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swamp-gremlin · 1 month

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My Old Nick hc's, interpretation, analysis, and other odd bits PT.1

Part 2

This is long overdue but I feel I oughta get something out of the way. I've had a incredibly aggressive special interest in him for like 3-5ish years and at some point in writing hc's I just started making shit up(I mean isn't that just hc's are?) because I really just took a guy with a whopping 14 lines of dialogue and just started sprinting.

I'm choosing to actually leave a few things out as I wish to explore those ideas more in This isn't over Jack, Ill probably swing back around to this after I wrap that up. In the mean time if you wanna swap ideas I'm down(please please please pleaseplea)

Turns out I hit text limit with this oh my lord, ill post pt2 tomorrow, i'm sorry

Can't think of anything particularly triggering in this but i'll warn it gets just kinda bleak

Human turned Fae- I will not elaborate, this will be explained later...

would actually break your legs if you called him a fairy

I've never actually pinned down any specific powers for him for some reason? like i just cant think of like any that i could write/ illustrate that wouldn't feel too gauche... So I just kinda nebulously imaged so weird fae-fuckery type of magic- though I think the most compelling interpretation of his powers was in Scouts Australian Christmas (pls go read it, its a really good fic)

Gay, but I cant imagine he's like particularly out about it; like its a iykyk sorta think because I definitely feel there probably some shame or internalized homophobia there (smth smth homophobic senator caught in a gay bar joke)

Autistic, but most definitely not diagnosed- he would become absolute incensed if you suggested it, like "There is nothing wrong with me, I am normal" but you can tell that he knows there's something "wrong with him" but he has no idea what and is incredibly afraid of even attempting to confront that

Can't imagine there's a moment where he's not masking, he doesn't understand his own limits and will keep doing things until he quite literally can't anymore

Probably has some ~effeminate~ interest he's deeply embarrassed by, but like in all reality its very normal and even if it was thats not a bad thing, he just makes it a big deal for no reason

STRADDLING the line between infodumping and mansplaining

Could be genuinely into a topic but he's just so condescending about it

High functioning alcoholic, kinda in that 50s/ rich way but it's very obvious he has a problem but everyone always brushes it off as "thats just how he is/ things are"

Nick could honestly just be summed up in his impact as a *a systematic bad thing happens again and again* "thats just how things are, get over it" sorta thing or a "Heart warming: student raises funds to prevent orphans from being sent to orphan grinder" and then no-one questions why the orphan grinder exists in the first place

He has been meticulously constructing his public image/ brand as "Old Nick"/ "The Spirit of Australian Christmas"

He is a liar, but he's a very good liar

His accent is fake, his laugh is fake, his public lore is fake and he's not even Australian he's British! (Which is arguably worst thing he has done)

He's basically been voice training to keep up a modern australian accent for years now, but his real accent is more of that 1700s british (which actually sounds different from modern a modern britsh accent) but sometimes he's has moments and his accent slips (mostly when he's yelling)

Has practiced his evil villain laugh so hard, like its a good villain laugh but if you listen hard you can tell its not real

Genuinely so fucking embarrassed by his actual laugh which i can only describe as if a goose that has been smoking a pack a day was being strangled to death

I kinda go back an forth on Nicks upbringing sometimes, because I kinda feel I went the kinda overplayed sorta tragic backstory; but also growing up in 1700s England was probably not fun if you weren't rich and also have you ever met a miserable boomer who does the whole "kids these days are too damn soft back when I was a kid *recounts an incredibly traumatizing event*!" Thing? Yeah he probably does that a lot and it makes everyone kinda uncomfortable

Maybe orphaned? Probably had brothers because he has strong younger brother "your oppressing me by giving me a task" energy (btw this relates to a super stupid hc that im not gonna share because its incredibly dumb)

Expressed a lot of attention seeking behavior from a young age, would purposefully get into trouble so someone would notice him

This behavior followed him into adult life and it would just keep getting worst and worst, like getting into bar fights that he would definitely lose and petty crime

Eventually he just kept ramping up the severity of his crimes till he actually had a warrant/ bounty placed for his arrest

To avoid getting arrested he became a sailor in his late 20s and jumped between ships and trades up until his 50s/60s

Eventually he was arrested and then get shipped off to Australia

After a few months he stuck there he was like "actually, fuck this" and started plotting an escape

