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Once the clanging of metal on wood stopped, silence beat down on the heroes. Seven of them called out, all seven alive. Two voices were missing. There, lying on the edge of the field, nearly obscured by the trees, were their two missing brothers. Sky’s sailcloth fanned behind him as he laid on his side, angel’s wings sprouted from his back. Warriors’ scarf covered him, keeping him safe as he clearly shielded his brother. Twilight and Time reached them first, followed shortly by the others. The oldest of them carefully put fingers to Warriors’ neck, a sigh of relief announcing the presence of a heartbeat, faint but there. At the Skyloftian’s side, Twilight’s face twisted. Shock, fear, worry, then finally resignation flashed across his face.
“Rancher?”
Twilight shook his head, “His heart’s so weak. I ain’t seen men survive that long. ‘specially since I can’t see the rest of ‘im.”
A groan answered the rancher and Time felt pressure against his hand still on Warriors’ shoulder. The captain’s eyes blinked open blearily, gaze ghosting over all of them clearly trying to piece together where he was. Then his eyes widened.
“Sky!” The call was rough and not as strong as the captain’s voice usually was, but it carried regardless.
“Right here, captain,” came Time’s soft voice, clearly trying to calm down the other man.
Warriors didn’t seem to hear him and pushed his way onto his heels. Gasps ripped through the clearing as Warriors revealed a sea of blood covering both him and Sky’s tunics. Sky’s green tunic was destroyed, revealing a gaping wound in his chest that someone had plowed through his chainmail. Someone gagged at the sight. Even clearly not well, Warriors bunched up his scarf and pushed it into the wound. Through the injury and clear blood loss, Sky’s face scrunched up. Warriors shushed him, comforting the man as best he could.
“Wars-” came Hyrule’s voice, “What do we do?”
“I- uhh-” the captain stuttered, looking between Sky and Time, eyes searching as he tried to figure out what needed to be done, “I-”
“A fairy, right?” Wind piped up from the back, being held by Legend, “A fairy will fix him right up!”
Warriors shook his head then swayed, “He’s- He took a hit- mail and broke- something,” his speech sputtered.
Time watched as the captain’s face lost what little color it had before Warriors’ eyes rolled back and he collapsed. Time caught him before he could once again fall onto their injured brother. Once against his chest, the older hero wrapped an arm around him to pull him closer.
“Warriors, you self-sacrificial idiot!” he hissed through gritted teeth.
Hyrule knelt down, tapping Warriors’ cheek and trying to tamp down the panic that was bubbling in his chest. At the same time, Twilight cried out. Two fingers were pressed deep into the side of Sky’s neck with the rancher’s face pulled in horror. Time swore and barked out an order.
“Hyrule, replace me and keep trying to wake him.”
“What-?”
The question didn’t have time to fully form as the older man knelt next to their Skyloftian and stuck his hands in his chest. The sound was horrific as hands displaced blood and viscera and broken bones.
“C’mon, Sky,” Time spoke, a hand wrapped around a no-longer beating heart amongst the damage that caused the current situation.
The inside of the human body wasn’t a new sensation to Time, but the knowledge it was someone he knew and cared for almost stilled his hand once it hit. He pushed through, wrapping a calloused hand around a stilled heart. Broken bone rubbed against fragile organs and skin; blood pooled in and around Sky’s body. Time ignored it all. He faintly heard Twilight’s voice but he ignored it, taking a stabilizing breath. And started to squeeze.
One. Two. Three. A steady beat. Not too fast, not too slow. Zelda had taught him something the castle healers had taught her: how to restart the heart.
It was meant to be performed on a closed chest, but with Sky’s destroyed, Time did the next best thing. The feeling of Sky’s heart had Time’s own clenching. He heard the rancher by Sky’s head, encouraging him to come back, to keep fighting. Time continued counting, breathing, and moving that fragile structure. If he could keep his heart moving, hopefully it would continue to do the job itself.
All of Time’s senses were honed on keeping Sky’s heart moving that he barely noticed when Sky’s body started to come alive again. He kept a hold on his heart, feeling the organ sluggishly beat against his hand. The fear of it stopping again stilled him. Weakly and clearly out of it, Sky’s eyes miraculously opened. They stared at nothing, and Time knew the boy wasn’t truly conscious. However, that didn’t stop Twilight from running a thumb over Sky’s pale cheeks and whispering to him.
