Captain Sablen Radolf strode into the inner throne chamber of Zelda. He barely acknowledged the guards with a nod; they knew better than to try to stop the Captain. Stories of his temper were commonplace in the barracks, and all testified to the fact that he was one you wouldn't want to rub the wrong way. His footsteps echoed around the tiled room, coming back to grate harshly in his ears.
Captain Sablen bowed to the girl standing next to the window. Impa went to tap the girl on the shoulder, but she held up a hand.
"Thank you, Impa. I know that Captain Sablen is here." The young girl turned, and Captain Sablen was once again struck by how young she was. At eleven years old, she had to take the throne after an unexplained absence by her father. Now here she was, trying to keep a rapidly disintegrating kingdom together with the outer threat of Ganondorf- or Ganon, as Captain Sablen insisted on calling him.
"Princess Zelda, Ganon approaches. I believe that the best option is to send you out on horseback right now. I have secured the path to the north. Impa will go with you."
Zelda frowned. "I am supposed to stay with the castle until it falls."
"Not if I and Impa insist upon you leaving now. I have spoken with Impa and she agrees with me," Captain Sablen replied.
"But what about my duty?"
Captain Sablen and Impa exchanged a glance. It was nice that she was committed to the kingdom, but her commitment could get in the way sometimes. "Princess, we have thought of this. I can watch the castle well enough, but if Ganon does take the town, there are decoys. When he takes it, I can send out the decoy Zelda and Impa and he will follow them. The decoy also has the Ocarina of Time, so then she can throw it in the moat when Link arrives."
Now the princess looked utterly horrified. "Who is the decoy? Why did you let her have the Ocarina? No one other than my family members and Link are allowed to see the Ocarina, let alone handle it!"
Captain Sablen grinned. "I think you will change your mind when you see who the decoy is." He gestured to the half-opened door, and it swung open to reveal a girl of about ten years. She stood as tall as Zelda, and had dark brown hair and eyes. Her attire boasted a rough life, but it was still in pretty good condition. All in all, the girl cut a dashing figure.
Zelda's mouth fell open, and the girl laughed a high, melodic laugh. Zelda took a moment to regain her composure, but quickly lost it again by asking in a breathless voice, "Sciara? Is it really you?"
Sciara smiled a charming smile. "Yes," she replied.
Zelda turned to Captain Sablen. "Where did you find Sciara? She's been living on the streets for years. If she didn't want you to find her, you wouldn't be able to."
Captain Sablen answered, "If I want to find someone, I can. Anyway, Sciara and I are acquaintances. I know where she lives. So, I waited at her home for her, and put the question out. She accepted. Sciara is willing to take the mantle of decoy. Also, I figured you would have no problem with Sciara having the Ocarina for a while."
Zelda was so ecstatic, she didn't register Captain Sablen's words for a second. When she did, a look of comprehension dawned across her face. "That's why you were so confident. You knew about our friendship. I really don't have any problem with Sciara holding onto the Ocarina until it's time to pass it on to Link. But, I still don't like the idea of abandoning my people, when I have sworn to protect them."
Captain Sablen sighed. "Princess, don't think of it as abandoning Hyrule. What do you think the people will think if the Princess is captured by Ganon? It will take the wind out of their sails, so to speak. By getting away, you assure the continued good spirit of the soldiers and the commonfolk."
Zelda snorted. "I do not appreciate it, but if Impa thinks it's for the best, then I will accede to retreat."
Impa spoke in a low yet charismatic voice. "I believe that this is the best course of action, Princess."
Zelda threw her hands up, still upset at having to leave the Hyrulians in their time of need. "Fine! I'll go! One quick question, though," she said, suddenly and unexplainedly calming down. "Who will play as Impa's decoy?"
Captain Sablen smiled, and while he smiled he responded, "I believe you know her as well. Come on in, Agitha!"
Zelda's jaw dropped as an elderly woman entered the room. Her gray hair reached her shoulders, and her gray eyes had a strange twinkle. She would have been very attractive, but a large mole resided on her chin.
