Dance of Dragons

The distinguishable revving of a car in the street followed by the sound of the shop door opening signled Konbei's arrival. He hurried up the stairs two at a time and made a beeline for his bedroom.

"Hey," he said to Nuala on his way past.

"Konbei, wait," Nuala said and followed him to his room.

Konbei dragged a bag out from under his bed and started stuffing all his clothes into it. "What?" He said.

Nuala leant on his door frame and watched him. "I tried calling you just before, wait, where are you going?"

"Moving in with Gwene," Konbei answered. He threw some of his possessions on top of his clothes and zipped up the bag. He threw it over his shoulder and went to leave. "Excuse me," he said to Nuala, a little imptiently.

"Konbei..." Nuala sighed. "I can't keep giving you shifts at the shop. I'm not supporting this lifestyle you've adopted anylonger than I already have been, especially since you're now moving out... You'll have to find your own independent source of income."

Konbei's expression changed, he was clearly pissed off. "Well what the hell am I supposed to do then? Do you know how hard it is to find a job?" He said.

"Then I suggest you start looking as soon as you can," Nuala said. "I've already cancelled your pay."

"Fuck sake," Konbei said and shoved past Nuala. He made his way down the stairs and out of the building. With the slamming of a car door and the sound of tyres screeching against the road, he was gone.

"And today, we at Lanaryu Dome and DNN bring you the live debate between Nationalist Party Candidate Daphnes Hyrule and Militant Party Candidate Zant Twilian! Give them a round of applause, good people!" 

The Zoran host waved towards the direction both men came from as the audience that was gathered clapped and cheered. 

Daphnes waved to the crowd, throwing his hand up and smiling at his supporters with the charm of a kindly grandfather. He took his place ontstage with ease and confidence, standing at his own podium to the right and waiting for the announcer to finish his commentary and pose the first question.

-S-

Zelda had finished her drink in waiting. She smiled like a little child as her father took the stage. "Yeah! Kick his ass, Dad!" she called loudly, hanging over the rail and waving with both hands. 

Thorne made to pull her back to the privacy of the box, but she shrugged him away. "I'm fine. Go back to whatever the hell you were doing and bugger off," she snapped, calming down as she continued to lean against the rail and watch with bright teal eyes.

-S-

Fortuna blinked, tipping her cap up so that she could get a better view of Ankoku, though there was really no need for it (she'd recognize that voice from anywhere. Really, who spoke like that anymore?).

"Oh, hello Mr. Yami," she said, deciding to use his last name as he had hers. "Weird running into you like this, huh?" The words were spoken with a small, friendly smile. Even if their families rivalled each other in the business world, that was no reason for her to be rude to him. She'd never understood why some people let their work interfere with their personal lives, anyways. Though she had never had a real job... so of course she wouldn't comprehend that.

"So, um... where are you headed off to?"

Gahan raised an eyebrow, hanging back in the shadow of another building. He recognized that kid from TV. The undercover bodyguard crossed his arms as he waited.

 

Ankoku smiled at her as he rubbed his head and replied: "How could I give a proper answer, Ms. Dragmire? Nowhere in particular, actually. As simple as that, I am somewhat fond in observing my surroundings in such a wonderful city like Castle Town... so there I am, getting amazed by the architecture and the flow of people across the streets. What about you, instead, Ms. Dragmire, what has brought you over to take a stroll in these streets?"

--------------------------------------

Zant followed suit on the other side. Different from Mr. Hyrule, he was looking up at people with superiority and almost analytical coldness, none of the emotion which caused his constant inner turmoils being able to get an hold of his mind, his blank eyes having nothing to read.

When he reached the pod, he simply made a small bow (which was quite noticeable given his eight of over 7 feet of height) and sat down, looking with respect at what was his oppnent and, with a royal pose, waited for the announcer to give questions, his mind constantly repeating over the head the answers he had spent whole night working over

Konbei couldn't believe it; did his own mother really just fire him? And why should she care how he spent his money, it's his money. Besides, he was an adult, not some little who needed looking after. He shook his head and pressed his foot down harder on the accelerator.

Konbei was almost back at Gwene's apartment when he suddenly slammed the brakes on. A sign in the window of the soup kitchen had caught his eye and when he got out of his car and went over for a closer look, it seemed as though luck had struck him. The sign was advertising a position vacancy. He tore off one of the perforated tabs at the bottom with the organization's phone number and got back into his car. It might not have been the kind of job be saw himself working but he needed the money more than anything so he figured it was worth a shot; it could be months before he found another opportunity.

