#Finger Seizure | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

alicewritingstories · 1 year ago

Text

Whumptober Prompt Fills Part 1: Memories

~~Also on AO3!~~

Prompts:

No. 1: “But now this room is spinning while I’m trying just to fill in all the gaps.” | Safety Net | Swooning | “How many fingers am I holding up?”

No. 6: “Do or die, you’ll never make me; Because the world will never take my heart.” | Recording | Made to Watch | “It should have been me.”

No. 7: “I paced around for hours on empty; I jumped at the slightest of sounds.” | Alleyway | Radio Silence | “Can you hear me?”

No. 11: “All the lights going dark and my hope’s destroyed.” | Animal trap | Captivity | “No one will find you.”

Warnings: Kidnapping, memory issues, seizure, torture

Central character(s): Legend, Twilight, Warriors

Warriors didn't know what had happened. One moment he'd been following the trail of some monsters towards a village, trying to judge their numbers and if they were part of a larger group the Chain was planning to intercept; the next, he was tied to one of the pillars of a ruined building, face to face with a hooded figure.

"Who are you?" he demanded. He didn't expect an answer, in the circumstances, but it was as good a show of determination as any.

Sure enough, the figure reached out a long-fingered hand and cupped it under his chin, forcing his head back against the pillar with surprising force so his jaw was held shut. He shuddered. It was like being touched by a corpse.

"You had best dismiss all notions of having any power here," the figure said in a whispering, hissing voice. "I am the one who cast your mind into darkness and silence while I brought you here. I am the one who has drawn a barrier around this place that no magic can pierce or escape so that no one will find you. You live and die at my command."

Warriors gritted his teeth, hiding the sinking feeling in his gut. Magic tracking aside - he didn't even think that was an option for any of his brothers - he didn't even know how far he'd been taken or how long he'd been under whatever spell had been used to subdue him. It might have been days. He could be on the other side of Hyrule. The others would search, but the figure might still be right that they wouldn't find him in time to rescue him.

"You travel with the hero. The one who slew our master and holds the key to his return. Tell me what I wish to know of him and I will release you unharmed with my thanks. Refuse and I will pierce the connection between your mind and your body to cause you such exquisite pain as would bring you to the point of death if it were caused by knife or flame. Continue to resist me and I will rip what I want from your mind." The grip on his chin tightened and the hissing voice lowered as the figure leaned closer, their breath as deathlike as their flesh. They raised their other hand to a jewel hanging around their neck. "I advise you not to force me to rip knowledge from your mind. That is the work of a claw, not a knife, and I care not what other damage I may do."

Warriors swallowed anxiously, but then steeled himself again. They were in Hyrule's era, so he was presumably the one this creature wanted, not that it made much difference to his response. As soon as the figure let go of him, he said, "I will not betray my friend."