"Agitha?" Zelda gasped. The old lady nodded. Captain Sablen got the impression that this old lady didn't speak unless she had something important to say. Zelda and Agitha embraced- from what Captain Sablen knew, Agitha was Zelda's mother's sister's oldest daughter. The two were quite friendly, and Captain Sablen knew Zelda would not object to Agitha acting as Impa. Zelda might wonder how they could decoy Ganon looking like they did, but Captain Sablen had the answer. He would tell her when she asked. For now, though, he had to pass on an important item.
"Princess, take this map." Captain Sablen handed the Princess a faded map. Zelda took it, but she wore a puzzled look.
"What is this for?" she asked.
"This is a map to the place you will be staying. The original plan was for you to go to the Gerudo Desert, but for obvious reasons we cannot send you there. Therefore, you must go to my ancestral home. The door will only open to one who holds a map drawn by the heir of my family. This is why I pass my map onto you. I am the heir to my family, so if I must go there as well, I can draw myself a map. Do not lose this map, Zelda. It is your ticket to safety."
Captain Sablen hurried to the Hyrulian war room located in the castle. He burst through the door to find that the other Captains were already waiting. Captain Sablen suppressed a joyous thought that they couldn't start without him because, actually, he was Grand Captain. Better to think of himself as these Captains' equal. It allowed him to get himself out on the front line as well.
"Captains Mikali, Peral, Thyra, and Leva, thank you for coming on such short notice. Zelda and Impa are away and headed to my home," Captain Sablen announced. Captain Mikali, an extremely tall yet skinny man, stood, the sign that he wished to speak. Captain Sablen nodded to him.
"Grand Captain, why are the Helmaroc and the Eggchick going there? I thought the plan was for them to go to our allies in the Gerudo Desert."
Captain Sablen replied, "There is one thing we overlooked. What race is Ganon?" The four Captains thought, and Captain Peral, a short, stout female captain answered.
"Ahhh. He is Gerudo, isn't he?" Captain Sablen smiled.
"Yes, he is. Sending the Princess into the enemy's core would be pure insanity. So, I have sent her to my home," Captain Sablen answered.
"Will she be safe there?" Captain Leva, a short, tanned man asked.
"Not even Ganon can break into the house, if he doesn't have a map," Captain Sablen reassured Captain Leva.
Captain Leva sighed in relief. The remaining captain, Captain Thyra, made an X with her arms. Captain Thyra was a nondescript female, but for one thing. She could not speak, so she communicated in a sign language that, save for her and the Captains, none could understand. Captain Sablen pointed to her, acknowledging her comment.
"Yes, Captain Thyra. We should get on with the plan. Alright, first off, Captain Leva, what is the scout report?"
"The scouts report that Ganon has a force of around six thousand five hundred. Half of those are Darknut warriors, and the other half are Stalfos. Half of the Stalfos are archers. A small number, around twenty, are Moblin Scouts. Ganon leads the army, with the General at his side," Captain Leva rapped off.
Captain Sablen slapped the table. The Captains didn't ask him why he slapped it; they knew perfectly well. Captain Sablen was mad because the General was with Ganon. The General was a strange creature known as a Subrosian. Subrosians usually lived underground, and even then not anywhere near Hyrule. They lived in Subrosia, a subterranean nation under the land of Holodrum. The only way the Captains knew what the General was was from a thick tome, "Holodrum and Labrynna," written by the explorer Koholint. In it, Koholint described a "shy race with large, glowing eyes." They wore "robes of the most verdant green." Koholint provided few details on their anatomy, but he wrote "They are short without their robes. Resembling a strange crossbreed of Zora and Goron, their facial features are virtually nonexistent." From this, the Captains were able to identify the General as a Subrosian. There were a few key differences, such as the General wearing iron armor instead of a green robe, and the General having very little Zora characteristics, the only noticeable one being the "fins" on his lower arms.
This, in and of itself, wasn't enough to make Captain Sablen groan. No, what made him groan was the fact that whatever happened to the General, he would not fall to any attack. For some reason he was nearly invincible. Even the technique Koholint described for eliminating Subrosians would not eliminate the General. In short, he was even more annoying than Ganon, in some ways.
Captain Sablen shook his head and vowed to himself that they would find a way to defeat the General this battle. The other Captains looked at each other skeptically, and Captain Sablen, recognizing a potentially dangerous situation, called the meeting back to order.