He stole a boat and with his previous knowledge from being a sailor he was so full of himself he thought he did single-handedly sail and navigate back Britain or a British sympathetic colony and then lay low for the rest of his life

Of course he didn't happen and due to the fact he is stupid he got stranded in antarctic and the rest is history

If you wanna know how we got from "random crusty criminal" to "Spirit of Australian Christmas" you have to stick around for my shit ass comic and videos fucker

anyway where was i, Nick proceeded to twists that into "Yeah i totally meant to do discover antarctic, even though i was a 1780s peasant who would have not have even known that antarctic was even thing" he kinda sorta dropped the rest of it and made up more shit Homelander style

I don't believe that Nick was like well off in anyway when he was still mortal, and despite being just bludgeoned over the head with the effects of classism and a nightmare capitalist hell society he developed this horrible idolization of the rich and developed this almost "by your bootstraps" mentality but with like the brutality rich bushiness owners would treat there workers, where he though if he became horrible and ruthless he could trample and climb on the backs of his fellow men till he made it to that oh so coveted high society life.

probably doesn't help he would do absolutely anything for money either

and the thing is he made it, he's just unfathomably rich(that is till all those gambling debts catch up to him...) he got what he wanted, he got he's gotten all the money and attention he could have wanted... and yet he's miserable, nothing will ever be enough for him.

Throw back motif that's still my favorite- "decaying luxury". Nick is like obviously rich as fuck and yet just refuses to fix anything, like his sweater has so many little holes in it he just stopped bothering to fix, he's patched his pants so many times, stairs worn down to the point the rug is thread bear and the wood is dented, intricate arsenic and lead laced wallpaper that's now water damaged and peeling, his favorite chair's seams are ripped, and the stuffing and springs are just compressed and flat to the point its not even comfortable to sit in anymore. Like he can fix it, he has the money, and yet he just won't for some reason.

Oh speaking of arsenic and lead- mans is just absolutely FULL of lead, arsenic, asbestos, any other harmful thing the Victorians where just absolutely HUFFING

tangent on a tangent, i really associate him with the Victorian era despite him being born in the 1700s, maybe its the child labor, maybe its the stupid chops, he just looks like he should be in super tall neck-line and doing coke for a headache

Nick is just both incredibly self absorbed but also so fucking insecure, like very big insecure man makes his problems everyone else's problem and take his out on other people to feel better about himself energy

He's just so vain too, like i image he's just obsessed with himself and his image, probably doesn't help he's quite literately has been decomposing for like the last two centuries (IT WILL BE EXPLAINED WHY LATER I PROMMY) so he just has this like incredibly extensive Patrick Bateman ass self-care routine so he doesn't get moldy

#hey have you ever wanted to listen to the ramblings of a fucking mad man? here you go bc god does writing this out make me sound crazy #i did not expect to hit char limit with this dear god...#and for a guy that hasn't been relevant since 2011 #im genuinely so nervous to post this bc this is just so much but this is what its like in my head 24/7 i have to live like this #tf2 #tf2 headcanons #tf2 old nick #from the mouth of madness #old nick tf2

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mrneighbourlove · 4 years

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The War of Fire: Ch 6. Dead Hands Upon the Earth

Ganondorf was deep in a fever and patting a wet cloth Leere provided for him against his head. Her little shack near the edge of the Faren Woods, found abandoned and repurposed for her own self exile. The Gerudo King glanced left to see his adoptive daughter looking out the window. Since informing her about the war with the Hasai and the Kikai Empire, she had grown paranoid. “You don’t have to be constantly glued to that window you know.”

The teenage girl turned around, a frown pulling at her pale features. “And you can be a good patient and stay quiet. Conserve your energy.”

“God. You sound like you mother.” Ganondorf sighed, putting the cloth in a cold-water bucket. “Speaking of, she misses you. When are you going to stop this exaggerated tantrum and come home?”

Leere gleamed at him, walking over to a desk containing empty bottles, herbs and field notes. “When she decides that she isn’t going to smother me with the princess lifestyle.”

“You are a princess.”

“Well than maybe the other royal girls can treat me one. They want to call me a commoner? Then I can live like one. Especially if mother doesn’t want to support me.”