The figure laughed, closed their fingers around the jewel, then touched a finger to his chest and set him on f i r e.

~~~

When Warriors was more than an hour late to the rendezvous, it was clear something had happened and Time had made the decision quickly to split the group again. The monsters massing outside the village couldn't wait, but none of them wanted to abandon Warriors to an entirely unknown fate, especially with the possibility that if they won the battle a portal would open immediately. Normally they got a day or two's respite, but not always. If Warriors was alive he would get a portal too and be able to join them, but if he was dead and they were portalled away they might never even know what had happened. Nobody wanted to risk that possibility. So while the others prepared to face the monsters, Twilight and Legend set out on Warriors' trail, following the occasional tracks of his boots in the moist soil from where they'd set off as best they could. Where the tracks were harder to spot, Twilight used the fact that even in his normal hylian form he retained a sharp sense of smell and he could pick up at least the faint remains of a familiar scent left behind on occasional branches Warriors had touched to push them aside.

All seemed well until they reached a spot where it looked like Warriors had simply collapsed, flattening the muddy grass. The remaining marks were torn by the tracks of two or three large, clawed feet heading off into the forest.

"No blood," said Twilight, crouching to look more closely even though he could already tell by smell.

"That's even weirder," said Legend. "Why would he just go down like that? There's no sign of a fight." After a moment's hesitation he added, "He didn't look like he was hurt bad enough to faint, though he could have been hiding it."

Twilight could hear some very hypocritical judgment in Legend's tone and raised an eyebrow at him.

"Don't start," said Legend with a huff. "So which way did they go?"

Twilight pointed even as he got up. "Moblins will be easier to track than Warriors."

"And you're sure they took him?"

Twilight couldn't smell Warriors past the place where he'd collapsed - the smell of the moblins was too strong - but he was still sure. "Theirs are the only tracks more recent than his."

Legend nodded and followed him into the forest.

***

They followed the tracks for another couple of hours, almost at a run; Twilight couldn't help thinking that a child could have followed these, let alone an experienced traveler like him. He didn't even need his sharp sense of smell. Did the moblins think nobody would try to find Warriors, or was this a trap?

He was about to turn and ask Legend's opinion when the air was cut by a desperate, high-pitched scream of agony from somewhere ahead, only just close enough to hear.

They exchanged a horrified glance. They might be on their own quest, but though they were friends and brothers they were heroes first. Warriors was going to have to wait while they helped whoever that was. He'd understand.

Twilight pulled out a bow while Legend slipped on a power bracelet and snatched his ice rod from his bag. Then they broke into a sprint even as another distant shriek shattered the quiet of the forest.

It took no time at all and yet an eternity before they reached a ruined building. Distantly, Twilight noticed that they were still following the moblin tracks. A horrible possibility started to kindle in his mind.

The screams didn't sound like Warriors.

But he didn't even know what Warriors would sound like if he screamed like that.

He caught Legend's eye, then pointed to himself and a nearby doorway. Legend nodded, readying the rod to cover him as needed but staying a couple of steps behind and looking around.

As Twilight peered around the doorway, he heard another desperate cry, descending into breathless, hoarse sobs.

His heart stopped.

Warriors.

Tied to a pillar at the far end of the building.

His face twisted in agony as blood mixed with spit ran from the corner of his mouth to mingle with the sweat and tears on his cheek.

As Twilight watched, the hooded figure standing over him leaned closer to speak in his ear. He shook his head and his voice once again rang loud and desperate, but now Twilight could hear the word "No!" repeated defiantly over and over again before it warped into more screams.

He had an arrow to the string before he had even thought about it and loosed at the hooded figure.

The arrow pinged off an invisible barrier.

"Rancher!"

Legend was beside him. The gray tint of his face told Twilight his brother had seen the same thing he had.

"There's a magical barrier. I'm going to break it," he said through his teeth. "Be ready!"

Then he darted through the doorway.

Twilight took a shaky breath and tried to stay calm as Warriors screamed again, the sound twisting into a choking noise before the hooded figure eased back and let him relax, his head falling forward, blood once again oozing thickly from his lips.

Twilight ground his teeth together helplessly.

"Legend?"

"Working on it."

Twilight looked back at poor Warriors. "Hurry…" he muttered.

~~~

Legend had his hands pressed against the barrier, feeling out the shape of the magic. It was like a brick wall, hard and solid, but with weaker fissures through it that could be broken.

Another scream made him flinch and he took a steadying breath, trying to keep his focus. He had to break this wall. Then they could save Warriors. In the meantime, Twilight just had to keep watching and he just had to keep listening.

He took another deep breath and focussed on the magic of the wall, working his own magic into it like tree roots, following the fissures. Another agonized howl from Warriors made him flinch, but he just managed to hold the construct together. He could almost feel Twilight shuddering with frustrated rage, but he forced himself to keep breathing deeply, prying apart the wall, slow and steady and ignore the fact that your brother's being tortured a few yards away from you and…

There!

The wall sprang into shards. Legend stumbled back. Twilight loosed an arrow that whizzed past his ear and struck the hooded figure's loose robe, making them spin round.

"Get away from him!" yelled Twilight.

