"So far away we wait for the day / For the light source so wasted and gone / We feel the pain of a lifetime lost in a thousand days / Through the fire and the flames we carry on" - Through the Fire and Flames, Dragonforce
Chapter Eight
"Who are you?" Lynn asked, her sword at the man's throat,
"I'm... Linebeck..." he choked, dropping the green diamond,
"And you thought that you could loot this place now that everyone's gone?" Lynn demanded angrily,
"Please Miss, I'm just a simple man, I found this treasure, and as there was no one about, I took it," he smiled guiltily, before bowing low, "Miss, I have seen the errors of my ways! Please allow me to show my gratitude to you by offering my services!"
"Services? What are you talking about?" Lynn asked suspiciously, but replaced her sword and shield on her back,
"I saw you arrive on horseback. If you would kindly transport me to the other side of the woods, I will let you keep a fine horse carriage that I have in my possession, in case you take on any more passengers," Linebeck straightened up, "And I would be more than happy to help you in any way I can until such a time as you think I have repaid my debt,"
"Well, that would be useful, you have a deal," she said, Linebeck looked at her hopefully, before she added coldly, "But you're leaving anything you found, otherwise the deal is off and I leave you here. Now, drop anything else you've got and come with me," she left, heading back towards the tree-house.
Linebeck, after reluctantly parting with his treasure, followed Lynn, huffing and puffing as he struggled to catch up.
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As Lynn arrived back at the tree-house, the door swung open, Skye floating in the doorway holding a key.
"Who's this?" Zelda asked, turning her attention away from Epona,
"Epona heard him, I found him rooting through one of the abandoned houses for money. He's offering a carriage in exchange for forgiveness and transport through the woods, though he has promised to stick around until I think he has repaid his debt," Lynn looked at Linebeck, "So, you go and get your carriage and bring it here, and attach it to Epona. And don't even think about running away, or I will hunt you down and gut you like a pig," she glared angrily at him as he sheepishly went to fetch the carriage,
"I haven't you seen you this angry since you punched Nohan, what's up?" Zelda asked,
"Nothing, I just don't like seeing people get away with things," Lynn said grumpily,
"Did you really mean it? Will you gut him like a pig?" Zelda asked worriedly,
Lynn just grinned, "Of course I didn't mean it! I promised myself I would never kill anyone, I just need him to stay true to his word, and the threat of his guts outside of his body seems to motivate him,"
"Hello! I've been waiting here and this key is getting heavy," Skye shouted at the pair of them, making them both jump before climbing the ladder into Lynn's ancestral home.
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The inside of the house had a simple layout. There was a table, a few pictures hanging on the wall, the images hidden by dust, and a few boxes. A ladder led up to a small area where a bed was situated, and another ladder in the corner, leading to a cellar.
There was a letter on the table. Opening it, Lynn found it was addressed to her, written in the same hand-writing as the one hidden in the diaries, signifying that it was from her mother.
Alynnedé,
If you have made it here, then you are in your ancestral home. This is the place many journeys began. I left you at the orphanage because I didn't know where else to leave you. I hope you will forgive your mothers weakness.
This house contains any information that still survives from our family, including any artefacts our ancestors left behind. It is my only hope that you live a long peaceful life, and find your-
The letter ended abruptly, the rest having crumbled away with time.
"Find my what?" Lynn asked herself, putting the letter delicately in her pocket, before turning to Zelda and Skye, "Lets have a look around, see what we can find," she said brightly,
It wasn't long before they found something,
"What's this?" Skye asked as she rubbed the dust off a framed document, "It's got all names on it, and lines connecting the names,"
Lynn bounded over to take a look, rubbing the majority of the dust off, "It's a lot more complete than mine," she got out her notebook and started filling the gaps in her family tree. Once she'd finished she realised something, "I have a brother out there somewhere,"
"What?" Zelda took a look at the family tree, "Well, I'll be damned,"
On the last line in the tree, where Lynn's full name, Alynnedé, was marked, another name was marked next to it, the birthdate three years before her own, and a name she had found in the library, Dyllan.
"Hang on, didn't that letter say you were the last in the line?" Zelda asked, scratching her head,
"My mother could have meant 'most recent' or something, but there's nothing on this to indicate that he's not alive," Lynn replied, carefully replacing the now dust-free family tree on it's hook on the wall.