“You’ve been gone for a month. Truth is, I’m shocked you’ve lasted long out here.”

“Why? You don’t think I could make it?”

“Not at all. I just thought you’d prefer company. Don’t you miss Rinku?”

That got a sneer out of Leere. “Rinku? Miss perfect trouble maker? Able to skip classes for the sake of ‘heroics? No.”

“Tough subject. I can emphasize to a degree.” Ganondorf suddenly winced, coughing up a storm. “Sweety. Do you have any medicine?”

Leere looked through the cupboards, feeling defeat weigh on her mind. “No…”

“Well my dear daughter, looks like you’ll have to cut your self isolation a little short. Unless you suddenly gained the strength to carry me on your back all the way to Hyrule Castle, I’ll need to go on a quest for me.”

“But dad, you can’t defend yourself.”

Ganondorf felt touched when Leere came to his bedside. “Oh, I can defend myself. I’m just in no condition to fight or leave. There’s a difference, I assure you. I’ll be real with you kiddo. I overestimated my own power out there. It nearly got me killed. But if you come and bring back help, I’ll know better. And this time, I can wipe those miserable maggots off my land.”

Leere patted his hand, and she let Ganondorf give hers a soft squeeze. “If you hear anyone knock on the door, you don’t answer. I can let myself in.”

“As if I want company at the moment.” He gave his daughter a light squeeze on the hand. “You be careful, you understand?”

“I will father. I promise.” Leere quickly went to gather a bag containing a cantina of water, a map of Hyrule, a compass, a couple glass bottles, and her Lens of Truth gifted to her by Impa. Strapping a knife at her side, she turned back to Ganondorf. “You promise to stay alive until I get back, ok?”

“I’ll be here breathing Leere.”

That didn’t fill Leere with confidence, but she headed out the door, locking up behind. The thought of Hyrule at war terrified her. How many were being killed because of that? Walking through the forest, she crossed a bridge going over a river. It only took a glance down at the water to see bodies bobbing up and down in the current.

Now near the edge of the Faron Woods, there was the sound of fighting in the distance. Ducking low, Leere snuck closer to get peak at the action. Safe behind a tree, she saw a group of Hasai burning Deku Baba’s trying to snap at them. One of the plant monsters had its jaws around a soldier’s leg. The man took his war axe and started to drive it in and out of the Baba’s head. Purple blood leaked out its head, and, eventually, it released its grip on his leg. The rest of the Hasai kept their distance, effectively burning the rest of the monsters in cinders.

“Spread out and keep an eye out. There’s no telling what kind of monsters can be found in these woods.”

“You hear what happened to Markel? Found himself caught by a giant spider. By the time we burned the web he was half eaten.”

“Holy Hell.”

As Leere was about to move out, from behind the first group of Hasai came another group. There was a Skurge soldier in green striped armour flanked by at least five regular soldiers. On a leash, there was an odd beast. I looked like a large dog, but had the muscle mass and strips of a tiger. The leader of the first group looked surprised to see this man. “I didn’t expect to see a tracker out here. What’s your mission?”

“Prince Seras requests the corpse of Hyrule’s King. Thinks if he’s still a beast, it will make a good head to mount above the palace fire. We’ve been tracking his scent from the bridge since yesterday.”

As the men talked, Leere watched as the beast slowly turned her way. With a sniff of the air, it slowly opened its jaw in a wide, angry growl. This got the attention of the handler. “What is it girl?”

The Hasai looked out towards the tree Leere was hiding behind. The handler motioned his squad to open fire. With three punching forward, they launched fire at Leere’s cover. The Mortuus had no choice but to leap out of cover to avoid the fire.

The beast turned its head to her, slapped its tail on the ground, and clawed against the ground in anticipation. “That girl knows where to find the demon kings body. Take her alive!”

Leere didn’t know how she could fight back against all these soldiers? She had combat training from her father, but her magical expertise were limited. The princess had no gear to take on such a large group either. So she settled on her only reasonable course of action. She ran.

“Stop her! We need her alive!”

One Hasai licked his lips after getting a better look at Leere. “But what’s a few bruises and burns if she resists?”

Looking over her shoulder, Leere panicked as she saw the weird dog bound over the foliage to get after her. The princess felt cuts against her as she ran through branches and roll over fallen logs to race out of the forest. All she knew was that there was a village not to far from the edge. Perhaps she could find a garrison of Hylian soldiers or monsters there to assist her.

