Author's Note

Bloodbolt changed to Blood Raven as November 20, 2015 because of a later idea.

Chapter 5.5

"I don't fear death, I welcome it."

I began to hear the drumroll as I moved through the crowd. The beat started to quicken as a man approached the lever. I started pushing people out of the way in an attempt to get to the gallows quickly. The executioner reached for the lever as I pulled out my left gun. I shot the rope as the man started to pull the lever, severing it. Upon hearing the gunshot, people started panicking around me, scattering in different directions. I started running for the gallows to get to Elicia. As I reached about halfway, I noticed that two guards were approaching me with swords drawn. Aniela appeared out of the crowd and knocked a guard out with the butt end of a rifle, spun around, using it to deflect an attack from the conscious guard, and put him in a chokehold.

“GO!” she ordered.

I sprinted toward the gallows. I saw a guard standing near the edge. I ran up the stairs to the right, and vaulted over the railing, I kicked the guard in the chest. Elicia was lying on the floor with her hands tied behind her back. I picked up a dagger from the guard I had just kicked in the chest and went to cut her bounds. I crouched behind her and a blade touched the left side of my neck.

Impa.

“And just what do you think you’re doing?”

I grimaced. “Saving a life.”

“She’s a killer. A criminal. She doesn’t deserve to live.”

“What did she do?”

Her dark red eyes narrowed. “She killed Link.”

“And?”

“And what?”

“Were there any other charges to end in a death sentence?”

“That was enough.”

“This isn’t right. I’m not saying she shouldn’t be punished, she just doesn’t deserve to die in this way.”

“That’s not up to you. Now, I’m only going to ask you this once--drop the dagger.”

Elicia interjected, “Don’t listen to her, she’s-”

I squeezed her wrist. “I know.”

Impa raised the blade to strike me as I stood up, using my right hand to quickly draw the pistol from the right holster and turning around, I aimed at Impa’s face and pulled the trigger.

Impa howled in pain as the bullet hit her in the eye, taking several steps back. Red sparks were moving around the upper right portion of its face, particularly in the area around the eye I had shot, which she was now clutching.

“How dare you! I’ll see you imprisoned for that!”

I chuckled. ”No, you won’t, because you aren’t Impa.”

She removed her hand from her eye as her form started to change into a grey-skinned man with black hair and blood red eyes, similar to the demons I had seen in Kokiri Forest.

The demon’s voice changed to a much deeper one. “How did you know?”

“Your eyes were all wrong. Her eyes are red but yours are much darker than hers.”

It chuckled. ”How observant. Now my cover has been blown, and you need to die.”

The demon started toward me but was interrupted as he burst into flames. He started to scream in pain as the flames almost instantly extinguished. The demon looked as though it were in extreme pain as red sparks started to move around his entire body. I looked around to see what could have caused it, and saw that Aniela was standing on the left side of the gallows. She appeared to be holding something small in her right hand. I was guessing that it was the lighter I had seen her use earlier, and she used the lighter as the demon caught on fire again.

“Get Elicia. I’ve got this one,” Aniela said.

I walked over to Elicia and cut her binds.

“Thanks.”

The demon fell to his knees, as he began to laugh to himself. “Ah. Now I remember why your name sounds so familiar. We took out the Knights nine years ago. First, your mother and father, then we hunted you and your brother. Too bad he was too damn weak to control his own soul.”

Elicia sighed. “He really shouldn’t have said that.”

Aniela put the lighter in a pocket of her coat and swung her arm horizontally, saying coldly, “Ignite my passions, Firafox.”

Flames extended from her hand which turned into a golden sword with a black handle as the flames quickly died out. The blade was slightly curved and its handle was large enough that she could hold it with both hands.

How did she do that?

“Watch out!” Elicia yelled at me.

I looked up to see a two of the monsters running straight toward me My hand immediately went for my sword. As I started to draw my blade, two silver bolts whizzed over my head, the first hitting the demon that was closer to me in the head, the second the one behind him in the throat. A third demon pushed past the demon that had been shot through the throat as it gurgled on its own blood. It swiped its blade at me and I went to block the demon’s attack. It was stronger than I expected, shattering my sword and causing me to double back.

I looked at my broken weapon.” Oh, for fuck's sake !”

My assailant grinned as he decided to take a few more swings at me. I dodged the attacks but he spun around and attempted to stab me. I raised my left arm to defend myself. The blade went straight through my forearm and penetrated my shoulder. He then proceeded to pull me toward him and bite me, before a golden blade went through the back of his skull. Jimmy ran past me and pulled the golden blade out of the demon as it fell to the ground.

“Aniela, Catch!” he said, tossing the weapon to her.

Jim turned to me. “Let’s get that blade out of you. 3...2....1!”

My auto prosthetic arm went limp as Jimmy pulled the katana out of it. The blade turned to ash when it was removed.. I attempted to move my arm but to no avail.

Jimmy sighed as he handed me a dagger. “Here. Take this.”

“Zari va Yun!”

