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jinxedruby · 2 months ago

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Whumptober Day Twenty-One: Spirit Possession

Featuring Wind and Warriors.

Heads up for some violence and injury in this one

AO3

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Dead and dried ivy vines crept along the ruined stone walls, their brown and fallen leaves clustering in the corners. A low breeze swept through the ruins, sending the leaves tumbling across one another with soft clatters. Sunlight filtered through the holey ceiling, illuminating the dirty ground in patches. Wind reached a corner and leaned around it to see Sky at the other far end, doing the same. The sailor waved and Sky returned the gesture.

“Anything interesting on your guys’ end?” Sky called.

“Just dirt,” Wind hollered back.

“Same for us.” Sky turned to look over his shoulder. Wind heard his and another Link’s voices, too far away and quiet to make out any words. Sky turned back to yell again. “Collector thinks this definitely used to be a dungeon!”

“Found some old puzzles,” Legend’s voice drifted around Sky’s corner. “Watch your step!”

“You hear him?” Sky asked.

Wind flashed him a thumbs-up. “We’ll keep looking around!”

Once Sky nodded, Wind turned away, heading down the other intersection. The hall got much darker down that way, foliage and vegetation filling the holes in the ceiling and subduing the sun. Even so, the bright blue of Warriors’ scarf stood out against the dimness, cloth ruffling as the captain walked.

“Hey, Captain!” Wind called, jogging to catch up. Warriors stopped and turned, arching a brow. “Just saw Sky! He says Collector says these are dungeon ruins.”

“Dungeon, huh?” Warriors planted his hands on his hips as he took a look around them. “Anything I should be on the lookout for?”

Wind grinned as he came to a stop beside Warriors. He bounced slightly, eager to share his expertise. “Well, Collector said they found some old puzzles. So, we gotta keep an eye out for traps and stuff. The place is ruined so we might not have much to worry about, but…”

Wind’s sentence petered out as his gaze fell on a dark patch in the floor a little ways ahead. His grin faded.

“What is it?” Warriors asked, following his gaze.

Wind motioned for Warriors to stay put. Placing a hand on his sword hilt, he crept closer to the patch, squinting to try and get a better view of it. It didn’t so much as twitch even as he got closer. His eyes darted to the ceiling, but nothing up above seemed capable of casting a shadow like that. He focused on the patch again. He couldn’t shake the familiarity he felt while looking at it. A frown tugged at the corners of his lips, grip on his sword tightening. He stepped closer.

The patch shrank and vanished. Before he had time to question what happened, Warriors gasped from behind him. He whirled, whipping his sword out of its scabbard. The darkness bloomed beneath Warriors’ feet. He skipped sideways, reaching for his sword. A large black and pink arm snaked out of the dark puddle, looming over Warriors. Wind’s eyes widened. He bolted forward, a shout on his tongue. The floormaster struck like a snake, latching around Warriors’ chest. Then it hauled him into the air, a startled cry leaping from the captain’s throat. Wind dove. He collided with Warriors just as the floormaster dragged him downwards. He barely managed to hook one hand around Warriors’ belt, the other beneath his spaulder. Then the hand yanked them into the hole.

Wind’s eyes snapped shut on reflex as gravity twisted and warped around him. He tightened his hold on Warriors, his and the captain’s shouts echoing in the lack of space around them. His body stretched and squashed and he choked on the nothing pulling them apart.

Gravity jerked taut. Wind gasped as his feet went over his head. His stomach flipped right along with him before he collided with Warriors. They rolled once, twice, then landed in a tangle of limbs, Wind ending up sprawled across the captain’s chest. Warriors groaned beneath him, chest rumbling against Wind’s middle. Wind lifted his head in a daze, blinking the stars from his vision. The orange, flickering light of torches illuminated the room around them. Pale shapes hovered beside the torches and Wind squinted, pushing himself up. The flames bobbed gently in place and his heart sped up.

“Monsters,” he murmured, hauling himself off of Warriors and shifting into a kneel. Warriors shoved himself up to a sitting position, looking around with a grimace as he kneaded one temple with his knuckles. Wind reached back for his sword. His hand hit empty air and he froze. He patted the hollow scabbard for a moment, eyes widening. Then he whipped around, frantically searching the nearby floor. Frustration and panic began to mount as he saw no sign of his sword, but far too many lanterns encircling them. He recalled having his sword in hand when he grabbed Warriors. When he grabbed Warriors with both hands.

“Sailor, what are these things?” Warriors muttered, carefully moving to his feet and drawing his sword.

