Ambivalence
Chapter One: Fed Up
The midday sun blazed down on the deep brown expanse of the monotonous desert dunes, reflecting back silvery dancing mirages along the hazy horizon and adding an impassioned patriotic lustre to the faces of the hundreds of Hylians gathered around the abandoned desert fortress. The only hint of shade for as far as the squinted eye could see was cast by a few wiry nondescript trees around the ancient sandstone citadel; they swayed indifferently in the dust-strewn breeze.
The mutual feeling of anticipation hung over the silent crowd with a tangibility so potent it could almost be passed around by the air. Never before had the turnout been this large… or quite this secretive. They had each received their single, minute square of parchment enclosed within the clandestine handshake of another or between the stacked milk bottles left on their front porch step. For others in harder to contact situations, a series of inventive- albeit unorthodox- methods were employed. But in the end the message was surreptitiously spread through the land like an ancient whispering game. The message was simple, yet rather ambiguous-
A gathering has been called for the sixth of the present month.
We will meet under the overhead sun beside the raven's wing.
The time has come.
To prevent this information falling into the wrong hands, make sure it is destroyed after viewing.
There was no signature at the bottom. One was not needed because they knew who it was from. It was written in the distinctive hand of their self-allocated leader, the man who was leading them all to a better life. They have been awaiting this time for months and now it was finally here.
Overhead, hanging precariously out of a high, dusty stone turret of their meeting place, was a single, worn flag flapping wildly in the higher winds. The wind whipped it from side to side as if it was trying to rip it clean off the pole and carry it away. This flag alone was the only indication of what the fortress' true purpose was. Emblazoned on the black material was a raven with one outstretched wing- a symbol recognised only by the few hundred which were gathered here today.
The time has come.
The eyes of every man and every woman in the area were fixed on the man in the weak shadows, waiting anxiously on bated breath for him to speak.
The man was young- scarcely nineteen- and with such a pale completion that many would sware he has never experienced the sun's rays. When they weren't clouded with a haze of deep thought, irritation, ire, or any other distractions, his eyes were the richest of blues- an ultramarine so opulent that one would assume their magnificence was bequeathed to him by the goddesses themselves. But now- unlike ever before- they were a tempest of emotion.
Link stabbed his sword into the soft wafting sand and looked around at his followers. Fear, uncertainty and disparaging doubts for what they were about to attempt resonated like a heartbeat within him. What if some didn't make it? What if they couldn't return to their families, their children? What if this didn't work like they had planned?
But when he saw the determination and tenacity in their faces he knew the situation had surpassed a simple what if? They knew what was to come and yet they were still here, ready to fight for their freedom; hungering to escape suppression and relieve the land of its coercive tyrant. The King lavishes on his opulent thrown while hundreds suffer from poverty and neglect. He eats the richest meats and drinks the finest wines while the rest of the land must suffice with the barely acceptable rations of raw water and grainy bread as a staple diet. A chance to reclaim every human's fundamental right of freedom and fair treatment must be worth it? Isn't it worth fighting for?
Even dying for?
He took a deep breath. If this wasn't enough reason to put months and month's worth of planning into action then the threat of what is soon to come should be more than enough.
He quickly composed himself enough that his hesitancies would not show and looked again out into the sea of faces.
The time has come.
"Men and women of Hyrule", he began with vigour. If it were possible the crowd would have fallen even quieter. The silence allowed his voice to remain unraised while still being heard by even the peripherals of the crowd. "The time has come to reassess your loyalty, if you no longer feel you can uphold your obligations to this organisation then you are free to walk away unscathed. Just let it be known that if you are not with us then you are with him", he spat derisively. His pallid face crumpled into an expression of loathing. He refused to think of that man as this land's king.
Silence continued to reign over the crowd as not one person moved an inch. They may be faithful but were they ready?
Link pulled his sword from the ground and ran his eyes from hilt to tip contemplatively. "Yesterday I received word that our all mighty ruler-" he spoke scathingly, "- has agreed to the alliance set forth by the most ruthless, underhanded and nefarious man ever to set foot on our land's unmarred soil"
There was a buzz of discontent as the crowd reeled back with the news, but he continued on nonetheless. "I realise that this insurrection will be happening prematurely, but if we do not act now then there will be nothing left to fight for. If our 'king' (you could almost hear the apostrophises flanking his last word) does not destroy what little we have left then Ganondolf surely will"
Link heard a few gasps rise from the masses of people standing before him. A wave of unease seemed to spread across the crowd as the name of the iniquitous tyrant left his lips. It was one thing to stand up to the king but another to stand up to a self-proclaimed murderer. There are few people in Hyrule who do not shudder when his name is spoken. There are few who do not reel back and hurry away as if speaking the name would somehow call him to their presence. And there are even less who would willingly confront his ruthless plans unless they wanted to die a slow and painful death. What they were about to undertake would do more than just interrupt or irritate him. If they pulled off this seemingly impossible feat then they would have every reason to fear the potential terrors he would unleash. But they had to do this. There was no other choice. If they wanted to live instead of just existing then they had to go ahead with the insurrection. If they continue to turn a blind eye then their lives can only be descended upon by more hardships; more injustice. Once one tyrant was out of the way it would be easier to bring down the other.