A fireball whizzed over her shoulder, and the girl let out a scream of fear. These men weren’t above searing her flesh if it meant catching her. Panting and nearly out of breath, she broke out of the undergrowth of Faren Woods. Her hopes of a rescue, however, would be dashed. A deeper sense of terror filled her as a village was midway being burnt to the ground. Houses quietly burned as the fire flickered and blew in the wind. Charred bodies of a massacre littered the area, photographing an image in Leere’s mind she’d never forget. A Hasai soldier in armour was walking through the village when he turned to see her paralysed by the site.

Behind Leere, the beast caught up, pouncing her. Luckily, as she was tackled over a drop of a property wall, the canine fell off her. Other Hasai started to catch up. Leere knew she was running out of options. Looking left and right, she settled her sights on a well east of her. Running towards it, she glanced once more over her shoulder to see two Hasai launch two fire bolts, while another prepared an arrow. All the fire missed her, but the arrow nicked her, catching her by the calf of her leg. Tripping, she caught herself by the ledge of the well. Peering down it was dark and empty.

The Hasai sneered, with the beast master whistling at his canine. “Sick her!”

Leere looked at the hungry jaws of the dog, and not wanting to face the pain the Hasai were ready to give her, she dropped backwards into the well. She could only pray there was some water. As she looked above to see fire launch upwards, darkness quickly overtook her vision. In the dark, her body hit water, submerging her. She bobbed and kicked upwards to reach, gasping for air.

There was an underground current that carried her through a thin passage way. When the all-encompassing darkness was becoming too much for her, Leere thrashed her arms about, trying desperately to grab onto any surface. She didn’t want to die alone in this darkness. Her hands suddenly gripped onto something above her, and she had to clamp down as to not be dragged away. With all her strength, her stomach tightened at the sensation of pulling herself out of the water. All those sit ups she had to do would mean jack all if she couldn’t pick herself up. With a scream that bounced off the walls, she threw her body out of the water, rolling onto a calm surface.

Only this darkness was anything but calming. It reminded her too much of her time at the asylum. Standing up and coughing out some water, she felt around in the dark for an escape. As her hand found a doorknob, she heard a splash not too far from where she was first carried away. “Oh no.”

Turning the door open, she was quick to shut it behind her. Catching her breath some more, the young girl looked around in the dark room she found herself in. There was still no light to guide her. Taking a few steps, she suddenly froze in place after hearing a crunch beneath her feet. Looking down, her eyes could barely make out the broken human bones that lied just below her. Leere yelped, running forward instead of back. Each step only broke more bones, and each step only quickened her pace.

As she felt another door, she was momentarily relived to see a source of light as she went through the other side. This, too, however, soon changed to a knew sense of dread. From around a corridor, a Bubble flew into view, light green fire around its body. The monster was basically a human skull with leathery wings. And these monsters had the affinity to chomp down on the living.

When the Bubble saw Leere, an inhuman cackle echoed the halls of the room. To Leere’s horror, she saw skulls filling the walls. What kind of catacombs did she fall into? Grabbing her knife, she let her fear override her clarity. She should have taken control of the undead, but instead, the girl flew into a fight response. As the Bubble open its jaws to snap at her, Leere drove her knife into its head. “Die you numbskull!”

Thankfully, these creatures had very little dexterity and could be slain rather easily. It was a matter of being surrounded by creatures that made them dangerous. Not to mention their curses.

Leere’s hand burned as she held her hand around the hilt of her knife. It held a purple glow and shone on and off on her right palm. Stupid. She was careless and forget to attack when the Bubble had its flames off. This wasn’t a too terrible curse, but in the middle of combat it could be a death sentence until removed or naturally healed with time. To her right, down another corridor, more Bubbles appeared, drawn by the sounds of combat.

The young princess felt scatter brained. Fear was filling her. This time, she took a stick that was in her travel bag, quickly stabbing it into the dwindling fire of the first Bubble. Now with a torch, she chose to flee in the opposite direction. The Bubble’s lights turned on and off as they gave chase, yet Leere wasn’t going to fight back. Finding another door, she jimmied with the handle a bit before going through the door. Closing behind her, she flinched as the Bubbles on the other side physically threw themselves into the steel door. With a sigh of relief, Leere kicked the door back at them in a taunting motion. “Bitches can’t even open a door.”