“Poes.” Wind reached into his pouch, searching for his bow. “But you can’t hurt them when they’re see-through like this.”

Warriors stood back-to-back with Wind, unhooking his shield. “So, how-”

“Light makes them solid.” Wind pulled out his bow and drew on his magic as he nocked an arrow. Light bloomed on the tip.

He felt Warriors shift behind him, the captain twisting to glance at him. “You shoot, I take them down?”

Wind nodded. As the light grew on the arrowhead, the lanterns shifted, the masks of the poes turning and chattering lowly. “Get rid of it quickly, though. It’ll go in your head and make your sense of balance all weird.”

Warriors gave a curt nod. Wind drew back the arrow, nudging Warriors as he aimed at one of the poes.

“Go!” Wind yelled as he released the string.

Warriors bolted at the same time the light arrow pierced the poe. It shrieked, lantern falling from its grip and shattering into a plume of fire on the floor. Warriors reached it just as it became solid, cutting it down in two swift strikes. Wind yanked another arrow back, aiming for the next closest one to Warriors. The first shot seemed to flip a switch, every poe jumping to action. He let the arrow fly before a poe forced him to dodge to the side. He heard Warriors’ sword make contact as he sidestepped a poe’s swinging lantern. Quickly, he fired another arrow, striking a ghost by the captain. He ducked another attack, tried to shoot again. A second poe dove at him before he could, forcing him to skip back. Then a third, and a fourth, and Wind’s actions reduced to dodging and running.

He leapt out of the range of one lantern only to be hit by another from behind. Pain burst in his shoulder at the impact and he yelped, stumbling forward. An ethereal wail preceded a lantern sweeping from the corner of his vision. Flames seared across his arm, chewing through his sleeve and digging into his skin. He screamed, staggering and falling onto his back. He jerked onto his side, shoving his still flaming sleeve against the ground, quashing the fire. Pale masks and burning light appeared over him. He threw his good arm over his head, bracing for a hit.

He heard a bellow instead. Yellow light flashed, footsteps pounding nearer. Warriors spun over him in a blur, sword shining brightly. Every poe his blade hit turned solid, shrieking and scattering, lanterns smashing against the floor. Heat pressed against Wind on all sides from the lingering flames. He shoved himself up, tears springing into his eyes as the motion pulled at his burned flesh. As he staggered to his feet, he swapped his bow for his skull hammer. Warriors raced past him, deftly darting around the flames. He plunged his sword through the back of one of the fleeing poes. He lunged for the next one without missing a beat, quickly dispatching that one as well. Wind turned, searching for the nearest ghost. He sprinted toward one, swinging his hammer out in front of him once close enough. The ghost wailed, turning transparent and drifting away into the ceiling. Wind spun to attack the next one, then the next. He cast a cursory glance about, a sense of triumph rushing over him when he saw the monsters thinning out. He turned farther, searching for Warriors. His heart stopped.

The remaining poes congregated around Warriors, closing in on him as he took out the solid ones. Frantically, Wind traded his hammer for his bow. Gritting his teeth against the pain in his arm, he yanked a light arrow back and launched it. The arrow exploded against the poe in a bright flash. Its radius illuminated a couple nearby poes just enough to make them drop their lanterns, but not enough to turn them solid. Wind shot the first poe with two normal arrows in quick succession, defeating it. The other two drifted toward Warriors. The remaining poes occupied all of Warriors’ attention and he didn’t notice the approach of the transparent ones. Wind’s eyes stretched wide as he realized what was about to happen.

“Captain!” he shouted, lurching forward into a run.

Warriors cut down a poe and glanced back at Wind’s shout. His eyes darted to the movement of the lantern-less poes. He held up his shield and stepped backwards, sword beginning to glow. The nearest poe phased through his shield and dove into his chest.

Warriors stumbled and Wind’s heart lodged in his throat. Warriors’ arms went slack, boots spreading apart to keep himself upright as he teetered dangerously. The remaining poes swarmed him. Wind forced through the pain to nock another arrow, expecting the ghosts to attack Warriors in his vulnerable state. But they didn’t. Instead, they circled around him, laughing and chittering. For a long moment, Warriors just stood there, eyes wide, lips parted in shock. Wind slowed to draw back the arrow.