"This place needs a good clean up," Zelda said, looking around, "I think this might be a good place to make our base of operations, and we'll have a bunch of information to fall back on. Also, if I go with you, and you get stopped, I'm more likely to be recognised and taken back home, and I'll just get in the way in a combat situation," she fished around in a pocket, before pulling out a blue stone that was tied by a piece of string, "Take this with you, it's something I found in one of the secret rooms in the castle once, there is a pair, and I have the other. The magic inside them allows us to converse freely between the stones, so if I find anything I'll be able to let you know,"
Lynn took the stone, and tied it around her neck, "Thank you," she looked at the stone, before a thought popped into her head, "What about food, how are you-?" she began to say, before being interrupted by Zelda,
"I can look after myself you know, I have been taught to recognise edible shrubs and mushrooms, and there's a small lake around here. If worst comes to worse I'll ask you to buy some food if you're in town," Zelda smiled encouragingly, "Now go on, before that man decides to make a break for it,"
Lynn grinned mischievously, pulled Zelda into a quick hug as a goodbye, and left the tree-house, Skye in close pursuit.
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Outside, Linebeck was leaning against Epona, having dragged a carriage all the way up from the village before attaching it to her. It was a simple cart, a round wooden framework with a waterproof white canvas over it.
"So, where'd you get this?" Lynn asked,
Linebeck quickly jumped to attention, "My father bought it, and passed it on to me. Unfortunately, as I was resting up near the village my horse bolted, and disappeared into the woods. I'd heard terrible rumours about straying away from the path, so I didn't dare leave to find out,"
"Rumours?" Lynn asked Skye, who was fluttering about her head,
"Age old stories, about people who wonder into the forest and fall under it's curse. They turn into Stalfos, animated skeletons. They no longer think or feel, it's truly a fate worse than death, your soul trapped to walk the earth forever more," Skye said, grinning maliciously as she saw Linebeck's terrified expression, "What's the matter Becky? Scared of a little ghost story?"
"Hey, don't call me Becky!" Linebeck shouted at the fairy indignantly, much to Skye's delight,
"Come on, don't start fighting now, it's a long trip and I don't want to be stopping every five minutes to separate you two," Lynn laughed, before extending a hand to Linebeck, "I'm Alynnedé, my friends call me Lynn, but you haven't earned that right yet,"
"Yes, Miss Alynnedé," Linebeck stuttered awkwardly,
Skye found it incredibly amusing watching the grown man quiver under the young woman's gaze.
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Lynn had unsaddled Epona, instead using her to pull the cart, while Lynn, Linebeck and Skye remained in the carriage, Lynn guiding the horse using the reins.
"So Linebeck, what brought you to Ordon in the first place?" Lynn asked conversationally,
Linebeck jumped as his name was mentioned, much to Skye's delight, but replied, "I heard a rumour that Ordon Pumpkins were selling exceptionally well, but while demand had increased, supplies had run short, and I thought I could capitalise on this and collect some to sell, however, when I arrived here there was nothing left. Everyone had left about a year ago because of some monster attack. And then my horse ran away, leaving me stranded here. I'd been near the village for about a week, surviving on what little food I'd brought with me and anything I could find in the village," he finished, his green eyes downcast,
"Right," Lynn looked out ahead of her, when Skye flew out in front of her, "Skye? What's wrong?"
"We have to stop here," Skye said urgently,
"What? Why?"
"We just do, follow me!" the small fluttering girl whizzed out of the carriage, Lynn following behind.
Lynn looked back at Linebeck, "Aren't you coming?"
The man whimpered, "No, I, uh, have to look after the carriage, yes, the carriage, and the horse,"
"Right..." Lynn said, before making an imperceptible nod at Epona, part of a system she'd established with the horse long ago. Epona snorted, and dug her feet into the dirt. She would now not move until Lynn returned.
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Lynn followed Skye through bushes, ducking under branches and climbing over large roots, until they reached a cave mouth.
"What's this?" Lynn asked, gasping for breath,
"I can hear a whispering, something calling for me," Skye shook her head, "All I know is that we
have to go in,"
"Right, well, I guess if we must, we must," Lynn said, unsheathing her sword.