Turning around, Leere let out a scream as she came face to face with a corpse. It looked like it suffered ghastly injuries from head to toe, and burns on its body. When she took deep breaths to calm herself from the initial surprise, she peered a little closer. That was when the corpse screamed back.

A set of tiny glowing red beads appeared out of the eye sockets, and the redead lurched itself upward. Leere was frozen by the animated corpse, shock filling her body. If this was corpse, then shouldn’t she be in control? Shouldn’t she have the stronger will? There was a split moment before the redead lurched at her that she could feel her muscles freed once more from the shock. Throwing her body rather ungracefully, Leere crawled forward a few feet before turning around to face the monster.

The Redead turned its face towards her, half of its face a horrid sight of exposed muscle. Leere raised her hand, channelling dark magic she worked up by training with her father. With an energy transfer, she did her best to impose her will onto the undead monster. “I, Leere Dragmire, command you to obey my will!”

The redead stopped, and the lights inside its head momentarily went out. Whispers, little by little, started to creak out from the walls. From the door that Leere came threw, the steel weight started to creak open as another undead soldier lurched inside the room. Worse, blue silhouettes of men appeared from the darkness, some even coming out of the walls. These silhouettes quickly formed concrete forms. These were the ghosts of dead Hylian soldiers that had fallen in battle. Between the ghosts and the undead soldiers, they started to crowd together, pushing Leere backwards.

The redead’s eyes illuminated again, a red ghostly trail of aura blowing behind. The ghosts and undead spoke to the princess in crackly tones.

“You ask us to fight for you in death? You ask us to be your soldiers? You ask us to submit our bodies even further for your will? You are not worthy.”

“You are not your adoptive father.”

“You don’t deserve to hold power over us.”

“You lack the knowledge to effectively do so.”

“You.”

“Are.”

“Food.”

As they reached out to grab her, Leere hadn’t been watching where she was stumbling back towards. Not that she could have seen in the darkness. Before the horde could claim her, the Mortuus stumbled backwards down a pit. Leere yelled out in panic as her body hit a slope hard, causing her to roll further and further downwards. With a hard thud, her body landed with a hard crash against something spongy. It caused her to roll rather far on a soft dirt ground.

The area was lightly illuminated by a menacing dark green light. It was no natural light by any means, but at least Leere could see. Standing tall, the princess winced at all the bruises that she took from the wall. Turning around, there was a fresh new terror waiting for her. A single arm was popped out of the ground. It was stretched out longer than any normal human arm should be. It was also pale and had red patches running along its length.

It was when Leere’s red eyes trailed upwards to its hand, that she felt a terrible sensation fill her stomach. Every finger had a long, sharp crimson nail. As she opened her mouth to take a breath, the arm suddenly sprang forward to grab by the head. Leere didn’t have the energy in her to scream as she felt her skull being squeezed tight by the grip of the arm. Out of the corner of her eye, the dirt exploded, and a fleshy blob made itself known.

The creature was had this pale body with the same colourization as the arm that held her. She could see its face because it had a thin, pointy neck looking upwards. With two stumpy limbs for arms, it slowly slugged its way over to her. Leere didn’t even want to think about the deep gargling coming from its stomach.

When she went to reach for her knife, Leere cursed herself with the fact that she left her weapon back with the Bubbles. Improving, she reached for a glass bottle in her bag, and smashed it against the hand that held her. It was enough force to have the arm let her go. Almost immediately, it tried to grab her again. With the movement of a boxer, she danced around the hand as it tried to grasp her, walking backwards.

Glancing to her right, she looked at the creature lowering its neck. It had the largest visible set of teeth she had ever seen in a monster before. With red gums, she wasn’t sure if it was smiling at her or not. With no eyes in its sockets, it made it all the more terrifying. Tilting its head to the side, it opened its jaws. With the force of a corba, the creature snapped at her. Leere stumbled backwards, throwing another glass bottle in her travelers’ bag at its head. This made the creature turn away from her.