Warriors shrieked. The sound pierced Wind’s soul and he froze. Warriors staggered, face twisting. He screwed his eyes shut and slammed his palm against his temple, nearly clipping his face with his shield as he did. He gave his head a rough shake, staggered. The poes circled faster, wailed louder. Wind watched in mounting horror. Warriors hunched over with a groan before his back snapped ramrod straight, eyes flying open. A dull, purple glow emanated from them. Then it flickered and the captain whined. He drove the heel of his hand into his temple again. Then the other lantern-less poe vanished into his chest. A strangled cry left his throat. His sword hand jerked. For one, terrifying moment, Wind thought the poes were going to make the captain kill himself. Then his hand stilled, body going stiff. His eyes popped open again. The purple glow had gained strength. A cold feeling flooded Wind’s veins. He stepped back involuntarily.

Gleaming purple eyes darted up to him. His heart clutched, breath freezing in his lungs. Warriors took a halting step toward him and the panic finally set in. Wind let out a breathless curse. He forced his trembling legs to cooperate, backpedaling and wracking his brain. What do I do, what do I do, what do I- This had never happened to him. He’d always just found it near impossible to walk when the poes entered him before. It had never… they’d never…

Warriors broke into a clumsy run and Wind yelped, darting away. The poes chattered, zipping after him. One streaked in front of him and he nearly fell over as he changed direction, scrambling away. His breath grew ragged in his throat, the sound of Warriors’ footfalls growing steadier and more confident with each step. Blood roared in Wind’s ears. He’d seen how fast Warriors could sprint. The captain would outpace him easily. Even so, he ran, gaze darting around for a way out of the room. He spotted a pile of rubble beneath where the ceiling had collapsed in one area. He veered toward it. Maybe it wouldn’t be a way out, but it would at least give him some kind of advantage. The poes probably wouldn’t be able to coordinate Warriors’ body enough to climb-

Another poe soared into his path. He ducked under one swing, sidestepped into the path of another. A lantern cracked across his chest, sending him staggering. Gritting his teeth, he painfully drew back a light arrow. He fired it into the nearest poe, following up with a normal arrow and slaying the creature. Footsteps slammed against the stone far too close behind him. He bolted forward again, dodging around the remaining poe. He hazarded a glance over his shoulder. His heart jolted at how close Warriors had gotten. He whipped his head back around, spurred his legs on even faster. He shot down another poe that tried to stop him. He could hear Warriors drawing closer, could practically feel the captain’s breath on the back of his neck.

He barely stopped himself from crashing headlong into the pile of rubble. He planted one foot up on a low piece of debris jutting out, reached up with his good hand for another higher up. A choking cry sounded behind him. He snapped his head around just in time to see a sword stabbing toward his head. He jerked to the side, the blade lodging into the rubble just beside his ear. Before he could move again, Warriors’ free hand shot out and caught him by the throat. Wind raked in a gasp before Warriors’ fingers tightened, shoving the sailor back against the rubble. He scrabbled at Warriors’ hand, eyes wide, mind numb with panic.

The purple in the captain’s eyes flickered slightly. His expression flinched, hand loosening. Wind managed to drag in a breath before the glow strengthened again along with Warriors’ grip. Wind’s bow fell from his fingers. He reached up with both hands, struggling to pry Warriors’ fingers away from his throat. Pressure built in his head, black specks darting along the edges of his vision.

The glow flickered again, more strongly. Warriors’ grasp loosened, brow scrunching, mouth pulling back in a grimace. “I- I c- no- can’t-can’t-can’t- s-s- RUN!”

He tore his hand away from Wind’s neck, staggering back. Wind coughed and spluttered, throat burning. He risked snatching his bow off the floor as Warriors clutched his own face and screamed into his hands. Wind spun around and vaulted up the rubble pile. A shriek tore from Warriors’ throat, hand swiping at Wind as the sailor clambered up. His fingers raked past Wind’s ankle, missing and crashing into the debris. Wind’s breaths came short and rapid, wounded arm stinging horribly as he hurled himself up to the top of the pile. He hauled himself over the ledge and hastily pulled his legs up. He scurried back away from it, breathing hard. From below, he heard Warriors hissing, small clatters accompanying the sound. Cautiously, Wind scooted to the edge and peered over. The glow had returned to Warriors’ eyes in full force. He tried to climb but kept fumbling, making it only one step before skidding back down to the floor.

Wind moved back out of sight, gasping. He pressed a hand to his forehead, struggling to get his panic under control. He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t know what to do. In the past, the poe would just leave him after a short while. But those two had been in Warriors much longer than usual. Were the poes empowered in the same way as the black-blooded monsters? Was that even possible? As Wind heard the poes attempting to puppet Warriors’ body up the rubble, he thought that it probably was.