He parked, grabbed his bag and headed back up to the apartment. He opened the door quietly in case Gwene was still asleep and then went to check if she was.

Miles yawned as he entered the crowded break room. The office had more or less stopped to watch the 'great debate'. Thankfully they only dealt with the Otten family's assets (mostly farmland, some distilleries, and rural housing), so nothing that couldn't wait for a an hour or two. Not like they were dealing in something volatile like stocks.

"Here you go boss." Miles took the coffee offered by Ritter as they took a seat in view of the television.

"Looks like it's about to start."

"Yep. You supporting the Nationalists this year?"

"Of course. Oath of fealty and all that. How about you?"

Ritter stretched. "Call me crazy, but I don't think it makes much difference either way. Sometimes I wonder why we bother with a two party system at all."

Miles looked down into his drink and quietly said, "Me too."

----------

The driver seat door of the surveillance van popped open and Nidi, warm tea in hand, deposited herself in the driver's seat.

"I'm back. I didn't miss anything did I?"

"Not at all." replied Facade. "In fact it's just getting started. Is the downtown safe house ready to receive us?"

"Everything's ready. If we need to beat a hasty retreat, they'll be able to keep us under the radar until the heat's off. They're still not connected to the tunnel network yet though. We'll have to sit tight there for about a week before we can expect the sappers to get through."

"Just so long as they are ready. Hopefully we won't need to make use of their facilities, but it's prudent to be prepared."

Fortuna was stunned into a brief lapse of silence by Ankoku's answer. In all the years she had known him, he had always been quite odd... but a good kind of odd, she thought.

...Though his explanations often left her scrambling for ground.

"Well... I'm not exactly that deep, Ankoku," she said with a good-natured laugh. "I came for more shallow reasons - book shopping, actually."

-S-

"Now, Mr. Hyrule and Mr. Twilian, welcome to the public debate! I'm sure that you are ready to recieve the questions from the folks that have come out today and those viewers at home." 

The host took out a sheet of paper, and began to read.

"Alright, we're going to kick off today with a question from Talon Lon-Lon, owner of Lon-Lon Farms and Ranch..."

"If Lanaryu City continues its rapid growth, what plans do you have for the farmlands of Hyrule?"

The voice of the host echoed through the halls, carrying far out into the streets of the city. In one of these vacant halls, a shadow cast by the wall adjacent to the main structure of the dome began to... move. It moved a second time, and a pair of red eyes suddenly flashed open, glowing in the darkness. The shady figure of a hooded boy, slightly small in stature and with pointed Hylian ears, detatched itself from the wall.

This boy was colored completely black, even having ash-colored skin. The only exception was his white, slightly messy hair.

He ran down the side of the dome. As he ran, his features began to morph. His eyes gained pupils and turned blue, his hair turned a shade of honey-blonde, and his skin became fair. Two strange devices appeared on his hands - They had three large prongs, and adhered well to his gloved hands.

He aimed one device at the wall of the dome, and a chain shot forth, latching onto it. He raised himself up, repeating this process until he'd arrived on the dome's open roof.

He now lay these devices aside, and made a strange gesture with his hands. A bow and arrow materialized itself in a wisp of dark smoke. He took it into his hands, and looked down on the scene, knocking an arrow and taking aim.

The tip of the arrow flashed in the sunlight before he drew back the string and fired.

The arrow sliced through the air at an alarming rate, on a direct path towards the two candidates. A loud CRACK! echoed through the dome as the fatal arrow embedded itself in the skull of Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule.

The man froze, slumping forwards in his seat. The arrow vanished in a wisp of the same smoke it was borne from, leaving the gaping wound to spurt a fountain of blood onto the ground.

Dark stood for all to see, pleased with his work. 

-S-   

Zelda's pupils turned to mere pinpricks as she witnessed the arrow go into the back of her father's head. Her complete shock was only erased when a shrill scream broke through the silence.

Her wide eyes followed the path of the mysterious arrow, and when she looked up, she saw the smiling face of an green-clothed youth watching over his apparent handiwork.

"N-No..." she gasped, tears hazing her vision as she slumped against the rail. "No... Daddy..."

-S-

All was silent in the soup kitchen save the crash of a plate falling to the ground.

Malon's eyes locked onto the television screen, and they nearly popped as she saw the familiar face of the assassin. They then flashed to the face of Link.

What?! Link didn't kill him, he's right here!!!

