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Sky stepped down from the ship, joy rising in his chest as he inhaled deeply, infintely grateful that the atmosphere was breathable. It had been ages since they'd found a planet they could safely remove their helmets on, and ut had been so long since he'd been able to enjoy fresh air. His lungs felt stretched and strung out, the oxygen catching in his throat. Hopefully he wasn't getting sick.
Twilight bumped his shoulder as he passed him, a hint of a fang flashing from in between his lips. "Good to be out in the open again, huh?"
Sky nodded. "It's nice. That last warp was painful." He shuddered. Goddess he was so sick of the ship. There was only so many times he could lose poker to Wind before he lost his mind.
"I'll say." The rancher pushed his hair back, scruffing it up a little and scratching at his scalp. His easy smile disappeared the moment he saw the others exit the ship, his expression turning serious. Time nodded to the both of them as he took his place at the head of the group, the cook at his heels.
"We're all here? Good." Wild put his hands on his hips, clearly excited about being able to lead a mission. "Okay, so this is a pretty simple gig. Flora's asked us to get some samples of the flora—heh—and fauna in this region. We're gonna need stuff like dung, leaves, bugs, y'know the drill. It's not all sunshine and rainbows, though. This area is kind of rough. Try not to fall off of any cliffs or step in anything poisonous. Just don't die and we'll be good."
Time's expression withered, his eye narrowing in dissaproval. "We won't be splitting up. We'll all look after each other."
Wild scratched the scars on his cheek. "Yup. If everyone's ready we can head off."
The group started at a slow walk, their lightweight boots hardly making a sound as they trudged through the dense forest. Wild led the charge, carefully pushing leaves and branches aside. His voice was a steady stream that cut through the silence of the bush, quiet and unobtrusive. They stopped frequently to pick up samples—Wind was simultaneously very excited and very disgusted at the opportunity to pick up the poo of some unidentified animal and vacuum seal it—the leisurely pace and frequent rest giving Sky's lungs time to adjust to the slightly-too-foreign atmosphere.
Four—at least he assumed it was Four, if the matching grey eyes and easy gait meant anything—fell into step beside him. His heart squeezed painfully, guilt roiling in his belly at his lack of trust. Of course it was Four. He'd gotten a handle on the Colours—nothing was going to happen. He needed to just enjoy his company while it lasted.
Sky mentally shook himself. Don't act as if he's leaving.
"Interesting planet, huh?" That barely contained excitement was all Four. He saw it in the upward slant of his lips, the flex of his fingers.
"It's beautiful. I can't wait to show Sun the pictures."
Four's lip twitched upwards at that, green blooming behind his pupil before he blinked hard. The colour was quickly washed away but Sky's unease didn't. Had the smithy even noticed?
"Sorry." Ah, so he did. "Sun? I hope you get to see her soon." As he continued a little of the uncertainty faded from his voice. "She likes this sort of thing? Nature?"
"She loves it." Sky couldn't help the breathy laugh that escaped him. "She's really into those tiny birds. Probably because they freaked my other friend out so bad."
Four's expression softened. "I hope we get to meet her soon."
Sky paused, his whole body going cold. "What?"
Four picked a leaf from a plant and stowed it into a sample bag. "Is something wrong?"
"We met her a few months ago. Before…before everything. You forgot?"
Four's hand stalled from where he was midway through plucking a flower, rubbing the petals between his forefinger and thumb. "Yeah."
"It's fine." Sky assured. "Everyone forgets stuff sometimes." Even without a parasite burrowing through their brain. "She likes you. Thinks you're nice."
Four smiled wanly. "That's good."
Sky pet him on the back, not missing the flush that darkened the smithy's cheeks. "Don't worry too much about it. Let's just focus on our task."
The smithy's eyes flickered downwards, his chest rising and falling with a barely concealed sigh. "You're right. I of all people should know that."
They both jumped as Warriors appeared from behind them. "You guys okay?"
"We're fine." Sky responded. "You?"
"Good, of course." The captain clapped their shoulders with a subdued grin before pulling away. "Try not to get too distracted."
Sky and Four exchanged a look, his lips quirking upwards at Four's dry expression. "We won't."
Sky pushed back the bush obstructing his view and was unable to keep in his gasp. The ground cut away beneath their feet, a narrow path the only way of bridging the gap between one grassy platform and the other. The fall wasn't far—Sky had survived much worse while on his loftwing—but it was enough to send his chest tightening just a touch. The ground below was darkened by the shadow of the mountains, the branch of a fallen tree jutting sharply upwards into the open air. Wind came up behind him and peered over the ledge, Legend keeping a vice-like grip on his collar.