It had such a thick body that Leere wondered if any sword could ever effectively cut into its flesh. It didn’t matter, as it suddenly burrowed back into the dirt, vanishing far too quickly for Leere’s liking. Nothing that big had the right to dig that quickly. From the ground multiple arms sprouted out of the ground, growing to a dozen. Each one that came out rocketed towards Leere to grab her.

The Princess, despite her fear, felt her adrenaline spike. She survived worse. She was necromancer. Ganondorf told her that she could easily surpass Vaati one day in magical capabilities. She needed to survive this. People were suffering up above, not to mention her father was counting on her. Gripping the broken glass in her hands, she cared little for the pain of her own cut.

As each hand tried to claw or grasp her, she slashed open their palms with the edged glass in her hand. With the ferocity of a slasher, she swiped and stabbed the flesh that tried to keep her down. She only faltered when one hand clawed at her back side. Picking up two pieces of broken glass, Leere looked around for an exit. If she learned anything from Zelda, it was that no matter how hopeless a situation looked, there was always a solution to make it out.

Stabbing one broken shard through the palm of the creature, Leere took the Lens of Truth from her pocket to try and find an exit that perhaps was hidden. This proved to be another mistake that took a penalty on her will. Glancing beneath the surface was a horde of sickly arms. It was a system of flesh lumped together. She saw a body of a Hasai soldier being dragged into the blob of arms. Amongst the arms was the head, peering eerily at her. It seemed the creature’s patience was over, and a large number of new arms launched out of the dirt. They latched onto Leere’s legs, a foot, her arms, stomach, the side of a breast, her hair, and a final one latched on her neck.

Leere gasped as the body of the monster remerged from the ground. Gasping for air, the young princess tried to think of ways to fight back. Every movement of struggle was met with the hands squeezing tighter. Combat was no longer a viable choice. Its body lurched closer, bobbing its head back downwards to look down at its prey.

If Leere couldn’t fight, she had to try and use reason. Her mother would call her mad, but it was all she had left. Barely reaching a hand out to grasp and arm, Leere channeled her necrotic magic, establishing a connection with the undead. “Don’t kill me. Please. I know you can understand me.”

The monster paused eating her, slowly tilting its head at her. With a wide grin it leaned closer, sniffing Leere with its damaged nose. It took every fibre in Leere to not make any sudden movements or noises of terror as it opened its mouth, hissing an exhale of air at her. The princess took it as a sign that perhaps it would at least hear her out. “Please. There’s a war going on. My father is counting on me to help him.”

Multiple arms slowly drew upwards out of the dirt, standing still as trees. Others started to drag bodies from the darkness, carrying Hylian and Hasai corpses to throw in a pile. The mouth moved slowly up and down, but no voice came out from its throat. Instead, Leere heard an echo in her mind. “We are the Dead Hand. We are the accumulation of Hyrule’s bloody history. We are the bodies that your monarchy has left lying stinking and rotting in the dirt. Those that are too far gone are taken by us. Or those that foolishly find themselves in our care.”

Leere kept her grip on the arms to not lose her connection. “I didn’t mean to intrude. But I was chased down here by invaders.”

“Yes. We know. There is much death in Hyrule lately. It feeds us.”

“Aren’t you of Hyrule though? Don’t you serve my Father?”

“No. Ganondorf has no need for the undead. Unless it is to play guard dogs to magical items he wishes hidden. You think you can control us? A small, little girl?”

Leere felt her throat tighten, as well as all the other hands grip a little harder. “No. I am a necromancer, but I don’t want to dominate others. Not even the dead.”

“Then you are food?”

The other hands started scrapping at her skin, and the mouth of the Dead Hand chatted its teeth back and forth together. Leere dug deep to find her courage, and snarled. “I am not food. I might be the only friend you will ever have.”

“Friend?”

“Yes. Friend. An ally. If you help me, I can give you fresh food.”

“How?”

“The invaders attacking Hyrule. Surely you and every fallen Hylian would like some payback? I’m certain that there’s a small part of your soul left wanting that.”

The hand snapped forty-five degrees suddenly to left, as if a primal force deep within was contemplating it. “Why should we trust you?”

“Because I would be waste to eat now. Work with me. Let me conjure you to my side. And I promise it will benefit us both.”

