Foreword: I started this story back in 2006 and I didn't bother to finish it. Now I've rewritten the first chapter and I'm going to try and finish it this time. I've also posted it on Zelda Universe so hopefully that will be twice the incentive to do so.

Disclaimer: I own nothing belonging to the Zelda franchise and seek no form of monetary gaining in the writing of this story.

Prince of Ruin

Chapter 1

They rode out at dawn from Castle Town's west gate. Four riders and one knight who led them all cantered in a single file formation following the cobble stone path from the drawbridge. Around midday, they reached the cross roads where travelers normally take the southern route towards Lake Hylia. They simply went forward on the dirt path leading further west to the edge of Lanayru province. By sunset, they reached a camp site some ways off the path. By sunset, they set up camp some ways off the path, for which Byron could not be more grateful.

His muscles ached from such a long ride. His back was stiff from holding straight with a shield strapped to his back. His face still burned from bathing in the summer sun. Byron's first day riding with his new company, and this was already the furthest he had ever been from home. Then he remembered that they still had four more days of riding west and he patted his hand on the satchel tied to his waist which held his most cherished keepsake, a Keaton doll his mother had once made for him as a child.

They tethered their horses, save the captain's, and built a fire. The captain rode off on his own as he liked to do, or so Byron's fellow riders informed him, leaving the company to their own devices. Fezzik sat on his mat with a whet stone in hand, honing his knife, which had a two handed grip and a blade nearly as large as he was. Old Gremio played a song on his lute called Ode to the Dragon's Roost. Lysander sat on a stump by the fire cooking a stew.

"I didn't pick up the skill until I met up with this lot," he told Byron as he stirred. "We all take turns cooking, even the captain. I have to say that I'd prefer cooking for a comely lady though. Best way to a woman's heart and her bosom."

"Lysander!" Fezzik spoke up in that rumbling, booming baritone voice of his. "Keep those vulgarities to yourself. We don't need our green recruit thinking
ev'ryone in this company is a lecher or a cad, yeah?"

"All the chivalry in the world won't get you anywhere with those sissies in the Royal Guard, Goron-face."

Fezzik's eyebrows twitched at the jab. Though he was a Hylian, the mountain man was built like a mountain. If Byron had to guess he would say that mountain was just seven inches shy of seven feet tall. He was just as generously matched in height by width which was nigh completely muscle. His face looked like someone carved it from a rock with a square jaw and a nose that straightly sloped from his brow. Lysander must be mad to taunt this giant.

"Perhaps we could better acquaint ourselves with the new rider instead of our usual squabble?" said Gremio. "It might make him a little less frightened to deathly silence. What say you, son?"

Byron blinked and took nearly a beat before realizing the question was directed at him. So, for the first time that night, he spoke, "Ummm sure."

So each rider recounted how he joined this motley crew to Byron. Gremio started off. He was formerly a sheriff in a little town in Faron. He had met the captain before the company was formed. They tracked a band of Bokoblins who raided the town larder and abducted several women and children. The old man was specifically recruited for the company on request of the knight. Lysander was from Bippin Village somewhere in Lanayru. He had been making a living as a huntsman for the lord of their fiefdom. Then the noble caught wind that he had been skimming some of the meat from his kills and selling it to the local butchers, so he was given the choice of losing his hand or putting his fine marksmanship to use in the Hylian Guard.

"Not fancying dismemberment, I chose the latter," said Lysander as he poured a bowl of stew and handed it off to Byron.

Fezzik was the son of a retired knight that lived in a settlement on the northern mountains just outside of the Kingdom proper. When he came of age, he descended from his mountain home to Castle Town for a royal tourney and bested every competitor in combat dueling. For the winner's favor, he requested to be put into service of the kingdom's finest knight.

"And you, son?" said Gremio. "What's your story?"

Once again caught off guard, Byron tried to think of the best way he could tell his story. A way that could stand with the fanciful tales that the other riders regaled him with, but in the end, the best he could say was, "My father was just a watchman of the Hylian Guard in Kakariko. Then one day, he was a knight for services to the kingdom that even he didn't realize he had done. So I was later sent to Castle Town to begin my training as a rider."

"Oh, so you're aimin' for knighthood like me then, yeah?" said Fezzik jovially.

"Uh…yes I suppose." That was what they kept telling Byron as they instructed him in the knightly ways. He had been taught all the basics of melee, archery, and horsemanship in the Castle Town Barracks, though he never fought in actual combat yet. However, he always felt too out of place during the time he spent there. To be honest, he was beginning to feel the same about this lot too. "So what's the story behind our leader then?"

"Who, the cap'n?" said Fezzik.

Byron nodded. Everyone and their mother knew of that man. He was called the Hero, the Green Knight, the Forest Swordsman, or the Ocarina Rogue. No one really knew where he had come from. They say he had just one day emerged from the Lost Woods and set about Hyrule, fighting off bandits and monsters that plagued the kingdom and he was knighted for his service to the Royal Family. In Byron's hometown, they said the Green Knight had become sworn brothers with the chief of the Rock-Eaters in Death Mountain. In the barracks of Castle Town there were rumors that he had rescued a Zora princess but broke her heart when he refused her hand in marriage, so she had commanded that all of her subjects spit in his face when they come across him.

