Chapter Text
It was a dull day. The group had just found themselves in Wild’s Hyrule, a couple of days ago, and Wild thought the best idea was to take them to his house. They had just passed through the field of rusting guardians, on their way through fort Hateno, and Wild couldn’t help but speak in clipped sentences and avoid eye contact.
There was something about that area, even before he collected his final memory. A chill, a fog that seeped into his ears and down his throat, choking his insides and creasing his thoughts.
He couldn’t deal with the looks twilight shot him as he expressionlessly checked for parts in hulls he had searched time and time again - scavenger instincts kicking in - as they went on their way, or Wind’s bubbling questions turned hesitant, or the creases between the brows that all of his companions mirrored on each other as if they could feel what Wild felt.
As they passed through the gates on Fort Hateno, a brief thought drifted through Wild’s mind. Maybe they could visit Calip’s cabin, just for a small break, and perhaps with the familiar face the fog would start to dissipate.
Of course, that was the exact moment in which a lynel - black, too - walked out of the treeline.
Wait, what?
“Wild, what the hell is that thing?” Warriors whispered harshly, grabbing four by his hood and swinging him to the other side of him, towards the treeline, to halt his walking.
“Lynel.” Both Wild and Legend said at the same time, and legend followed up, “Wild, how do they work here?”
“Incredibly strong, that one’s one of the strongest you’ll find. Everyone get into the treeline before it turns around,” Wild’s brain was now moving incredibly fast. Why was there a lynel here? And a black one, at that? There were no lynels in the surrounding area as far as wild knew.
When they were all crouched in the shrubbery off the trail, Time prompted Wild to continue. “Okay. They have wicked aim, and boy do their arrows hurt. Don’t go near it unless you have experience, I don't know how many of you have these in your Hyrules.”
“What? We have to help fight it!” Wind argued, hand on his sword.
“No. Hylia knows how many times these things have taken me down. Listen, just let me do it. Trust me, we can’t sneak past this thing.” He added, as Sky looked like he was about to interrupt.
Nobody stopped Wild as he slowly crept out of the treeline, but his words sat on everyone’s minds. Taken me down.
Wild was a blur of motion, and then he was still, waiting with his shield up. He repeated this swift change a few times before suddenly, seemingly unprompted, he leapt on the creature’s back. The others felt a shot of fear go through their already panic-addled minds, and even though Wild got some decent hits in, when he was bucked off there was still a sickening crunch when he hit the floor.
The look in his eyes told Twilight he was ready to get back up, and he verged on hysteria.
Without thinking of Wild’s prior warnings, all of them in seeming unison leapt out of the trees to provide assistance. Legend seemed to know what he was doing, arrows trained on the beast immediately, and as Twilight, Time and Hyrule followed his lead, the others all went in for the beast’s legs and body.
Wind quickly dashed around the creature that was still focused on Wild - who was picking himself up, still - and started slashing at a leg that none of the other heroes had targeted, at the front.
A yell got caught in Wild’s throat. He wanted, needed to warn them to stay back, but there wasn’t time. The lynel’s focus had shifted to Wind, and there was no time.
Wind’s eyes just flicked up from his blade in time to register the creature’s eyes boring into him, roar steadily building in it’s throat, before he was suddenly being shoved and the lynel’s arm, holding the wickedest of axes wind had ever seen, sliced into Wild, who was in the exact spot he just was.
Wind’s throat seemed to have none of the inhibitions that Wild’s did, and a scream tore out. The lynel took sick pleasure in forcing the blade into Wild’s stomach as far as it would go, and then wrenching it out.
An awful, soul quashing rumble echoed out of the beast’s throat. It was laughing. Laughing at the glassy, dead stare of Wind’s brother.
Two swords pierced the lynel’s head all the way through. Both were wielded by Warriors, who also held what looked like Twilight’s, but Wind wasn’t paying attention. He fell to his knees, an arm’s reach away from his brother who was red, red, red. There were bubbles in his chest, and his eyes were blurry and his vision was shaking and he was sobbing.
And then there was light.
Incredible, calm light, all around. Warm flames that soothed the icy feeling away, and a beautiful woman, a zora, crouched over Wild’s still bleeding corpse.
Wind vaguely noticed the others all on the edge of this bubble, none daring to tread in.
And then a soft voice, “it was my pleasure”, and a soft touch on wild’s cheek, and suddenly there was no blood, no red, no gaping wound caused by a still sickeningly stained axe a few feet away.
There was only Wild, staring into the eyes of this beautiful, ghostly spectre the same colour as the light, and as the flames, with both a look of breathlessness (as if his lungs would have still held any air for this lady to take away)and gut wrenching familiarity.
“Thank you, Mipha.”
And then it was gone. It was over, and Wild was well, and all was silent.
“What the fuck,” Legend began, his hand gripping the roots of his fringe and his hat skewed, “was that?”
“That was Mi-” Wild started, but Legend didn’t let him finish.
“What the fuck? Did- did we just watch you die? Is that what you meant? Taken down? Did you just die?”
The rest of them seemed to share Legend’s sentiment, shell-shocked faces encircling him.
After a long moment, “...Yes.”
Wild closed his eyes, unable to handle the looks. When he felt strong hands gripping his collar and shaking him, he expected to see Twilight above him, but instead he saw Wind. Oh, Wind.
Wind had not stopped sobbing since Wild’s body hit the ground, the whole lower half of his face was glistening with tears, and even though his jaw wobbled and his voiced broke, his words still held the intensity his eyes did.
“What the hell, Wild? That was my hit to take, that was-” Wind stopped himself, lunging forward and wrapping himself around Wild’s chest, tight enough to make Wild wonder whether the tremors were his or his own.
It took many minutes for any of them to find their voices, but finally, Time spoke. “We’re making camp here for the night. We apparently need to talk.”