Hyrule kicked a rock and watched it skitter down the drop. He whistled lowly. "Try not to slip."
"Wow, no freaking way." Legend grumbled. "Don't fall off the giant cliff. Absolutely brilliant."
Hyrule wrinkled his nose. "What's up with you?"
"Oh, I don't know, man. Take a guess." He crossed his arms. "Do we even need to cross this thing?"
Wild hummed. "I mean, not really, but Flora did say that there was a special bog animal that she wanted me to get pictures of that lives near here."
Legend sighed. "Alright, fine. Let's just get it over with."
"Hookshots or do we just rough it?" Wind questioned, bouncing on the balls of his feet.
Wild pointed at the branch on the other side of the gap. "That might hold Wind or Four, but it'd probably break under any more weight than that."
Time's expression managed to darken even further. "This seems like an unnecessary risk."
"Ease off." Twilight nudged him. "We can handle it, a'right?"
Time shot him a nasty look. "Somehow I find that hard to believe."
The ranchhand shrivelled, turning away with a barely concealed scoff. Warriors' coughed into his fist.
Four piped up. "So are we going or not?"
Time's eye flicked up to the sky, his whole body tensing beneath his armoured uniform. "Fine. But be safe."
"You wanna go after me?" Wild asked, his fingers tapping at his sides. He'd hooked the Slate back at his side and was working on tightening the straps securing it to his belt. "It might make you feel better."
Time inclined his head before adding, "stay focused as you cross the passage. Don't worry about us."
Wild nodded. He tightened the neon blue straps of his boots, tapping the toes of them against the dirt. Then he started to move, nimbly picking his way across the narrow pathway. A little dirt crumbled beneath his feet, a chunk of earth falling away and hitting the ground below with a quiet crunch. With a frankly unnecessary hop that sent them all wincing he made it to the next piece of solid land, doing a little spin just to show he was okay. Showoff.
"Alright guys, come over!" He called from across the way.
The others made it over to the next platform with only a few hiccups—they all stopped breathing for a few seconds when Twilight's foot slipped off of the edge—leaving Warriors, Sky and Four isolated on the other side of the land bridge.
"You wanna all go at once?" Sky asked, noticing the decidedly green cast Four and captain's faces had taken on. "We can hold hands."
Four pursed his lips. "You sure it can take all of our weight?"
"Looks stable enough." Warriors pulled at his scarf, wrapping it a little more snugly around his throat. "I have to admit I don't trust my balance enough to do this on my own."
Sky chuckled and extended his hand. "Just don't trip and we'll be fine."
Warriors took it, Four gripping the captain's wrist. Sky took a step with the others in tow, unable to stop the hitch in his breath as he looked down. It really was a long fall…
He shut his eyes. This was no worse than flying.
(Oh, how he missed his loftwing.)
Another step had all three of them onto the bridge. Warriors squeezed his hand with a nervous laugh. Four was silent, his eyes fixed straight ahead. Sky prayed he wasn't having a panic attack. He moved a little more and was it his imagination or was the ground starting to tremble? He swallowed thickly.
There was a crunch, and Sky only had a moment to glimpse Time's horrified face until he was plummeting towards the ground. He whipped out his claw shot, his arm jolting violently as it caught. Pain shot up into his shoulder, the golden chain straining under all three of their weights. He realised there wasn't enough tension in it a second too late, his body slamming into the side of the cliff. He hardly had a moment to tighten his grip on Warriors' hand before his skull smashed into unforgiving rock.
Sky coughed, desperately trying to spit out the blood working its way down his throat. He turned his head to the side just as his vision was beginning to fade, the viscous liquid pooling in the dirt. He sucked in deep, grateful breathes, his neck screaming at the change of position. He let out a sob as agony made his mind go blank. Tears blurred his vision, hot against the awful cold that was beginning to seep into his bones.
Fear seized him when he saw a mop of golden hair laying by his side. Warriors was supine in the dirt, red blooming at the back of his head. His eyes were rolled back, chest rising and falling in rapid breaths. Sky tried to move—
—Only to find himself on the ground again, that same darkness encroaching in his field of vision, his hands brushing something long and sharp that seemed to go straight through him.
