Chapter 10: Splinters

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Link walked along a path that didn't exist. He was in a thinned out forest, it was cold, wet dew sparkled across the dead grass. Link continued to walk. The wind picked up, and drizzles of raindrops began sprinkling through the trees. Link continued his stride with no change. The grass wasn't below him, the trees weren't above him, but the gray sky with lightning sheeted across it still remained. The loose sand blew in his face, and the rain began beating down on his head. Link continued in a steady stride.

Link thought of Zelda and looked up, for a moment, everything was slow, he saw a raindrop. He saw himself in it, he was bleeding from the mouth, a sword stuck through him. He looked down.

Link saw a dry, yellow ground. He looked up, to see he was in a field with no trees, a blue sky above him. Link began to walk, he thought he heard someone call his name. Link began to run toward the sound, he didn't recognize the voice, but he ran. Link suddenly tripped, and found himself naked in the snow. He was freezing, he tried to get up, failed once, then succeeded. He was shivering, he still heard the voice calling his name.

"Link....Link.....Link," the voice continued. Link tried to walk, it was so cold. What had happened to his clothes? Link continued to limp along. The cold air slammed against his body. The wind picked up. Link tried to run. The voice got louder. Link was then fully clothed and on a horse, riding through an expanse of colors. The horse threw him off, and Link landed in a pile of shit.

Link got up and ran, he ran through winter, summer and spring, he ran through colors that spin, he ran, and ran, and ran. Link heard the voice again, calling his name.

"Link...Link...Link..." He screamed and sat down. Link saw a man walk toward him. The man looked incredibly familiar.

"Who are you, who's calling my name?" Link asked.

"I am Link, and you were calling my name," the other man said. Link narrowed his eyes.

"I'm Link, not you," Link said.

"Ah, so you say, but how can you be sure?" The other man said.

"How can you?" Link shot back.

"How did you get here anyway...Link?" The other Link asked.

"You tell me," Link said. The other Link smiled. After looking him over again, Link noticed the other Link was in a priest's robe. "What do you do...Link?" Link asked.

"I'm the head Spiritual Leader of Hyrule, you are in my meditation plain," The other Link said. Link looked around to see he was, in fact, in a field.

"I'm the hero of Hyrule..." Link said. The other Link looked at him.

"You took a crack on the head there didn't you?" The Priest Link said.

"Yes, I suppose," Hero Link felt the blood stained to his head.

"You must be here by a strange coincidence, I was traveling the spiritual Plain, you see, and you must have been attracted to me, as I was to you," Priest Link said.

"So, that's why I heard my name being called?" Link said.

"Right, but, you must've been somewhere close to where the Gods work, you traveled the plain, after all," Priest Link said.

"Right," Hero Link stood up, "This is Hyrule?"

"Yes," Priest Link got up, "Follow me to my home, it is in the castle walls."

"You live in the castle?" Hero Link asked.

"No, I live in a house, in the royal town, the walls surround it," Priest Link said.

"Ah, you aren't at war?" Hero Link asked.

"No, after I banished the Gerudo Ganondorf, we've been at total peace," Priest Link said.

"Hm, I recently killed Ganon myself, permanently," Link smiled.

"What is your Hyrule like?" Priest Link asked.

"Different," Link said looking at the lush fields he was walking on.

The two Links walked in silence to Hyrule Castle, and arrived at a big house in a corner of the Royal Town.

"This is it," Priest Link said.

"Nice," Hero Link said. They walked in.

"Hi, Link," Zelda cam walking up with a child in her hand. She saw two Links standing and stopped. "Who's that?" She asked Priest Link.

"This is a warrior Link, from across the dimensions," Priest Link said. Zelda smiled, Hero Link cocked his head to the right slightly.

'This Link has everyone under his thumb, he's married Zelda!' Hero Link thought.

"Are you not married?" Priest Link asked.

Hero Link looked at him, "Nope, and, I really need to get back to my Hyrule." Priest Link smiled.