"If this agreement is finalised then we can say goodbye to any minute chance of ever gaining our freedom" He took in a deep breath to calm his nerves. It was too early. This was all happening sooner than they had planned.
He caught sight of Yve and Heath amongst the rest. Even they were reduced to utter contemplative silence, two of his best friends and the most happy-go-lucky couple he had ever met in his life. They stared back at him with hesitancy blatant in their eyes, waiting for his ominous words to finalise the reason they were all gathered here.
His eyes swept through the rows of apprehensive civilians, searching for one particular face, the comforting and reassuring one he so desperately needed right now. But he could not find her. Was she even there?
He forced himself to set the thought aside. This was no time to lose your nerve. He needed to be strong for these people. He forced a mask of indifference to his face as if what they were about to do was nothing more threatening than taking a simple afternoon stroll down the sun-swept banks of Lake Hylia. Oh how he longed to be able to do that right now, how he wished everything could be different, but hoping for the best had never gotten him very far. Actions had always spoken louder than words and right now they were going to hear just how loud those actions could get.
"Men and women", his words seemed to soothe the unease floating around him, "it was once said that this sword will one day bring justice to the land and regain the equilibrium lost over the years under this autocracy", he said raising the silver, emerald encrusted sword into the air, "and to this day I still refuse to believe such nonsense"
He saw the sea of faces sink into a mutual worried frown as a buzz of discontent rose once more. He lowered the sword again but kept it in such a position that it could be seen by every dejected face.
"And it is true", he continued in a softer voice, "it is not this sword or even any sword which will be victorious tonight, that claim will be ours and ours alone", his expression hardened into one of tenacious determination. "That king will be cowering at our feet before the break of dawn tomorrow. Let's see how much power he has with steel pressed against his tenuous throat; if he values his pathetic life then he will have no choice but to oblige to our demands" As fast as the mood had hindered, it had again been risen. "This time tomorrow we will dine at the affluent tables fit for kings. Tomorrow, we will break from the bonds of suppression and enter a new age; we will finally be free"
"Hell yeah!", came a spontaneous cry of fervour from someone in the crowd. Link couldn't help but smile when he recognised the voice. The predictability of Heath's resilient nature was almost laughable. Nothing could keep his spirits down for long. He saw Yve turn and give him a playful slap on his arm then break out into silent laughter. Heath bent down and repaid her with a generous kiss. Link rolled his eyes and stifled a laugh that he knew would lessen the seriousness he was trying to maintain. Even in the face of danger, the true gravity of the situation always seemed to elude them. Either that or they just prefer not to acknowledge it.
He turned his attention back to the larger audience.
"I hope you are all ready because there is no turning back now", he spoke with more encouragement that determent. "The revolution begins tonight" There was a finality to his words that couldn't quite be described. It was kind of as if his words were portending the end of the king's reign and the end of their suffering, and there was nothing anyone could do to stop it.
Fear, uncertainty, apprehension, every dampening thought was expelled as the words left his mouth. Every person in the crowd must have felt it too because barely a second had passed before there was not one person left unaffected by the sudden wave of intense vehement emotions eliciting into the air. Cheers erupted all around him. They had been waiting a long time for this and there was no way they would let uncertainty cloud their judgement.
Not tonight.
Not in the face of victory.
Link smiled at the thought that all this mess would soon be over and they could all return to their normal lives. He looked through the crowd of ebullient faces but stopped suddenly on one in particular.
She was the only one not jumping around, cheering or hugging the nearest person to her, but she was smiling. But more importantly, she was smiling at him. She had supported him since the very start, even when no one else did, when people said there was no hope in his cause or when they told him it was foolish to believe the yeomanry could make a difference.
Rhea was like the sister he never had. She was there when he needed her, she gave him advice when he desperately needed guidance, and, with an uncanny optimism, she could usually make a bad situation better just by explaining it through her unique perspective. She was someone who knew more about him than anyone else in the land. She didn't judge him for the mistakes he had made in the past, even when he himself did.
She gave him a warm approving smile and nodded her head once before turning and disappearing back into the depths of the rejoicing crowd; her thoughts echoing his.
The time has come.