He distantly noticed that he was hyperventilating. Every movement seemed to send that branch slipping around inside him, an awful sensation of something not quite right cumulating with the awful pain.
Something bright burned above his eyes. Zelda's sigil. He realised with stark certainty that it was probably the only reason he was still alive. It trickled into his skin like icy water—not painful, just an uncomfortable, minty cold that flickered underneath the skin between his eyebrows. He shivered and felt the clot of blood move in time with his exhale.
This was fine. Sky would be fine. He just needed to work out how to get up.
His thoughts turned to Zelda for a brief moment. Zelda—his Sun—with her choppily cut fringe and her single dimple that bit into her cheek. The very thought of her eased the chill that sunk into him, a blessing that was all his own.
He distinctly remembered the feeling of her fingers carefully painting the triforce in the centre of his forehead, the momentary catch of her nail on his skin and the mumbled apology she granted him. She'd been annoyed the last time he saw her. She'd tried to hide it but the acidity of her voice was hard to miss. She'd seen the new scars littered across his body—hadn't missed the new nick in the rancher's ear and recognised the iridescent bruising circling the smithy's eye.
Did Four even remember the gentle way she'd cupped his face in her hands? The sigils she'd given the others had long sinced fizzled out.
"Sky!" The smithy was making his way towards him, his hair plastered with blood. He was pale and staggering. He didn't seem to notice the blood trickling down his jaw. His eyes locked onto his injury, a full body tremble running through him.
The chosen hero managed a wobbly smile before his head smacked back into the ground. The movement sent an ache lancing up his neck and down to his tailbone. His noise of pain rumbled in his ears, chest aching anew.
"Captain…" Sky heard the rustle of fabric as Four turned Warriors over, and the uncorking of a bottle. "He's alive. We just need to give him a potion." The youngest said, more for his benefit rather than Sky's. He couldn't bring himself to fret over the use of 'we'. He'd worry about that later.
There was a grunt, then a cough, blue flashing in the corner of Sky's vision as Warriors sat up. He groaned, Four letting out a pained squeak as he coped the older hero's bulk with his chest.
"S'rry. We gotta—we have to help Sky."
Warriors made a questioning noise, only to let out a sympathetic hiss as he noticed the branch. "That's—that's bad. How many potions do we have left? I…gotta heal him. Yep." He coughed. "Ow. Crap—"
A moment of silence before Four responded. "I've got one."
"Four's injured." Sky croaked. Hylia, talking was painful. "I've got Zelda's protection. It'll suck, but with his condition…" He didn't want to think about what the force of a concussion was doing to the creature behind the smithy's eyes.
"You're impaled." Four sounded like he was keeping his voice carefully measured. If Warriors noticed the telltale shift in his pitch he didn't mention it. "I'll take something at the ship. Promise."
Impaled?
Nope, nope. Another breath. Every tremble that shook him sent that thing vibrating against his ribs. Goddess no don't—don't think about it don't think about it don't think—
Sun. Golden hair and those blue eyes and the rabbity point of her nose. His Sun, his love, his heart. She was close by—she always was! Just think of her.
Spiky eyelashes fluttering against her cheeks. Pale lips. The telltale flush that would spread all over her face and ears when she laughed for too long. Long fingers and longer limbs that were sharp and narrow and all her. His best friend, his love, his reason to keep his eyes trained at the heavens and not look down.
"Sky?"
All the idea of arguing got him was a heavy sense of exhaustion. He sank deeper into the grass, his lashes a gold blur that fluttered in the forefront of his vision. There was a shift, then a resulting snap of pain that nearly had him biting his tongue off. He heard himself groan, a foreign, animalistic noise that buzzed in his ears like static.
"Easy." That was the captain, what was he—
Slowly, painstakingly, the pressure caving his chest in lifting, warmth dribbling over his chest at an alarming rate. A potion bottle was lifted to his lips before he could even register what was happening. He choked for a moment before righting himself, struggling to swallow the viscous potion. He managed to get most of it down, his vision swimming as the discomfort receded.
He gasped, his lungs expanding as he took in his first real breath in ages. The darkness at the edge of his vision didn't fade, however, a horrible feeling of weakness sinking deep under his skin.
"It's alright, Sky." Right. Wars was still here. "You're good, you can rest."
He let himself drift, but just before he fell asleep he was jolted awake.
"Captain! Just hold on, we're coming!" That was Hyrule. His voice was faint, so the rest of the group had to be still up on the ledge. Goddess, please don't let Wind see this. Too much blood.