***

Zelda sat in her room fingering her engagement ring. Paul was off visiting wizards and such, trying to make it rain, or something. Zelda thought about Link, was he dead? If not, where was he? Zelda stood up and walked to the Triforce. She tried to use it to find Link, as usual, it just showed a telepathic image of a raindrop. Whatever.

Zelda walked around a bit, and made her way outside. She walked around to the tree, and sat down. She closed her eyes.

'Link, I believe,' She heard, her eyes shot open. She shut them again.

"Why do you think it's him, and not Paul?"

"Because Paul is too, too, nice, or, something."

"I also believe the marriage is a-"

"What are we discussing," Zelda swore it was Ganon she heard, then, another voice.

"She's listening!" Then, silence. Zelda got up and walked to her room.

'Then, Link isn't dead,' She smiled to herself.

***

Hero Link, Priest Link, and Zelda were meeting with a Gerudo and a Zora. Hero Link noted how the Zoras looked slightly different than the ones in his Hyrule.

"So," the Zora said, "you say an island is where it happened?"

Hero Link took a deep breath, "Yes, I remember I saw a-Yes."

Priest Link looked puzzled, "You saw what?"

"Nothing, it's nothing," Hero Link said. The Gerudo spoke up.

"So, this island, do you think it will be in the same location here?"

"Yes," both Links said. Priest Link began to talk.

"This Link is being purposely vague about his Hyrule, which is all good and well, and places of the Gods should be located in the same places in all worlds, they are a base, you see." The Gerudo shrugged. Hero Link took in a deep breath, he looked around the room, it wasn't until he heard danger he jumped back in.

"What?" Hero Link said.

"I said," Priest Link started, "there's always the danger of desert dwellers."

"Danger?" Link asked.

"Yes," Zelda said, "They weren't worthy of our civilization, so they are outside our boundries, we'll no doubt meet them on the way to the bay that leads to your island.

"Why weren't they worthy?" Hero Link asked, "I mean, the Gerudos aren't much different." Everyone stared at Hero Link.

"You mean, in your country, you, you live with them?" Zelda asked with a squeaky voice.

"The ones that want to, yes," Hero Link was puzzled.

"Link" Priest Link said, "You should know that not just the desert dwellers, but any man with dark skin, is destined to lie?" Hero Link took in a shaky breath.

'Well,' he thought to himself, 'this place isn't so perfect, a bunch of ignorant bastards who live in a castle, I can't believe it, I'm like this!' Hero Link closed his eyes. Zelda spoke, "In your Hyrule, you don't...do you?"

Hero Link was silent, but Priest Link spoke, "Well, if his Hyrule is destined to down fall because of its mistake, it isn't our fault or problem, we leave in two days." Everyone got up, except Hero Link, he shot out of his chair and kicked the door open. Everyone pretended not to notice.

"What's wrong with his world?" Zelda asked Priest Link.

"I don't know," Priest Link said. Hero Link made his way to where the Triforce was here. It was shining just as bright as it did in his world. Hero Link closed his eyes. Priest Link entered the room.

"I see your world is at fault," Priest Link said.

"My world?" Link turned around.

"Are you suggesting my world is at fault?"

"Your world IS at fault!" Hero Link walked straight up to Priest Link.

"My world is perfect! Your world is contaminated with trust! You see, my world is nonviolent! My world is spiritual! Yours isn't!" Priest Link yelled.

"Your world is not spiritual, your world is a place which fears difference! And I'll have you know, in my world, and probably in yours, for every one native Hylian, there is about sixty desert dwellers, and that's just in the east desert! So, if they ever realize that, your perfect world will be very, very violent, and you will be very, very, unprepared!" Hero Link shot at Priest Link.

Priest Link shoved Link out of his way and walked to the Triforce. "Do you see this? This will protect me from anything and everything evil!"

"Then it won't protect you from me, you better hope I get back to my world before I get mad," Hero Link said.

"Alright, then, we leave, tomorrow," Priest Link said.

"Good, some exercise, some splinters will do you some good," Hero Link said.

"Splinters, huh?"

"Splinters."

Priest Link walked out of the Triforce room. Link turned to see the Triforce was shining even brighter.

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