A poe drifted up in front of him. He swore, scrambling back. He hastily fired a light arrow at it, feeling the pull of the magic loss in his core. Two arrows later and the poe dissipated upwards, defeated. An idea sparked in Wind’s mind. His heart stilled. With a swallow, he crawled back to the edge. A quick glance around the room told him that that had been the last poe. He glanced down. Warriors had stopped trying to climb, instead working on prying his sword free from where it had lodged in the debris earlier. Wind swallowed again, throat burning. His arms shook as he drew another arrow back. He lowered it to center on Warriors. His arms trembled from something other than pain.

Warriors’ sword came free and he stumbled back. Once he’d regained his footing, he held the sword up, the glow of his eyes glimmering off the blade. Then he reversed his hold on it and settled the tip against his throat.

Wind released the bowstring with a scream. Warriors’ eyes flicked up, arm tensing. The arrow slammed into his shoulder at the same time his sword struck. Light blinded Wind momentarily. He scrambled to his feet, blinking the spots of red from his vision as quickly as he could, desperate to see Warriors. Twin wails reached his ears. The two poes streaked upwards, now solid. Fury flooded Wind. He tore his skull hammer out of his pouch. With a roar, he leapt off the rubble pile. He wrenched the hammer around, the head slamming into both poes with one strike. They dissipated with chattering moans. Wind tucked into a roll as he hit the ground. He rolled across his burned arm and yelped, failing to get up and sprawling out on his back. He forced himself up onto one elbow, yelping through gritted teeth.

Warriors’ motionless form lay collapsed in front of him.

Wind sucked in a breath. He forced himself up and forward. He staggered over to Warriors, heart fluttering uncomfortably behind his ribs. As he drew closer, he saw something reddish-brown soaking into Warriors’ hair, puddling beneath his head. Wind’s breath hitched. He fell to his knees next to the captain. Warriors’ scarf covered his neck, having crumpled there when he fell. Terror gnawed at Wind’s gut, nausea rising in his throat. He reached a trembling hand toward the scarf, terrified to see, terrified to know. He peeled the scarf up.

A long gash ran along the side of Warriors’ neck, steadily seeping blood across jagged edges of flesh. The side. Wind gasped, plunging his good hand into his pouch. His fingers closed around a bottle and he yanked it out. The soft pink light within it shone across Warriors’ pale face. Wind tore the cork out. The fairy instantly darted over to the captain, settling on his jaw. Its glow brightened and the bleeding halted before slowly reversing. The blood still on Warriors’ neck trickled back into the wound before it began to seal shut. Wind twisted his hands in the captain’s scarf, muttering please, please under his breath over and over again. The arrow Wind had fired pushed up and out of Warriors’ shoulder as the fairy healed the flesh beneath it, the projectile rolling off him and onto the floor. After what felt like an eternity, the fairy’s glow dimmed again. It remained stalled on Warriors’ jaw for a moment before taking to the air and zipping away through the collapsed ceiling. Wind didn’t take his eyes off of Warriors’ face, grip tightening on the scarf. His chest felt too tight to take in any air, heart thudding in his ears.

Warriors stirred, eyelids fluttering. Wind gasped, leaning forward.

“Captain?” he said breathlessly, voice tight. “Captain?”

Warriors’ throat bobbed as he swallowed before taking in a shallow breath. He rolled his head to the side to look upwards, eyelids cracking open. Blue eyes settled on Wind, slightly glazed.

“S...Sailor?” Warriors croaked.

A broken laugh forced its way out of Wind. He tipped forward and shoved his face into Warriors’ chest, muffling his sob in the captain’s tunic.

A hitched, anguished, quiet sound left Warriors. Wind felt him shift before arms settled around him.

“S-sorry,” Warriors whispered, voice raspy from screaming itself hoarse. “Sailor, I-I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I-”

“It’s okay.” Wind’s voice warbled with emotion. He shook his head, still buried in Warriors’ chest, trying to rein in the tears. “It’s o- it’s okay. It’s okay.”

He could think of nothing else to say, exhausted and trembling from leftover panic and adrenaline. Apparently, Warriors could think of nothing else to say either, stammering out another apology. Wind shifted, hooking an arm around Warriors’ neck and pressing himself as close as possible, trying and failing to still his shivering. Warriors tightened his hold on him in response, arms trembling against Wind’s back.

#funnily enough I planned to do this one for day twenty-two before realizing twenty-one's prompt fit my idea way better lol #linked universe #linked universe fic #ruby writes #linked universe fanfic #whumptober #whumptober 2024 #lu wind #lu warriors

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