“Time,” he heard called softly behind him.
The old man turned his head and lips turned up in a small smile as he saw Warriors conscious on Hyrule’s lap. He gingerly sat up, Hyrule supporting him as he sat next to Time.
“He-” Warriors took a deep breath, “His chainmail is ruined. Can’t heal around-” an inhale, “the metal. Need to get it out.”
Suddenly, the feeling of broken bones rubbing against his arm strengthened. He said as such and Warriors nodded, gesturing for his bag. Once it was in his hands, hands clumsy from injury rifled through, frustration growing as he couldn’t grasp what he desperately needed. Ringed fingers pushed his away and reached in, grabbing Warriors’ medical kit. Those hands also opened it and sterilized the equipment needed, a feat only possible from watching the captain handle the kit multiple times during their travels.
Warriors held out a hand, trying to suppress the shaking. Shaking wouldn’t help Sky, wouldn’t be able to help anyone in the state their owner was in. A familiar four-colored tunic appeared, taking the pliers and scalpel.
"I'm the most steady right now," Four looked directly at Warriors, face set in determination, "Let me handle this."
Warriors watched blankly as the smith wove himself seamlessly into the little crowd of Sky, Time, and Twilight. His small stature continued to be an asset as deft hands dove alongside Time’s to pick out loose metal and bone, anything that wouldn’t be able to be healed inside. As he had nothing to do, Warriors found himself swaying.
The cloying scent of iron in the air grew stronger. Blood sat at the back of Warriors’ throat as he stared. The world was quiet except for each time the smithy pulled something out of Sky’s destroyed body. If he strained his ears, he could hear Sky’s weak, whistling breaths and Twilight’s whispers of encouragement as he gently stroked his face. The others were quiet but waiting. He could feel them watching over them, keeping them safe. A small part of him relaxed but not completely.
When Four’s tired voice announced he couldn’t see anything else, Time slowly pulled his hand out where it had been cradling Sky’s heart. He knew one of them had a fairy and that Sky would no longer be in danger, but he couldn’t shake the fear that the fragile organ would stop beating as soon as he let go. Familiar twinkling greeted him and his lips turned up slightly. Right as his hand cleared Sky’s body, he sat down heavily and watched the fairy work. Clumps of dust fell in scattered rain around Sky’s body. The glittering substance settled into his skin, pulling it back together, healing both inside and out. Twilight breathed a wet sigh as he felt Sky’s pulse against his fingers. The rancher placed his forehead against Sky’s, shoulders shaking slightly.
After what felt like hours, Sky’s chest was closed. The only evidence was the boy’s unconsciousness, his torn clothes, and the large amount of blood.
As the adrenaline faded, Warriors placed a hand on his head as a headache made itself known. He heard the others start to make camp around them. They wouldn’t be able to move Sky more than a few feet while he slept. A familiar blue tunic knelt in front of him and pressed a red potion into his hands.
“Thank you, champion,” he murmured, not hearing if Wild responded before leaving.
Twilight pulled Sky into his lap, cradling him like a newborn. He hadn’t heard everything, but he knew Sky’s state affected the rancher most. He sipped at the red potion; thankful Wild had opened it for him and sighed as his injuries and aches healed. Within minutes, Warriors was not back to full health, but he didn’t feel like his life was draining through his fingers anymore. He didn’t even bother going to help set up and immediately went to Twilight’s side.
The rancher hadn’t moved except to bury his face in Sky’s hair. His fingers twitched against Sky’s body, but they didn’t dare release him. As the captain got closer, he could finally hear what the rancher was saying.
“I ain’t even gonna leave your side, Sky,” he murmured, “I ain’t gonna give you the chance to go through that again.”
“Twi,” the name barely came out from tired and weak lips, but the man heard him all the same.