"Back to the meeting, Captains. So, here we are, going up against the most powerful army we have seen. Does anyone have any suggestions? No? I thought not. That is why I have created this." Captain Sablen pulled a sheet off of the table next to him. A map of Hyrule Castle and its town, along with the surrounding fields, sat there in all its last-minute construction glory. Captain Sablen grabbed a small figure labeled "Ganon" and placed it among lots of other figures in the main center of the field.
"This is Ganon's army. They are situated in the center of Hyrule Field. We are here," Captain Sablen explained, putting five figures labeled "Sablen," "Leva," "Thyra," "Peral," and "Mikali" on the town. "Now, this plan capitalizes on our small numbers. Captain Thyra, you will take fifty of the army's best archers and make your way around Ganon's army, to where you are behind them. When I give you the command, you are to split your fifty into groups of two. These groups are to spread out and wreak havoc among Ganon's forces. Do you understand?"
Captain Thyra nodded. Captain Sablen continued. "Captains Mikali and Leva, each of you will take one hundred spearmen and one hundred swordsmen. Captain Mikali, you will take to the left hills from the town. Captain Leva, you will take the right. When I give the command, break your groups into two groups with fifty swordsmen and fifty spearmen each. These groups will then pincer Ganon and his army. You are to lead one of your groups into battle. Do you need anything repeated?"
Captain Leva shook his head, and Captain Mikali repeated, "One hundred each of swordsmen and spearmen, take left for me, right for Leva, break into even groups at your command, lead one into battle, make pincer. Got it."
"Good. Now, Captain Peral, you will stay here with me. We will have the remainder of the archers, the swordsmen, and the spearmen. Just follow what I say, and you will be good. Got that?"
Captain Peral gave Captain Sablen a thumbs-up.
"Alright, Captains. We are facing a foe with superior numbers. I am not going to tell you that we will all survive, because it's entirely possible that one or all of us will die. I will not fill you with false hope, so I won't even say that the plan will assure victory. But this is our best bet. Follow the plan, please, and hopefully we will survive. So, go, and good luck to us all."
Captain Sablen watched, an impassive expression on his face, as Ganon strode out of his throng of armored soldiers.
"Good day to you, Captain Sablen Radolf. I understand you are the one in charge of the Hyrulian Army," Ganon pronounced.
"Dispense with the formalities, Ganon. I know what you want," Captain Sablen replied, acid evident in his voice.
"Oh, you do?"
"Yes. Don't act all innocent. We know that you want the castle and Princess Zelda."
Ganon's face registered extreme astonishment. "Me? Why would I want to take Princess Zelda?"
Captain Sablen rolled his eyes, annoyed with Ganon's charade. "Stop the antics, Ganon. Why not just get this battle moving, or are you scared of our might?"
Ganon narrowed his eyes. "Fine, I will stop the 'antics.' You will be sorry for insulting me."
"Oh, dear. I'm so scared," Captain Sablen sarcastically retorted. "FIRE!"
Ganon was just barely able to raise his magic shield before the veritable wave of arrows poured down on his front ranks. The other soldiers weren't as lucky as Ganon; nearly thirty of Ganon's Stalfos and Darknuts fell, pierced by deadly arrows. Ganon nodded to the General, effectively turning the command of battle over to the small Subrosian. The General raised one bulky arm, signaling the Stalfos archers to nock their arrows. Captain Peral glanced at Captain Sablen, and in that moment, the General lowered his arm. The Stalfos released their arrows, and Captain Sablen tried to warn Captain Peral. He was too late, and she fell backward without a sound.
Captain Sablen wanted to grieve, but he knew his first duty was to lead the Army. He ducked down behind the Castle's parapets. Grabbing the magical crystal underneath his shirt, he spoke into it.
"Captain Thyra, split your forces into twos." As he listened to Thyra's soldiers splitting, Captain Sablen nodded to his archers to fire. Captain Thyra came into the crystal's range of vision. She pulled down a fist, and punched left twice, nearly knocking out one of her archers.
