jag frowned. "We've got a war to win here. You can't turn tail and run now!"

"I'm not running from anything." Link's expression hardened. "This doesn't change anything. You four will still go ahead to Aritia to warn them of the attack. I'll go back to Ostia to check on Zelda, then be right behind you."

"One problem with that," Jag replied. "You were our ticket into the Kingdom. Like you said, four Sentei show up knocking at their door and we're dead."

"And, like I said, that's why you have her." Link motioned to Manasa.

"Me?" Manasa shrunk.

"Who better to warn them than their own princess?"

Manasa's eyes widened as Link's plan sunk in. "You mean you want me to - they'll never buy it!"

"You managed to get in as Ciara," Link rebutted. "And this will be much easier. You've spent the last six months with Elice. I'm sure you can pull off a good enough impression of her to fool the guard."

"Wow. That's not bad," Jag conceded. "Not bad at all, Hyrule."

Manasa just stood in stunned silence. "Link… I can't."

"Yes, you can." Link put his hand on Manasa's shoulder. "Jag will take care of you."

Manasa peered up at him through her red, swollen eyes, pleading in silence.

"You can do this." Link assured. "You go save Marth. I have my own battle to fight."

She gnawed on her lip for a moment, then nodded in reluctant acceptance.

"Okay." She let out her breath and straightened her shoulders. "Yes… I can do it."

"All right – sounds like a plan!" Jag swung up onto Maryann's back. "Now, let's get out of here. Guess you're with me, Short-Stuff." He reached his hand down to Manasa with a smile.

Manasa glanced at Link warily, already questioning his judgment on the situation.

"It's all right," Link assured. "You can trust them."

She nodded, though she looked thoroughly unconvinced. Gritting her teeth, she turned towards Jag.

"Wait!" Link called her back. "Take this."

He lifted the silver chain from around his neck, pulling the star-shaped Emblem out into the open, and offered it to her.

Manasa gaped at the necklace dangling from his hand. "Link, I – "

"You are going up against Dragons."

She hesitated, reaching out for it as though it might bite her fingers.

"Just in case." Link pressed it into her hand and she took it reluctantly.

She held on, just letting it hang heavily in her hand for a long moment. Finally, she slipped the chain around her neck and hid the pendant in her tunic.

"I'll take care of it," she promised.

She extended her hand to Jag, and he hoisted her up into the saddle behind him.

"You good?" he asked.

"Yeah," Manasa answered, holding on tightly to his waist despite herself.

Zaira glared up at the pair of them, then teleported into her own saddle. Switch silently followed suit.

Link climbed into his own saddle and settled himself in the seat. "I'll see you all in Aritia."

"Good luck, Hyrule," Jag replied.

"You, too." Link nodded.

He gave Manasa a short, bracing smile, then cracked his reins and took to the sky.

Manasa watched as he vanished into the thick veil of fog and snow, leaving her alone. She shivered, and dropped her eyes, though she remained careful not to look at the ground and see how high up she was just sitting on the wyvern's back.

"Let's get this show on the road!" Jag took up his reins and turned Maryann to face the south. He raised his arms, ready to signal her up, when a voice interrupted.

"Wait!"

Jag slumped and turned with a sigh to meet a sour-faced Zaira.

"What now?" he asked in exhaustion.

"Before we go, let's get one thing straight," Zaira warned with a deadly cold glare at Manasa. "We're doing this for us. Not for you, or your boyfriend, or his country. You pull any stupid stunts like you did back in the arena there, and there's not always going to be someone around to save your neck."

"Thank you for that." Jag rolled his eyes. "Uplifting speech. Charming as ever. But, I think we've heard enough."

"What?" she snapped back. "I'm just telling it like it is! We may be on the same side, but not for the same reasons. So don't expect any of us to – "

"Zaira!" Jag spun Maryann around to face Zaira head-on. "I said that's enough."

Zaira glared at him, her chest heaving and her dark red eyes burning. Their eyes stayed locked in a defiant battle until Zaira finally seceded, breaking away from his gaze.

"Just don't get in my way, Fang Girl." She lifted her head and glowered at Manasa over Jag's shoulder.

Manasa clenched her jaw, fighting back the urge to teleport right over and wring her neck.

"You better hold on tight." The crack of Zaira's reins snapped through the cold air like a whip. "Yah!" She spurred her wyvern into the air, leading the pack up into the sky.

"Gotta love her," Jag sighed with a little puff of fog from his warm breath. "Hold on tight," he instructed, the same words sounding so very different from his lips.

With a flick of the reins, Maryann pushed off from the ground with a lurch that left Manasa's stomach behind on the ground below. She closed her eyes against the weightless sense of nausea and clung to Jag's waist as he steered their wyvern up into the sky.

As they lifted into the clouds, the blizzard thickened. She could see nothing above, nothing below. Just an endless blur of fog and ice on every side.

Every beat of the beast's wings sent a blast of cold air and ice across Manasa's already frozen face. So cold she felt numb, though somehow, it still hurt. Still stung. Still made her shiver inside.

Somehow, she welcomed the pain. The reminder that she could still feel it. That she was alive.

She stared straight ahead into the abyss of white, too tired to even think about what was coming up ahead. Though the darkness of the dungeons lay far behind her now, she could still feel the filth of the Black Fang clinging to her. A stain that went deeper than the surface of her skin.

No matter how hard she tried to cleanse herself of it, it always seemed to come back.

Just like him.

The sudden, inseparable connection of the two took hold of her mind. No matter where she ran, no matter where she tried to hide, she would never be free until both were destroyed.

The Black Fang had to be defeated.

And Navarre had to die.

Cut off the head of the snake, and let the body die with it.

If they didn't succeed, the Fang would continue to grow until they covered the world in the same darkness that tainted her own soul.

The cold, gripping reality of the situation hit her with a depth of understanding that he'd never truly felt before.

This was bigger than her. Far bigger than anything she'd ever seen herself as a part of. The thought made her feel bigger and smaller, stronger and weaker, all at once.

Nothing had changed, but somehow, everything had.

She pushed the daunting thoughts from her tired mind and focused her gaze blankly on the horizon. On a faint point of light to the south, where the clouds weren't so dark and thick, fighting its way through the storm.

Every flap of the wyvern's wings carried he further away from the Fortress, and one step closer to finding Marth again. Towards the distant break in the clouds, where the sun lay hidden.




*****