Sergius pulled out a walkie talkie "I need a medic down on the main stage, now!" he placed it back and his pocket and approached Zelda, seeing how frantic she was "Come on! We has to get you out of this booth." he went to grab her and get her out of the public eye.

=====

Link was also wide eyed, even though he was mute, he was completely lost for words.

Zant was actually... rather surprised at such and nearly jumped back in surprise at seeing his rival's skull pierced by that arrow.

Or rather, his thoughts were actually quite different: 'That soon?'

Of course, due to his natural poker face and his genuine scare it was impossible to understand such involvement from the Twili, who actually managed to exploit this to take lead and succesffully taking hold and control the evacuation of the place despite the common chaos. Of course, due to Zelda's having been taken by Sergius he was unable to show off such skills to her. A minor setback, but what mattered was now the public opinion... and then the throne.

--------------------------------------------------

Ankoku let out a warm laughter at this.

"Of course, I compherend such choice myself, so I can safely state . I actually am quite fond of books myself. Were you looking for a specific category or you were simply strolling around looking for one catching your attention?"

The TV in Gwene's apartment had been left on and Konbei saw the assassination take place. "Fuck," he said as he went to wake Gwene up. "Gwene, get up," he said, shaking her shoulder.

Fortuna fiddled with the strap of her knapsack. "Well... I was actually looking for some black magic books. It's kinda why I'm on this side of town. They don't carry those kinds of books in ordinary shops."

She fidgeted a bit, looking off to the street intently. "And I don't really want anyone to know. That's why I'm dressed like this." Emphasizing her point, she pulled her ballcap down lower, hiding her red curls.

"You won't tell anybody, right?"

-S-

Zelda dropped her cup, allowing Sergius to hurry her out of the room. 

"He's dead..." she whispered, senses dull to all outside interference. "I can't believe it, he's..."

"What if that assassin tries to kill Zelda as well?" Thorne asked Sergius worriedly, his hand on his concealed throwing dagger. He was extremely concerned for her safety, and it showed.

-S-

Ganondorf flicked the cigar aside, standing up and allowing his guards to escort him out of the private box.

Excellent work, Dark. Do not attack Zelda. I'd rather you eliminate that pesky Sheikah, though... wasn't it Impa she called herself...? No matter; do it while you have the advantage, he thought as he and his guards swiftly walked down the hallway.


((Will somebody play Impa? I want a battle between her and Dark for significant reasons...))

Facade stood suddenly as the news camera focused in on the assassin while the nearby crowd descended into chaos.

"All sniper teams, there is an assassin on the roof of the dome. Eliminate him." he ordered.

The snipers obeyed, raising their weapons to focus on the exposed Dark. The first volley missed entirely; some ricocheting of the dome as the snipers under-compensated for range and elevation, some sailing well over his head as they overcompensated. One lucky shot merely whizzed over his shoulder.

Now that they had bracketed the range, the next salvo would be a lot closer.

Sergius was constantly looking around "I can't see anything yet, we need to get her back to the limo and get her out of here."

He spoke into the walkie talkie to head of security "Clear out all the press and secure Mr. Hyrule."

=====

Gwene was still fast asleep, out of reaction she flung a hand at Konbei.

"Gwene!" Konbei urged and shook her more.

Gwene finally awoke "What?" she moaned "I'm trying to sleep."

"Fuck, you're a deep sleeper," Konbei shook his head. He grabbed her wrist to drag her out to the lounge. "Daphnes is dead."

Gwene was still half asleep, and wasn't sure exactly who he was talking about. "What? Who is dead?"

"Just, go and watch the TV," Konbei said.

Gwene sat on the couch, still half asleep, before the TV cut off, it informed them that her best friends father was killed at the debate. Gwene couldn't help but cover her mouth with her hand in complete and utter shock.

Konbei watched Gwene. "You alright...?" He said and sat down next to her.

"Oh my god." Gwene couldn't help but mutter "Poor Zelda, oh my god."

Konbei sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Although he hardly cared for politics, it was still such a shock, and he knew how close Gwene was to Zelda.

Gwene quickly grabbed her cellphone and tried to call Zelda, but the network was overloaded with calls, and she couldn't get through.

"Can I do anything...?" Konbei said. "Drive you somewhere?"

Gwene tossed her phone to the side. "We need to go to her house." she quickly went to the bedroom and quickly changed into decent clothes.

Konbei grabbed his keys and waited for Gwene at the door.