"You've split them? Good. Give them the order to spread and attack. Then, tell them that once they have fired off three arrows each, they are to retreat to the nearest forest or tree and hide there. If I am correct, Ganon will send his Moblin Scouts to find your men. In the trees, they should be able to evade the Scouts, and perhaps slim down the numbers some more."
Captain Thyra saluted, two fingers between her eyes, and closed the crystal's communications. Captain Sablen shoved the crystal into his pocket, making sure that both the cord and the bulge were not visible. He stood up, only to crouch back down as another swarm of arrows flew over the rampart. Captain Sablen looked over to his archers, and put three fingers by the side of his face, and then pretended to shoot an arrow. The archers nodded.
Captain Sablen gestured to the archers, who quickly stood up and shot off their nocked arrows. They were all aimed at the General, who was in the midst of sending a group of Stalfos around the castle to see if there were better attack spots anywhere else.
Ganon groaned. The General now resembled a small, yet large, pincushion. 'There goes my greatest soldier,' Ganon thought.
Captain Sablen grinned with pleasure as he watched Ganon don his war helmet. Now that the General was out of the picture, having been taken out by the single option the Captains could come up with that they hadn't tried, Ganon had to lead his army himself. This was both an advantage and a disadvantage to the Hyrulians.
Ganon stood in front of his forces, to give them a little confidence (fake, of course, because he only cared for himself,) but he was cut-off by a commotion from the back of his crowd. "What is going on back there?" Captain Sablen could hear Ganon yelling.
"We are being sniped from behind," one of the Darknut warriors replied in its high, reedy voice.
Captain Sablen had to cover his mouth with his hand to stop from laughing out loud when Ganon threw his hands up in the air in exasperation. Ganon turned to the castle and called out to the supposedly calm Captain Sablen.
"So, Sablen. You attempt a tactic that hints to a large army, thinking that I will assume that you have a small army. Oh, I'm onto you. I know you have a large army. Answer this for me, Sablen. Will they still fight for you when they are being destroyed by my Moblin Scouts? Will they still fight for you when the castle has been breached by a battering ram?"
"Yes, Ganon. They will fight even if that happens. So, go ahead. You will not destroy our love for our nation," Captain Sablen answered with such deep conviction that Ganon believed that they would, but just for a second.
"Well, shall we see?" Ganon asked in a scornful voice. "Moblin Scouts, find the archers in the back of our army. Tear them apart." The Moblin Scouts saluted and trotted off. "Stalfos and Darknuts, grab Grande. Bring the gates down." The soldiers in question saluted and grabbed an enormous log, sharpened to a point on one end and blunt on the other. Handholds were spaced evenly on the spruce log. Captain Sablen noted the thick bark of the log, and decided that it must have come from the Kokiri Forest. That forest would be the only one with trees that tall.
Since Ganon had his archers fire continuously while the battering ram, Captain Sablen took the opportunity to contact Captain Mikali and Captain Leva. "Captain Leva, Captain Mikali, can you here me?"
"Hear you loud and clear, Captain Sablen," Captain Leva replied.
"What do you want?" Captain Mikali asked.
"Proceed with your part of the plan," Captain Sablen commanded.
"Roger that," both Captains responded. They shut off their communications, and Captain Sablen noticed that the rain of arrows had stopped. He smiled- but only for a moment. A tree-shaking thud rippled through the wall. After he had cleared his head, Captain Sablen looked over the walltop to see about one hundred of Ganon's forces holding the spruce log horizontal to the ground, preparing for another charge at the gates.
Captain Sablen looked down the length of the wall, and saw that every archer and spearman was ready. Captain Sablen turned back to the battering ram, waiting for the ram crew to get into the vital position. When they were about two-thirds of the way to the gate, Captain Sablen shouted "FIRE!" His eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected results this single word caused. Seventy of the hundred on the ram ran away so as to escape being hit, and the other thirty immediately dropped the log because, without the seventy others, the log was too heavy. Of the thirty, twenty-two were hit by the arrows and spears.
At this precise moment, Captains Mikali and Leva hit Ganon's forces with a pincer. Ganon's Army was completely unprepared for this new tactic, and it took about five seconds for the army to regain their composure. Those five seconds were all the Hyrulians needed to gain the upper hand. Even with their low numbers, the Hyrulians were able to defeat nearly two hundred fifty of Ganon's forces in five seconds.