He turned his head to the side, nausea rising once more as he saw the jagged, blood coated stick tossed somewhere off to the side. He swallowed thickly, eyes burning. He heard the weird, ropey nose of the rest of the Chain abseiling down the cliff. There was the whine of boots against grass as the group arrived, Sky being shifted oh-so-gently so he lay on his back.
He tried to speak but it barely even came out as a croak. "Four…"
"Hm?" Wild appeared in his line of sight. "Four's fine, don't worry. You need to worry about yourself." He distantly noticed Twilight unravelling a roll of bandages and cutting away Sky's blood stained uniform.
"Check his pupils. Make him rest." The skyloftian said. "Wars too. Please, you have to look after him—" He ran out of air, wheezing and gasping for breath.
Wild squeezed his hand, his vaguely disturbed expression going over Sky's head. "Of course. I'll go get him now, okay?"
Being sat up was painful but being able to see the of the group and rest against Twilight's chest was well worth it. The newly wrapped bandages pulled at his skin, the thin scab covering his injury stretching and warping.
"Four's injured too?" Time's eye twitched from where he was checking on Warriors. The captain had been forcibly sat down and was nursing a second potion with a shrivelled expression. Legend was at his side, stitching up a gash on his arm Sky hadn't noticed.
Sky nodded weakly. Four shot him a look, the heat of his glare somewhat lessened by the greenish tinge his face took when he turned his head.
He staggered over closer to the rest of the group. "We—I might be concussed." He touched the red smear of blood on his forehead. "Probably. But we were out of potions, and Sky needed it more."
Time hooked an arm around Four's back, the smithy resting his head against his bicep with a sigh. "That was irresponsible of you, but I can't fault your logic."
"T-thanks." He looked over to Sky, something he anxious flickering in his expression. "Should we go back to the ship?"
Legend hummed in agreement. "The ropes still up, but I doubt we should try that while carrying three people."
"Three?" Warriors turned his head to Legend only to wince at a particularly painful stitch. "Sky's the only one properly hurt."
"There's no way in hell we're letting any of you walk. What if you go bumbling off a cliff again?!" Legend finished off the stitches and wiped the excess blood onto his pants.
Warriors harrumphed before his expression lightened into something a little more cheeky. "Okay then, vet. Will you be carrying me then?"
"Pfft—No way. I'm going to be the one getting the ship."
Hyrule brightened. "Don't worry cap! I'll be the one carrying you."
Warriors coughed. "Seriously?"
Hyrule crossed his arms. "Um…yeah? What, did you expect Wind to do it or something?"
"Hey!" Came the sailor's voice from somewhere behind Sky.
"No, but…ugh, nevermind." Warriors rubbed his temples. "Okay Ledge, go get the ship then. I'm sick of this planet. At least we got those stupid samples."
The veteran stood, knees crackling a little at the movement. "Alright, I'll be right back." He stabbed his finger towards Four. "Rest or I'll throw you out the airlock."
Four made an exhausted, offended noise from where he was sitting awkwardly on a log and nursing a red potion. Good."This feels targeted."
"Sky and Wars aren't dumb enough to run around with a bashed in skull. If they decide to follow your example I'll do the same to them, don't worry." He nudged the smithy's shoulder as he passed. "Your colours all good?"
Four smiled weakly. "They're quiet." The relief in his voice made Sky nauseous. Time smiled fondly and ruffled his hair—and ow ouch old man no don't noogie the recently concussed baby—ignoring the annoyed groan it elicited.
Sky leant back against Twilight, laughing a little as the rancher huffed. "Am I your chair now?"
The skychild hummed his agreement, his grip on consciousness becoming more and more tenuous. His gut throbbed faintly as he watched Wild mess with his Slate.
"Oh, I got the sample, by the way!" He said brightly, laughing to himself. Warriors groaned.
Between one blink and another he was being hoisted onto someone's back—Twilight's, if the fluffy fur tickling his face meant anything. He didn't hide his grunt of pain as the movement aggravated his wound.
"Sorry." Twilight's voice was a hum. "Vet's back with the ship. You fell asleep for a bit, sorry."
"Hmm…" He nuzzled his head into the pelt. "It's okay. Thanks for being my—" He yawned. "My chair…nice of you."
The rancher guffawed, making Sky jolt. "Don't worry about it. Take a nap, Sky. You must be exhausted."
Sky nodded drowsily. Within moments he was out.