For a second, Legend locked eyes with Warriors. His brother's face twisted into a parody of his usual smile as his tear-filled eyes brightened with recognition and relief, though the moment was over as quickly as it had come.

"The jewel!" he shouted hoarsely, but that was all he managed before his captor shoved a fold of his scarf into his mouth and pressed a hand to his forehead. He screamed again, the sound muffled to a squeal by the makeshift gag, then his eyes rolled back and he went rigid in his bonds. The hooded figure yelled an order and the moblins that Legend had known must be around somewhere burst in, ready with bows and huge spiked clubs. Four of them. Legend and Twilight exchanged a quick glance. Not even enough time for a plan. Not with too many moblins bearing down on them and the torture continuing. Twilight raised his bow again and Legend ran forward.

Two moblins to his right stumbled under an onslaught of ice as he swung the rod. In a fluid movement, he tucked it into his belt and drew his sword instead. The nearest moblin stumbled with one of Twilight's arrows in its chest and Legend took advantage of its distraction with a quick lunge. The fourth was hanging back, bow in hand, and Legend just managed not to duck as an arrow whirred past his head, aimed for where Twilight was still standing.

Hopefully the lack of a cry of pain was a good sign.

As Legend parried a flurry of blows from the moblin and noticed the two he had frozen starting to struggle out of the ice, the silence hit him again. His blood ran cold.

No cries of pain.

Warriors was no longer screaming.

Legend prayed to whoever might be listening that he'd just finally passed out and there wasn't a more sinister reason for his silence, but as he dodged round the moblin and looked he could see that Warriors wasn't limp in unconsciousness. Tightly bound as he was it was difficult to tell, but Legend could see him twitching against the ropes, trying to thrash. The hooded figure still had their hand pressed to his head, holding it against the pillar, but Legend could see his eyes, open, rolled back.

There was no time to focus on that as the two moblins he'd frozen finally broke out of the ice and headed straight for him. He stumbled backwards, almost scrambling out of the way as the one he'd been fighting brought its club down with a crash right where he'd been standing.

Twilight dodged in beside him, catching another blow on his shield with a grunt and slashing across the moblin's face, making it reel to its knees with a scream and finishing it with a single stab to the throat.

There was no time for Legend to thank him; he rammed his sword to the hilt in the next moblin's chest, then pulled it out, stumbling with the momentum, and swapped the sword for the ice rod; they were being swarmed and needed the crowd control. Under the cover of his own shield and Twilight's he swung the rod again and froze two of the remaining moblins, one in the act of bringing its club round towards Twilight's back.

Twilight cut the throat of the one Legend had stabbed and Legend swore as he saw it start to fall forward, seeing what was about to happen.

He couldn't pull Twilight out of the way in time.

The moblin fell hard, crushing Twilight under its bulk. Legend swore again and stabbed it to finish it off. As it dissolved into smoke, he dropped his shield, sheathed his sword, and pulled Twilight back to his feet, aware of every wasted second as the ice thawed and Warriors suffered.

"OK?" he asked.

Twilight nodded, snatching up his dropped sword. "Just winded."

Then the ice broke and the two surviving moblins descended on them again. Legend backed up a step, reaching for his own sword and shield.

Twilight stepped between him and the moblins, but he was still catching his breath and one smashed its club into his shield, sending him stumbling. The other brought its club down towards Legend's face.

He still didn't have his shield properly on his arm.

Instinctively, he dropped it and brought up his hands, catching the heavy, spiked club before it impacted.

He felt the bones in his hands and wrists break before the pain hit. When it came, it felt like he'd grabbed burning coals. He screamed as he dropped to his knees, his head swimming.

Don't let go!

With a yell, Twilight sliced down at the moblin's arms, making it drop the club with a howl. Legend fell too, torn between the temptation to look at the damage and the knowledge that he would definitely faint if he did.

He took a shaking breath. He could still use magic and Twilight was now faced with two opponents. With gritted teeth, he got back to his feet, summoned a glowing magical shield, and steered it to guard Twilight's back. Twilight shifted to face one moblin, trusting Legend to keep defending him as best he could.