Aniela appeared to be finished with what she was fighting, as she had had stabbed the demon in the throat and spun around, rupturing its neck and causing blood to spray everywhere. She relinquished her grip on the blade and it disappeared.

“We need to leave...Now. Get Eli up.”

Jimmy nodded, walking over to Elicia and held out a hand to help her up.

“Where are we heading?” I asked.

Aniela walked toward the stairs. “The church...Alice is waiting there for you.”

“Stop right there, criminal scum!”

We turned around as guards started to enter the marketplace. Aniela jumped off the side of the gallows.

“Come on!”

After Jimmy and I jumped off the stage, Eli went to jump off as an arrow went through her right thigh.

“Son of a bitch!” she swore as she landed, falling to the ground. Jimmy immediately rushed to her.

“Run, Kyle! I got her,” he shouted, picking her up.

We started running for the church. Aniela reached the door first and held one of the double doors open for us. When Jimmy and Elicia entered the church, I heard the door close behind us, followed by a loud thud. I looked toward the source of the noise.

Standing opposite of Aniela was a hooded figure wearing a hockey mask with one hand holding a crossbow and the other on a beam that was locking the door behind us. I cautiously raised the knife in my hand and the figure in turn aimed their crossbow at me.

Aniela raised her hands. “Hey! Both of you need to calm down, we are all among friends here.”

“I’ll calm down when he lowers his weapon,” the figure stated, nodding her head toward me. Judging from the softness of the person’s voice, I would guess this person is female?

Aniela looked at me. “Kyle, please lower your arms. We really don’t have time for this.”

As if on queue, something pounded against the church doors. I lowered the knife and nodded toward them. “Well, seems that way is out of the question…I hope you have another way out of here.”

“Of course. Blood, if you wouldn’t mind?”

The woman wielding the crossbow, whom I assumed was Blood, nodded and walked off in the opposite direction.

“Kyle!”

Alice ran up to me and threw her arms around me.

“Thank the gods you’re alright! I could hear people screaming from outside.”

I heard something pound against the door as Aniela and Jimmy walked past us.

"That door isn't going to last forever. We need to leave. Maria, open it."

Blood nodded as she reached for a brazier hanging from the wall and pulled it down. The bookshelf next to it moved away from us and then to the left, revealing a staircase leading down the side of the church.

"Let's go," Aniela said.

I heard the door start to break down.

I grabbed Alice's wrist with my good arm, "Come on!"

Aniela went through first, then Alice and I, followed by Jimmy and Blood. As soon as everyone was through, Blood hit a random stone on the wall and everything went dark as the door closed behind us.

"Where did I- Ah, here it is!"

The darkness went away as Aniela flicked her lighter on. We proceeded to walk down the stairs.

"So, where are we headed?" I asked after several minutes walking.

Aniela turned her head. "We're heading for the Shaedra-"

Aniela's head snapped forward as we entered a room that had light coming from the ceiling with another hallway on the opposite side of the room. Something appeared out of nowhere, and lunged at her. Aniela dropped the lighter and caught the attacker, throwing them to the ground. Aniela flexed her right wrist, causing a small blade to come out from under her coat sleeve.

"Zari va yun," she hissed, stabbing it in the back of the head before flexing her wrist to retract the blade.

"Shaedravun Stronghold," Aniela finished her statement as she bent over to pick up her lighter.

"What does that mean?" I asked.

Aniela cocked her head. "What does what mean?"

"What you said before killing that thing."

"I said rest in peace."

We continued walking and as I walked past the corpse, I got a better look. I saw that the assailant was another demon, like the ones who attacked Kokiri Forest and in the market.

"Wait."

"What's wrong, Kyle?" Alice asked, with a look of worry on her face.

I pointed at the corpse. "What is this thing?"

Aniela chuckled. "That...was a shaedra."

"A shaedra?As in-?"

"As in the things that Elicia told you about, yes. Normally, they shouldn’t be able to enter here, but these passageways haven’t been used in decades, so the runes on the walls that would prevent them from entering here are weak."

I continued to follow Aniela as Alice talked to Blood. I found out that she was Jimmy's sister, and though she seemed a little antisocial at first, she seemed like a relatively nice girl. Jimmy and Maria had been with the Shaedravun since they were twelve.Their mother was also a Shaedravun, but was killed in an ambush. They didn't talk much about their father.

Aniela stopped walking as we approached a large fortress. "We're here."

"Aren't there more of you?" I asked, confused as to why I wasn't seeing many guards. Torches appeared to be lit all around the cavern, but why no guards?

"They're around. Probably hiding. Jimmy, Mary, you should take Eli to the infirmary."

Maria nodded. "Come on, Jim."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I take it that the execution was stopped?" Morris asked

"Yes, ulzaterin. Windrider is in the infirmary as we speak."

Ulzaterin? And who's Windrider?

"Oh, dear. Is she alright?"

"She's fine. It was just an arrow through the thigh, nothing to serious."

Must be Elicia's alias, like how Palms is Jimmy's.

"That's a relief. You may leave," Morris replied, waving her off.

