#clammy

but Matt was getting out of bed when Fisk’s assassin appeared. So late, yes, but sleeping, no. He got a few hits on the guy before Frank showed up and injected a full needle of air into his neck. The horror from the power outage covered up their ensuing argument, as did Frank’s confession that Karen had been the one to call him. Also, if Matt had a problem, maybe next time he would think twice before taking a bullet for Wilson Fucking Fisk.

            The chaos of the hospital made for an easy escape, as did Fisk’s blunder of only sending one assassin. Frank had a vehicle, some shitty beater, but there was no use trying to drive through the chaos. They ended up on the run, first at street-level and then o’er the rooftops, trying to dodge the crowds and Fisk’s special taskforce.

            Matt made it to the safehouse without breaking a stride, but the second he was through the door, he had nothing left. His shoulder burned. His knees started shaking. His thoughts went into a spiral. His breath started coming in short bursts. A cold sweat broke out across his shoulders and then spread everywhere; Matt felt like he was draining out of his own pores, like he might splatter against the concrete. Like he was the virus his body was trying to get rid of and maybe it was for the best he was being evicted. He had hold himself upright on one of Frank’s shelves to keep from hitting the floor.  

            He sensed Frank behind him and started moving, crawling across the shelves, the gun racks, the ammo crates, the workbenches and tables. The deeper he moved, the less he had to notice Frank’s heartbeat going from annoyed to worried, a subtle difference but one Matt was familiar enough with, being present a lot of the time when it happened. His palms were so slick that he nearly fell over some more, but he managed to make it to a corner where he felt like he might be able to catch his breath.

            That’s where his knees finally gave out. Matt slowed his descent by catching the walls and ended up sitting on the floor. His hospital gown was damp. He couldn’t think, not about anything. He just got flashes of things, old sensations, the past colliding with the present, the old regrets compounding into a city out there, beyond the concrete, descending into war.

            And then they were stopped suddenly. The world on fire was doused with a shock of cold water, a wet rag held straight to his forehead. Matt managed to draw a steadying breath, then another, then another. His thoughts started to lengthen. The past stopped unfolding in a series of gunshots and Matt took root in the here-and-now.

            Frank pulled the rag down his face a couple of times, muttering shit about how high maintenance he was, but there was no venom in it. Frank wasn’t really pissed. His heartbeat was still at that worried pace, the kind of rhythm Dad got when Matt’s senses blazed out of control. The fact that a glass of water and some pills made their way into Matt’s hands confirmed this wasn’t anger on Frank’s part, at least not for him.

            Matt wasn’t sure how long he sat there in the corner until the pills kicked in. That was when he finally got some relief in his shoulder and he stopped feeling like he might melt into a puddle.

            That was also when he noticed the smell: Kevlar bi-weave. Like Melvin’s old shop.

            “You brought my suit,” he said.

            “Had to confiscate them before the NYPD found them,” Frank replied.

            Matt smirked. Sure, that was the reason. He reached for the neck of his hospital gown and started undressing. Frank’s heartbeat dropped from worried to concerned, but he handed Matt a suit.

“Majora (Deity / Demon)

Majora was said to be a twin brother to Fierce Deity. As Fierce Deity is the God of Protection, Majora Deity is the God of Destruction. Even though brothers, the God of Protection did the ultimate action and turned the God of Destruction into a mask and hid him well from anyone seeking for his power. God of Destruction had his followers whom deceived the God of Protection and returned the favor by turning him into a mask too.

Majora’s Mask was eventually found by an ordinary man whom called himself as the Happy Mask Salesman. He understood the dangers the mask possessed and did his best to keep it safe from wrong hands. Majora, having been found, had no intentions of staying as he was. Yet, the Happy Mask Salesman was too aware of the danger to end up possessed by the mask. Majora needed someone far more innocent and pure at heart.

While traveling through the lands of Termina, the—“

“Termina!” Seven Heroes suddenly shouted and interrupted Wild’s reading. “That’s the lands Time saved during his second quest!” Wind exclaimed shocked.

“Well, we certainly found the one at fault.” Warriors growled while not liking at all about what was happening within the Temple.

“Can I continue?” Wild inquired bit indignantly.

“I’m not sure we should check more.” Twilight worried while feeling contradicted. He wanted to know more but then again he felt like it was Time’s right to explain things by himself. “It is about Time’s life we’re going to find out about.” He reminded while glancing around his brothers.

“It is about Time’s past but to some of us it is also legends told from generation to generation.” Four countered while feeling equally uncertain of what was the right decision to make.

“That’s bit rough when the guy’s entirely alive and traveling with us.” Legend partly snapped but it was brought out only by worry and fear for their leader’s safety and wellbeing.

“I can’t deny of being curious. And Time doesn’t really talk about his second quest even when we ask about it.” Hyrule pointed out while bit slumping and giving sheepish expression.

“I’m sure there’s actually a very good reason for that.” Twilight stated out bit rougher than what he meant to.