Legend kept his teeth gritted, his breath coming fast and sharp. He didn't have to move his hands too much for this spell, but even when he kept them still they hurt more than enough.

Twilight felled the first moblin and with a breath Legend moved the shield to defend his head from above. He staggered as the moblin brought its club down on the shield, but that left an opening for Twilight to kill it.

As soon as it started to dissolve, Legend stumbled to his knees, cradling his broken, lacerated hands as best he could. Twilight crashed to his knees next to him, already holding an open potion bottle.

"Drink, Vet," he said, holding it towards Legend's face.

"The… the monster…" stammered Legend, his head spinning with pain.

"Fled. Now drink."

"Wars… check on -"

"Drink!" snapped Twilight.

Legend let him put the bottle to his mouth and swallowed the sweet, cloying liquid inside. At once, the pain started to fade, replaced by a viscerally-uncomfortable twisting feeling as the bones in his hands moved back into place and the skin closed over them. He gritted his teeth and breathed deeply. The sensation was familiar and would soon pass.

"OK?" asked Twilight.

Legend nodded, taking a deep breath and starting to scramble up. Twilight pulled him to his feet and they ran to the far end of the room where Warriors still stood. Legend ran straight to his side, knife in hand, and started cutting him free while Twilight held him up.

He wasn't moving. He made no attempt to react to their arrival with so much as a twitch.