"There's one more thing, sir."

The old man sighed. " What is it?"

"I'd like to request that Kyle become one of us. Alice, too, if she so wishes."

Morris' eyebrows raised. "Are you certain?"

Aniela nodded. "I can vouch for him. I'm sure Eli, Maria and Jimmy can, as well."

Morris chuckled. "So that's where Blood Raven went."

Aniela turned to me. "So, do you want to join?"

"Do I really have a choice?"

"You always have a choice."

I thought about it and sighed. "Okay."

" Alright. I'll show you two where you'll be staying. I'll come get you in the morning."

--Timeskip: Next Morning--

Aniela led us into a room with Morris, Jimmy, Maria, and one other person I didn't recognize. He was a medium-sized hylian with brown curly hair with a cane. And he did not look pleased.

"I don't recall seeing this one before. Who recruited this man?"

Aniela replied. "I did. And practically everyone in this room can vouch for him, so shut it, Maxis."

Morris spoke, "Initiates, each of you has been selected to become shaedravun. Some of you came by choice, others by the ill will of fate. You have each shown great potential, but you have one final test before you can become true shaedravun. You must drink the blood of our enemy."

One of the other initiates scoffed, "Are you joking?"

"The Binding is not something you should scoff at, Mr. Hannock, considering that it can kill you," Maria replied.

The entire room went silent after she said that.

"Yes, you heard me correctly. I'm not going to sugar coat it for you. You will have a chance of dying. If you were meant to be one of us, you'll live. If not, well...I'll pray for you," Maria finished as two shaedravun brought in a shaedra to a basin on the far side of the room. Aniela gripped it by the hair, and pulling its head over the basin, slit its throat. The shaedra’s blood poured into the basin until the body could bleed anymore. As it was pulled away, Aniela dipped a chalice into the blood. After filling the chalice with blood, Aniela handed it to Morris.

"Starve thy blade from the flesh of an innocent."

Jimmy spoke next, "Never divulge our secrets nor share the true purpose of our work."

"Always remain hidden-even in plain sight," Maria added.

"Do so until death. This is our creed- the laws which we shaedravun live by,"Morris stood there, waiting for something. “Now, who amongst you is prepared to take the first step?”

A hylian with long brown hair stepped forward. “I will.”

The old man smiled and handed him the chalice. “Then drink, Rill.”

Rill took the chalice with both hands and took a long sip before handing it back to Morris. A few seconds passed after he swallowed, and he started coughing. He proceeded to cough more violently, before falling to his knees as red sparks started moving about his body, and he began to vomit blood. He looked up as Maxis put the tip of the cane against Rill’s forehead.

“Zari va yun.”

There was a loud bang and Rill fell backward with a hole in his head. Aniela turned to me.

“You’re next, Darius.”

I was confused until I realized she was talking to a goron behind me.

“I cannot do this,” the goron said, terrified from what he witnessed.

Aniela walked toward Darius and pushed me aside. “You must do this.”

“There is no glory in this. I- I have a child!” Darius stammered, raising his fists.

“Don’t even thi- Oof!” Aniela started before Darius punched her in the jaw. Aniela’s mask shattered from the force of the punch, revealing her face. She had a black cloth over her right eye, and her left was a dark shade of violet. She removed her hood, and blonde hair fell down to her shoulders.

“I’m sorry,” Aniela said with little pity in her voice.

Aniela used her left hand to push his arm out of the way, flexed her right wrist, and stabbed him in the chest, “Zari va yun, Darius.”

“Who’s next?”

The room remained quiet as I stepped forward. Morris smiled and dipped the chalice into the blood. He handed it to me and I drank it. Returning the cup to him, I swallowed the blood. It burnt as it went down. I then felt an excruciating pain as red sparks started moving throughout my entire body, causing it to bend in ways it would not normally. I collapsed as my legs started to break and then fix themselves. I felt the same pain run through my left arm, as though blades had been placed in a fire and then used to carve into my skin. I looked at my left arm and I thought I saw something carving into the metal.

Why do I feel this? My arm is a fake!

I saw Maxis slowly limp towards me and twist his cane, causing something shiny to pop out and bounce when it hit the ground. He placed the tip against my temple.

“Zari va-”

Mary interrupted him by placing a hand on his forearm. “Wait, Maxis.”

Maxis seemed annoyed. “For what, Maria? He’s already beginning to turn.”

“Maybe not. Look.” She pointed down to my arm.

Maxis looked down and his eyes widened. “The hunter’s mark.”

He removed the cane from my head. “Alright, but if he attacks…”

Maria nodded. “ I know.”

I lost consciousness from the pain.

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“Oh good, you’re awake!”

I lifted my head from the hospital bed pillow and saw Redheart standing in the door.

“Morning,” she said. “ Sorry we had to sedate you. Sleep well?”

I grunted in response. “Relatively speaking. Can I go home?"

Redheart shook her head. "Sorry, but we want to keep you here in case you try to commit suicide. You'll only be here for a few more days."

Well, damn.