Finally, the rancher lifted his head, and it felt like the air got punched out of Warriors’ lungs. Twilight’s face was distraught. His mouth hung open as if he had something to say but nothing came out. Tears streaked down, dripping off his chin to wet Sky’s hair. Those dark blue eyes were the worst. Complete devastation coated them, red and puffy as the rancher failed to keep in his tears. Warriors dropped to his knees and wrapped his arms around the two heroes. Against him, Twilight sobbed harder. This wasn’t the first time that Twilight had been driven to this state, but it still hurt knowing nothing could help except to merely be there for the rancher.
Seconds or hours passed when Warriors felt a gentle hand on his shoulder. Peeling himself away from the other two, he looked up and saw Time looking at him. The older hero’s face was carefully emotionless. He held a hand out.
“Camp’s set up.”
Warriors nodded dully. Since the red potion, everything felt slow and heavy. With a firm pull, he was on his feet and pushed toward his bedroll that was set up between a tree and the fire. A lump settled in his throat at the kindness. He heard Time ask Twilight if he needed help and Twilight decline as he nestled into his warmed blankets. As soon as Sky was tucked in against the rancher’s side, Warriors finally let himself close his eyes.
Around him, his fellow heroes retreated to bedrolls as he sat staring at the fire. He hadn’t even been fully conscious of his actions earlier, only barely shedding his gloves before plunging his hand into Sky’s chest. He still felt the unmoving organ against his skin. Time shook his hand in an attempt to rid himself of that feeling as he looked across the clearing for Sky and Twilight, who had attached himself to their Skyloftian. Of course, there was relief in the boy alive and breathing, but Time couldn’t help the fear and horror of what he had done. He stared into the low flames and tried to purge the feelings from his mind, wishing not for the first time he could curl up against his wife.
Wind curled against Legend when Hyrule had dragged his bedroll closer to Sky. The veteran and the champion had shielded him from the worst of it, but Twilight’s scream still rang in his ears. He had never felt more his age until then when he was behind Legend asking if a fairy could save Sky. She did, thank the goddesses, but not before Time had barked at Hyrule. The young hero shook his head against Legend’s chest. He didn’t think the sounds would leave his mind for a while.
Thoughts raced through Four’s mind. It wasn’t an uncommon occurrence, but his mind decided it needed to replay having to dig around Sky’s skin and open chest. There were no regrets about volunteering to do what needed to be done, but seeing Time’s hand buried in Sky’s chest had his breath catch in his throat. Four closed his eyes and breathed. Maybe with a new day, things would feel brighter.
Legend was used to ugly sights, but he still was shocked at seeing the captain collapsed over Sky. The blood didn’t help matters either. When he heard Wind run up, he immediately grabbed him and held him back. As a hero, he had seen things he had never wanted to. It was part of adventuring, but Twilight never should have had to sound like that; no one should know how to scream in grief like that. The sailor was curled into his chest and Legend pulled him in tighter. Death never got easier, even when the dead came back.
Wild had never been so happy he was always prepared. As soon as Wind had mentioned a fairy, Wild had summoned a bottle holding one from his slate. Then the world stopped as a scream, then a squelch rang across the earth, leaving nothing but Wild and the bottle in his hand. After everything was done and Sky was tucked in with Twilight, Wild collapsed into his own. No one was going to want food, and he wasn’t in the mood to make any. Slowly, his eyes slid shut and his breathing deepened.
Afterward, Hyrule would feel lucky that the captain distracted him enough from what had happened to their Skyloftian. He heard the scream but was too busy trying to rouse the captain. Minutes later, he would get Warriors’ hazy eyes to look at him seconds before the familiar sound of a fairy flew over to Sky. When Warriors got up from against him, Hyrule started setting up camp with the others not busy working on healing Sky. While he knew his Life Spell, he knew fairy healed the other hero well enough. There was nothing for him to do except make sure he and his fellow heroes were comfortable for the time being.