Legend kept sawing at the ropes, his teeth gritted. It wasn't too late. He refused to even consider the possibility that it was too late.

~~~

When Legend cut the ropes, Warriors collapsed into Twilight's waiting arms. In the circumstances that wasn't a surprise. What was concerning was the way that Warriors' head lolled bonelessly and he made no attempt whatsoever to catch himself. As Twilight lowered him to the ground he was completely limp.

Thinking he'd fainted, Twilight gently rolled him onto his side, but his eyes were open, dull, completely blank as they stared into some unfathomable distance.

"No!" cried Twilight, pulling Warriors' bloodstained scarf out of his mouth and away from his throat so he could slip a trembling hand under it and search for a pulse. It was there, fast and desperate, and he let his head sag forward for a moment in relief.

"What's -" Legend's question died as he stepped round Twilight and saw Warriors' face and those awful, dead eyes.

"He's alive," said Twilight, aware of the tremble in his voice. "I… I think he's just in shock of some kind."

Legend knelt beside him and gave Warriors' shoulder a gentle shake. "Hey, Wars? You in there?"

Warriors' blank expression didn't change.

"Hey!" Legend patted his cheek. "Pretty boy!"

Nothing. Not even a blink.

Twilight slipped a hand under Warriors' chin to close his slack mouth. At least it looked like the blood came from bitten lips, nothing deeper. "Warriors?" he asked as clearly as he could. "Can you hear me?"

Nothing.

Twilight and Legend exchanged a look. Twilight didn't know what to suggest and judging by his expression nor did Legend.

"Well…" said Twilight at last. "Let's at least get him out of here." He gently scooped the limp body into his arms, trying to settle Warriors' head against his shoulder so he was comfortable, though it looked increasingly like the older hylian was so trapped in his own mind that Twilight could have stabbed him and it wouldn't elicit a reaction.

But there was a chance he was still aware even if he couldn't tell them so. Twilight tried to murmur encouraging platitudes, hoping that he was helping at all as he looked again at Warriors' absent expression and blank eyes.

He'd recover soon.

Surely he'd recover soon.

***

They hurried out of the ruins and found their way to a cave, half hidden by bushes. There, Legend pulled out and lit a lantern while Twilight laid Warriors down. Halfway, his eyes had finally drifted closed as he visibly lost consciousness and Twilight could only hope that when he came round he really would come round.

"We can't stay here long," said Legend. "We need to get back to the others."

"I know." Twilight cast a despairing look at Warriors. "I can carry him, but let's give him a little longer to recover."

As if he'd heard them, Warriors stirred. Twilight startled forward, his heart in his mouth, as his brother's eyes fluttered open. They at least looked a little more focussed, but there was no light of recognition in them.

"Wars, can you hear me?" asked Twilight.

Warriors' brow furrowed and he nodded vaguely.

"How many fingers am I holding up?" Legend held up three fingers.

Again, there was a moment's frown, then Warriors finally spoke. "Three." His voice was hoarse, which wasn't a surprise, but it was pitched low, wary. He started to push himself up, his muscles trembling, but when Twilight went to help him he quickly drew away, wincing, shifting the weight of his sword on his back as if to reassure himself it was there or bring it within easier reach.

"Warriors?" asked Twilight. "What's… what's wrong?"

"My name is Link," said Warriors. He raised a hand to his bruised, bloodied lips with wincing care, then lowered it and asked, "Who are you?"

The question hit like a blow from a club. They stared at him for several long moments.

"I… we're your brothers," said Legend at last, his tone somewhere between pain and anger. "Don't you recognise us?"

Warriors' frown deepened. "I don't have any brothers."

Twilight swallowed hard, trying to tamp down the panic. "War- Link. You've been traveling with us for some time now. You were captured by a magic-user or… I don't know what it was, but we rescued you. You… really don't remember any of that?"

Warriors shook his head slowly with another fleeting wince, looking carefully from one to the other of them.

Twilight resisted the urge to gnaw his lip. That particular anxious habit had cost him a lot of blood and pain after his teeth got sharper, but it reared its head from time to time. "OK," he said at last. "Well… you were in a much worse state when we first rescued you, so you are recovering. Perhaps it would be best if you got some more rest and we'll see if anything else returns."

"First, I have questions," said Warriors, a commanding note cutting through the strain in his voice. "Who are you? Where am I? And what happened to my men?"

Legend shook his head slightly and said, "We're travelers. We're out here hunting monsters and we heard…" His voice caught. Twilight's heart also clenched as he once again remembered those screams. "We heard… a commotion. That's when we found the monsters that were holding you and rescued you. I… You were alone."

Twilight sighed heavily. That was probably the best way to handle it for now. "Yeah. We want to help, but in the meantime I do think you should rest a bit more."

Warriors frowned at the ground. "You claimed before that I've been traveling with you for some time. You seemed to know me. Now you say that you just stumbled on the place I was being held." He glanced up with a wry, sarcastic smile. One of his eyes was watering. "So which is it?"

"Both," said Twilight. "We were actually looking for you when we heard screaming… But you don't remember us and don't believe you're our brother…" He stumbled to a halt as he thought again of how clearly Warriors had been suffering, the way he had smiled when he realized he had been found. And now this - all memory of them apparently wiped from his mind.