The Dead Hand tilted its head back slowly, opening its massive jaw over Leere like a serpent. Leere braced herself with a scowl, but she didn’t scream. After a moment of contemplation, the Dead Hand moved away. Its arms started to release her, retreating in the earth. “You drive an appetizing bargain. Know that we will help you young necromancer. The undead of Hyrule are a powerful force. We trust that you won’t abuse your end. It might make you a part of us one day.”

Leere caught her breath as she fully released. The massive Dead Hand lowered its head to her. On instinct, she carefully cupped its sides in her bloodied hands. “I promise I will be to good to you. You won’t regret this partnership.”

The massive monster seemed to grin once more. Leere still couldn’t tell. As it shuffled away, the ghost of Hylian soldier appeared. He was missing an arm, but with his left, he pointed towards a ladder leading upwards. “You survived. And you gained the help of the hive mind. Impressive. The other lost souls are impressed by your dedication. Those who wish to fight, even after death, have considered you as a new commander on the battle field. Go now.”

Leere nodded to him, thankful for guidance out. Each ghost acted as a beacon in the frightening dark. It seemed the redeads and Bubbles kept their distance now as she traveled past them. As she traveled upwards, she found herself coming out of a crypt. Fresh sunlight poured downwards. Leere had to blink a few times to become adjusted to it.

As she walked out into the warm sun, she noticed she was still in the burning village. On que, an arrow was shot next to her foot. Two dozen Hasai soldiers were still in the area, the graveyard of the town by the looks of it. A building’s roof close to her collapsed from a fire spreading, and the invaders finished surrounding her. “Surrender girl! We have you completely surrounded and outnumbered!”

The tracker had his hound on a leash. By the looks of it, the hound was wet, most likely from chasing her down the moat. “If you play nice, we can find use for you as a prisoner.”

Leere looked at the casualties of war, frowning deeply and closing her eyes. “You didn’t even give these people a chance to be your prisoners.”

She could feel the dead underneath the earth. She could feel hell raise up in her soul. These warmongers didn’t put fear or dread in her. They made her angry.

When they laughed at her, a couple drew blades, while a few others ignited fire in their palms. “Last chance little girl.”

Leere lifted her hands. To conjure the undead felt so natural. She was a conductor of monsters. And the music she wanted to hear was the screams of these murderers. From the earth, pale thin arms shot up, grasping Hasai shoulders and catching them off guard. A few were immediately pulled into the loose earth. Others were ensnared as redead rose from the ground. The first screams came as jagged teeth tore into the white skin of the Skurge soldiers.

Other tried firing bolts of fire at Leere, but arms of the Dead Hand intercepted the attacks. Leere looked in the direction of the tracker, and with a flick of her wrist, hands grabbed the limbs of him and his beast. With a squeeze of her fist, the arms pulled in different directions, tearing the man and the hound apart.

One Hasai gritted his teeth as he tried to swing his blade at Leere. Hands grasped him by all limbs, practically freezing him in place. “You little brat! You can’t do this to us. You’re a monster!”

As redead and the other arms went to town on Hasai in the village, Leere glared deeply into the eyes of the Hasai. “Did you give these people mercy? I’m sure they called you the same thing as you burned them alive. Do you even know the name of this town?” Behind the man, the Dead Hand’s body rose from the earth, saliva pouring from its gums. The Hasai captain’s eyes widened as he peered into the empty sockets of the monster. Leere turned to the last of the Hasai as she walked away. “You’re all going to die up here.”

The young princess turned heal and started making quick pace to central Hyrule. As screams of the living, and the hungry chomps of the dead filled her ears, she thought long and hard about how many innocents were going to die because of these invaders. How many lost souls would be thrown about the landscape? Well, if the Hasai wanted to bring fire to Hyrule with their war, she’d gladly see them all burn.

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Previous Ch. https://mrneighbourlove.tumblr.com/post/185219415216/the-war-of-fire-ch-5-tales-of-the-flame

Next Ch. https://mrneighbourlove.tumblr.com/post/621492865907998720/the-war-of-fire-ch-7-stink-and-filth-to-the

Original story. Based in the world of @figmentforms. Shared world with @s-kinnaly and @ridersoftheapocalypse. Fun to get back to this story.

#War of Fire #Hasai #Leere #Leere Dragmire #Ganondorf #Undead #Redead #Dead Hand #Bubbles #War

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