Even with Sky breathing against him, Twilight couldn’t calm down. He wasn’t lying when he had said men usually don’t survive that kind of wound. Sky hadn’t survived. Twilight pulled him closer at the thought and squeezed his eyes shut as his mind replayed watching his predecessor resuscitate Sky in the only way he could. All Twilight did was comfort Sky; pull his head onto his lap and keep fingers on his neck. Sky remained unconscious with his head on Twilight’s lap, breaths weak and rasping but there. If asked, Twilight was certain he wouldn’t know what happened next. One moment, he could no longer feel Sky’s pulse and the next he was sobbing into the boy’s hair, wrapped in Warriors’ arms. Against his chest, he felt Sky’s own, weakly rising and falling but blessedly healed. When Time had come over, fear shot through his veins. His arms tightened around Sky. When Twilight just stared at Time, he got a nod in response. Now bundled together in his bedroll, the rancher hugged Sky. Every instinct of his had him screaming to not let the boy out of his sight, not to let him have the chance to get hurt again. Tears welled in his eyes again and he once again buried his face in Sky’s hair. He didn’t think he would be able to bring himself to sleep.
Suddenly, Sky’s breathing stuttered, deepened. Twilight nearly called out before Sky’s head moved against him. It was a small movement, just a quick swipe of a nose against cloth, but Twilight felt his own lungs loosen ever so slightly. A moment later, tired and hazy blue eyes met Twilight’s own.
“Sky?” Twilight choked out.
The boy in question looked away before looking back. He hadn’t moved or tried to speak but Twilight didn’t care. Sky was awake! After a few more seconds, his eyes closed and his breaths deepened slightly in sleep. Twilight pulled him close again and found that sleep didn’t sound so terrifying.
* * *
Over the coming weeks, Sky kept waking up. At first it was merely to look at whatever he happened to be facing but soon had become trying to move his head to follow birdsong or voices. They all knew their fellow hero was there but was merely too tired to do much else than what he was.
Frustration grew when Sky’s strength reached the point he could be on his feet as long as someone supported him. His muscles were still weak from being unable to stand, and he made sure his feelings were written clearly on his face.
“C’mon, Sky,” Twilight cajoled as he held Sky’s forearms in-between them, “Just a few more steps.”
An annoyed growl answered the rancher, who deftly ignored the sound. It hadn’t been the first time the Skyloftian had made that noise and everyone knew it wouldn’t be the last. They finally reached the bedroll and Sky collapsed, curling up in embarrassment. Twilight merely sat next to him. They all knew parts of Sky’s story, and he knew nothing he said would drown out that one specific voice in his head.
* * *
Sky was sat on a rock by the riverbank in just his pants. His other clothes were folded next to him as the Skyloftian stared out across the water. Time made his steps a little heavier, wanting to alert the hero that someone else was there. In response, Sky turned his head a little and Time took that as permission to sit next to him.
“So,” he started, “Twilight finally let you go.”
Sky smiled tiredly. It had only been two days and it was a miracle he was even sitting up on his own. “Wild and Hyrule promised they could keep him busy for a bit,” he let out a sigh, “I get it but it’s nice being able to be alone sometimes, you know?”
Time stretched his legs out and watched the water, “I do.”
The two lapsed into a comfortable silence, listening the running water. In that time, Sky finished washing up and dressed. As he was putting his boots on, he stopped, mouth working.
“Time,” he started before stopping, clearly unsure how to continue.
Time didn’t say anything. He didn’t want to rush Sky as he tried to say something clearly weighing on his mind.
“I-” the sky knight swallowed, “I- Twilight didn’t-”
He paused then took a deep breath.
“Time, did I die?”
The words came out in such a rush that Time didn’t fully understand them at first. When they did, he didn’t know how to respond. Sky hadn’t moved, but his shoulders had curled up toward his ears.
“I-” Sky started, “I know something happened with how Twilight’s been hovering. And-” he hesitated, “And dying isn’t as peaceful as one would think,” he said quietly into his lap.
“You-” Time stopped, feeling completely unsure of how to proceed. They had made the decision to tell Sky, but they didn’t expect Sky to have figured it out himself.
Sky reached down and grabbed a small rock. He nestled it in the palm of his hand before throwing it into the river, “That’s the first time I’ve really truly died, but I know the feeling of my soul shattering. It wasn’t difficult to piece together what had happened when I woke up.”
“I’m sorry, Sky.”
“What for?”
And oh, did the genuine puzzlement on Sky’s face want Time to cry.
“I-”
“I’m alive, old man,” Sky said, head tilted to look at the clouds, “That’s all I can ask for.”