“Nonetheless, that’s one vengeful Deity.” Sky growled while knowing how Demise had found a way to keep tormenting those the Chosen Hero now called as his brothers.

“Yeah.” Wild half whispered while the others simply nodded. “While Ganon hates all of us, that asshole’s only going after Time.” The words came out as a growl.

“It certainly would come after each of us if we had a chance to tear it apart for what it’s doing to Sprite.” Warriors snarled while hoping the Demon felt his rage as he glared at it through that screen of Wild’s Slate.

“Maybe then we should get to know more about the enemy if we ever get that chance?” Wild suggested while raising an eyebrow. The Captain glanced around at the way too tempting way of explaining why they’d know more about his little brother’s second quest than what Time had so far given out. The uncertain nods eventually got him to give the rights to keep reading.

“While traveling through the lands of Termina, the Happy Mask Salesman was jumped by the local Skull Kid. The eternally young being Child of the Forest was childish and mischievous but the species never meant any harm in any of way. Yet, this was exactly what Majora’s Mask needed and he lured the young one to the mask. Skull Kid never had a chance against the Demon’s possession and the mask was on his face despite his desperate attempts to fight against it.

With a body and life form overtaken, Majora fled the scene to cause the destruction he was the God of. The mischief of Skull Kid became cruel and harmful. Curses were placed upon all continents of the lands. People suffered in many ways. And yet, most attempted to deny what they were seeing.

Termina was in luck as the young Hero of Time, aged ten but seen far too much in his life despite of his young age, came to the area in search of a lost friend. Majora found a new toy to play with through him and jumped him as Skull Kid had jumped the Happy Mask Salesman.

Cursed into the form of a Deku Scrub, the form taken from close by unfortunate soul whom the spell killed, the Hero of Time had no other choice than to embark on another quest. Besides this cruelty, the Ocarina of Time was stolen from his hold and his trusty steed Epona had been scared away. He had more than one worry to deal with.

When the Hero of Time finally, after three days from his arrival, faced Majora, he wasn’t capable of defeating him. The Goddess of Time intervened and turned those three days into a loop with the Song of Time.

Majora attempted countless different plans to both torment and to kill the young Hero. Yet, with the Goddess of Time aiding the Hero of Time with his quest as well as she could, the Demon’s plans fell as apart as everyone’s memory of the happenings did. She had not realized how long it would take to fully get everything sorted out and how the constantly getting forgotten by the people of Termina would affect the young Hero of Time whom had already done time traveling by then.

After those countless restarts of the time loop and having awakened the Guardian Deities, the Four Giants of Termina, the Hero of Time finally was capable of facing Majora. Alas, the fight did not go well as he refused to use a powerful mask given to him by one of the Moon Children. The simple reason for this refusal of using the new mask was the lack of acceptance from the one whose soul was trapped into the said mask.

Several more time loops through, several more times refusing to let the moon to crash and Fierce Deity finally gave the Hero of Time the rights to use his mask. Together they defeated Majora and set the Skull Kid, as well as whole Termina, free from the God of Destruction’s hold. Yet, the God of Protection, realizing how strong and dangerous his brother was even as a mask, purified the mask of his brother’s existence with the Hero of Time’s aid. The Hero, now titled twice, was unaware of what the Demon was to the God of Protection as he gave his Light Magic into the usage of the God of Protection to be rid of the one at fault of the danger of the world’s destruction.

Majora, even though defeated, is a Deity, a God, and hence never truly gone. This is why the Demons across time are unconsciously aware of each other’s existence. They do not get full knowledge of how things have gone to their counterparts but they do get strong feelings and some certain knowledge from one another. And hence, the Hero of Time is the one each of them are searching for. They know of his triumph over one of them and hence are up for destroying him in any way possible.”

As Wild read the legend connected into Majora, he and his brothers felt the cold shivers run down their backs more often than not. The Champion was grateful that he didn’t need to hold the Slate as he was certain he would’ve dropped the device from his sweaty hands. And yet, as he was certain his brothers felt it too, he was nearly shivering from cold.

“Fierce Deity…” Warriors half whispered and gulped once. “The markings Sprite has on his face… Those are half of Fierce Deity’s markings.”

The rest of the Chain was rendered silent by that line. They gulped when they recalled Time’s words back when they had gone through the masks. “’Besides, with a legend like that, I’d be far more afraid of what destroyed the demon.’” Legend quoted and gulped. “T-that’s what Time said. A-as well as ‘I knew a salesman who coveted it.’”

“Oh Goddesses!” Wild exclaimed in shock. “He was talking about the mask I showed! That freaky one with spikes and bright colors! T-that… That’s the one he’s fighting against?!”

Wind snorted and grinned. “Time was talking about himself when he pointed to be more afraid of who destroyed the Demon.” He pointed out triumphantly. “Damn, he’s awesome!”

“Well, our awesome oldest brother has just seen all eight of us die.” Four deadpanned as he flinched about what was going on within the Temple. “Is that the God of Protection’s mask?”