The fight went on for a few minutes, and in that time the swordsmen in the castle were able to get into the fray below, the Hyrulian archers were able to escape the battle so as to get to the safe house, and Ganon grabbed the advantage by using his magic to pick off half of the Hyrulian forces. Finally, Captain Sablen decided enough was enough when he saw a Stalfos with explosives nearing the wall. Captain Sablen used his rudimentary magic to lower a fog. This wasn't any fog, though. This fog teleported all the Hyrulian forces to various strongholds around Hyrule, where they could be safe.
Once Captain Sablen felt that all the remaining alive Hyrulians had been taken away, he lifted the fog. Ganon and his soldiers stood blinking in surprise.
Ganon looked at the castle and saw Captain Sablen standing there. "What happened?" Ganon asked.
Captain Sablen laughed. "Wouldn't you like to know? Well, truth be told, you, Ganon, have won because I cannot afford to lose more men."
"Where did they go?" Ganon inquired.
"I'm not telling you. All I will say is that they have escaped and live to fight another day. By the way, did you know that my army was only five hundred powerful?" Captain Sablen revealed.
Ganon's jaw fell open. "What? Surely it was four thousand at least?"
"Nope," Captain Sablen smiled. "It was only five hundred."
Ganon growled. Then, in an uncharacteristic show of anger, he slashed his hand through the air. The Stalfos with the explosives set them off, and the outer wall of the castle crumbled.
The smoke and dust cleared. Rubble lay strewn about, but there was no sign of Captain Sablen. Ganon didn't care, though. He rode into the castle on his horse, and breathed in the scent of.... victory.
One week later...
A roughly garbed man sat in Kakariko Village's local café, eating a simple meal of bread and cheese. This man, known as Sidon to his fellows, was actually Captain Sablen. He looked nothing like the Captain others knew. Captain Sablen had grown an impressive mustache, and sported long brown hair very unlike his previous locks of blond. His eyes hadn't lost their warlike twinkle, though people just put it to the fact that he desperately wanted to fight in the war against Ganon. He couldn't though, on account of his wooden leg. Otherwise, people whispered, he would have gone off and joined the closest garrison.
Captain Sablen barely paid attention to his wooden leg anymore. He had lost his leg to a river Zora when trying to swim across to get to Kakariko Village. Captain Sablen thought the wooden leg made him look quite dashing.
He was roused from a momentary lapse in attentiveness by the scraping of chairs from the table behind him. Captain Sablen half-turned and looked to see if the occupants had left a newspaper. They had.
Captain Sablen grabbed it as they left, unnoticed by the previous owners of the paper. Captain Sablen turned to the paper, and the headline, "TEMPLE OF TIME HAS PERMANENTLY CLOSED DOORS," caused him to warp into memory land.
That day, when Ganon had taken the castle, Captain Sablen had stayed behind so as to instruct Sciara and Agitha in what they needed to do. He then watched as they fled, Ganon right behind them. He saw Sciara throw the Ocarina of Time into Castle Town moat. Then, he waited, and saw Link retrieve the Ocarina of Time. When Link ventured into the Temple of Time, he had closed the doors behind Link. Then, he had escaped to Kakariko.
A loud crash brought Captain Sablen back to his senses. A patron had dropped their tankard of milk. Captain Sablen looked at the spreading pool of milk, and vaguely noted that it was spreading just like Ganon's influence, sometimes in great bursts, others in small increments. At the rate the milk was spreading, it would cover the floor, just like Ganon's power would cover the land.
"This, truly, is a war. A war that will have disastrous consequences for both sides," Captain Sablen muttered as he stepped over the milk and exited the café, into the bitter cold of night in Kakariko Village.
The arrow-filled body of the General, left on the castle lawns as a monument to the General, shivered. The left arm moved, and with a strange gesture, swept all the arrows out of the body. The General was still alive. Using his right arm to massage his legs, the General made a vow to destroy the Hyrulians, the ones who had filled him with arrows, and to destroy Ganon, the one who had left him, the General, filled with arrows without so much as a second glance. In short, the General vowed to get revenge.