"Look, you can at least tell we're not planning to hurt you," said Legend, pointing to the sword hilt visible over Warriors' shoulder. "You'd not have woken up unrestrained and armed otherwise. So just trust us for a bit, OK?"

Warriors looked hard at him for a moment, but then reached up and touched the hilt of the sword, reassuring himself. A little tension went out of him, but that just made his wince more obvious as he raised a hand to the watering eye.

"Are you all right?" asked Twilight again.

"Yes. But perhaps… perhaps you're right that I should rest."

"How many fingers am I holding up?" asked Legend, holding up four. "Because you don't look all right."

"F-Four. It's just a headache."

Twilight remembered him trying to thrash against the tight ropes holding him to the pillar, his eyes rolled back in his head. What had that creature done?

"Do you know if I suffered a head injury?" asked Warriors.

"No, and… I don't know what magic was used on you." Twilight glanced at Legend, who also shook his head.

"But if you've got a migraine, it's best if you sleep for now. We'll keep watch."

Warriors looked like he wanted to argue, but now that he'd let his guard down a little it was obvious that he was exhausted. After another moment's hesitation, he nodded and lay down again, drifting immediately into sleep.

Twilight and Legend looked at each other.

"What are we going to do?" asked Legend.

Twilight took a deep breath, trying to steady himself, and carefully spread a blanket over Warriors' still form. "It's… not as if he'll be the only one in the group with a gap in his past. Wild may even be able to help."

"He may not even be willing to come with us." Legend rubbed his forehead with the heel of his hand. "Time was the one who explained before; I'm no good at it."

"OK, well… the main thing is going to be persuading him to come and rejoin the group." Twilight sighed, feeling tears pricking the backs of his eyes. "And maybe he'll remember more after he's had some more sleep. Remember what he was like when we first rescued him. Maybe it'll just take time."

"It's not as if he's got a choice," muttered Legend, a bitterness in his tone that Twilight could well understand. "We're not in his Hyrule. We're his only route home."

Twilight winced, remembering the suspicion in Warriors' eyes. "Well… Let's not tell him that. Maybe he'll remember on his own and if he doesn't I don't want him to think we're holding him prisoner after all."

Legend shot another look at Warriors and nodded. "We'll give it an hour," he said. "Then we should move."

***

As they were preparing to set out again, Twilight heard the rustle of movement under a blanket from behind them and touched Legend's arm. He was almost afraid to see Warriors' face, just in case his eyes were blank again, or filled with suspicion, or something new had happened. But then Warriors groaned softly and they had to look round.

Warriors rolled onto his back with another groan and rubbed his eyes.

"War- Link?" said Twilight anxiously.

Warriors opened his eyes, focussed on Twilight's face, and grinned vaguely. "Did someone let me into the Goron brandy?" he asked. "My head feels like something's made a nest in it." He pushed himself upright, then looked at them again, his smile quickly fading and his eyes going sharp as he once again touched his bitten lips. "Why… What happened? What's wrong?" He looked around. "Where are the others?"

"Do you know who we are?" asked Legend.

Warriors' frown turned confused. "Of course. Legend and Twilight."

Twilight's breath caught and he saw a gleam of tears in Legend's eyes for a moment before the veteran turned away and busied himself with his pack.

"Last time you were awake… you had no idea who we were," explained Twilight. "What's the last thing you remember?" He desperately hoped he wouldn't have to explain again about the kidnapping and relive having to stand and watch while Warriors screamed and screamed under that hooded figure's touch.

"We'd just finished a battle in Four's Hyrule alongside his father and the knights. We were planning to celebrate…" Warriors frowned. "Then… waking up just now."

That had been three weeks and two portals before.

At least it was better than having forgotten everything about his adventures with the Chain.

Warriors apparently guessed the truth from their expressions. "What happened to me?" he asked seriously. "And how much is missing?"

"Three weeks," said Twilight, past the lump in his throat. "We're in Hyrule's era now. You… You…"

Legend jumped in. "You were captured by some sort of magic-user; not something we've seen before. They… were using magic to torture you."

Warriors looked horrified and lost for a moment. "I… don't remember that at all." He touched his mouth again, then looked at his hands, pausing for a moment as he saw the rope burns on his wrists: the only other physical reminder of his ordeal. "Do you know… what they wanted?"

Twilight shook his head. "It sounded like they didn't get it."

"Unless that's what happened to my memories." Warriors rubbed his forehead.

Twilight shivered, remembering how the figure had gagged Warriors and put a hand on his head rather than his chest as before. They had changed something and whatever it was had no longer required Warriors to be able to speak.

And if what they wanted was information on the Chain or one of its members - Hyrule, presumably - they could probably get a lot from three weeks' worth of memories from one of their leaders.

Judging by the grim expressions on Warriors' and Legend's faces, they were thinking something similar.

Warriors took a deep breath and let it out again in a huff. "We'd best rejoin the others," he said, but instead of getting up he took their hands and shot them each a wan, pained-looking smile. "Thank you. I don't remember it, but thank you for rescuing me."

Twilight forced a smile back.

Legend laughed, though there wasn't much humor in it. "I'd say anytime, but I'd rather never have to do it again."

Warriors chuckled. "Well, I promise to do my best."

7 notes · View notes