The one that Byron found most funny was of how he entered the house of this one woman uninvited, broke all of her clay pots and just left without giving her a moment's glance. True or false, famous or infamous, nearly every corner of Hyrule had its own unique tales about the man that ranged from courageous to bawdy to downright silly. The strange and wild knight had such a reputation that Byron was one part excited and two parts terrified upon learning that he was to serve in this company. He least expected that his captain would be almost as young as he was.

Fezzik shrugged, "Don't know too much 'bout where he came from. Sure you heard plenty of stories bout the cap'n, yeah?"

"Want to know whether they're true or not?" asked Lysander. Byron then realized that these men had been asked every question he could think of before. "Well he does seem to be Zelda's favorite knight. I'm willing to bet that she has him visit her bed chamber regularly during our nights at the Castle."

"Stop slanderin' our cap'n and our princess with your perverted fantasies, Lysander!" Fezzik nearly shouted. "You know he already has a gal he's sweet on."

Lysander grinned. "Well, she always has him escorting her to those banquets, feast, and dances whenever he's available to. I mean there's gotta be some reason she likes to have him around her."

Byron felt his cheeks grow red. He heard those rumors as well though he had not the courage to ask about them.

"Only a cad like you thinks like that," Fezzik turned to Byron. "So what do you think about the cap'n so far?"

"I guess I expected him to be a bit…older."

"Indeed, he is quite young for a man of his rank," said Gremio. "But he speaks and fights like a man who's seen more than he possibly could in the years he's lived."

"All you need to know is that he prefers not to be called 'sir', he doesn't like wearin' any more armor other than a chainmail vest under his tunic, and he's the only man in the kingdom worthy of bein' called a knight."

"Which is probably why the rest of the bloody court wants him dead. I mean while they are prancing about in shiny clothes, this left handed, weirdly dressed man rides across the kingdom actually solving problems. So they send him on quests they think will kill him," said Lysander.

"Is that why they're sending us to the desert?" Byron asked.

"Might be it is. Or they'll hope we'll desert in the desert so they have a reason to kill us if we ever come back. It's not just the captain they want to get rid of. I mean none of us are the kind of folk them nobles like inviting to their fancy balls and the like."

Byron's stomach turned. In the barracks, he had been mocked for his common background plenty of times. He learned to weather those slights. The fact that someone would send him to his death for it was another story entirely. If they did not want him to be knight, why did raise his father in the first place? Nobles are so…scary.

Noticing Byron's discomfort, Gremio ceased playing his lute. "For the love Nayru, Lysander, I wanted to help the lad feel more welcome, not terrify the day lights out of him."

"Maybe you ought to keep your trap shut fer once, yeah?" said Fezzik.

Lysander shrugged, "I guess I'm better at talking to women."

"Heh, yeah keep telling yourself that."

"While we're on the subject of scaring people, how many babies and ladies flee at the sight of your ugly mug, Goron face?"

"What did you just say?"

"Are you deaf or is all that muscle just clogging your ears, Goron-face?"

"Say. That. One. More. Time..."

There was a moment of silence around the camp fire, though Byron would hardly call it peaceful. Fezzik and Lysander had rose to their feet and stared each other down. Time seemed to slow down as if waiting for the latter to utter his next word. When he did, it was as if he roused an avalanche.

Definitely mad, thought Byron.

***

Link knew the moment he heard shouting from the campsite. He had just finished his evening ride. It was a routine he added when he began travelling with a company. Epona always got restless from holding herself back all day just so the other riders' mounts could keep up. So, at Malon's prodding, Link would take several laps around the camp every night at her full gait. It served to secure the perimeter and tire her out so she would not pick a fight with the other horses. A pity the riders were not as manageable.

He fed an apple to Epona and left her by the tree with the other mounts and arrived at the campfire. Little to his surprise, Link found Fezzik putting poor Lysander in a chokehold. Gremio was tuning his lute while the new rider, Byron, watched helplessly with eyes as wide as a frightened rabbit.

"So I'm Goron faced? Well let's see how well you do with a Zora face," Fezzik said to Lysander, whose face was indeed turning the hue of a Zora's.

The party only noticed Link's presence when he cleared his throat. Fezzik immediately released his hold and stood at attention. Lysander wheezed for a bit but gave a nod towards Link. Byron's fright turned to awe, not knowing if he should stand. Gremio grinned and strummed another tune.

"So, what's on the menu?" Link sat on a place made for him by the fire. At that cue, Fezzik and Lysander returned to their spots, each relieved.

"Kinaton stew, specially made by yours truly," Lysander advertised as he filled a bowl and handed it to Link. The stew was warm and rich with Lon Lon milk. There were certainly perks to travelling with a group.

"Delicious as always Lysander."

"Yeah well, enjoy it while you can. It'll be salted jerky and hardened cheese by the time we reach the valley."

"That'll still be better than what they serve in the desert," said Fezzik. "I heard the Gerudo eat living scorpions."

"It's actually quite tasty." Link said it without a second thought but then he noticed the looks the circle gave him and hastily added, "That's what I've heard at least."

"Umm…Sir-er-Captain Link," said Byron. That must have been the first time Link ever heard the new recruit speak. "Is…is it true that the Gerudo are all women?"

A sudden mirth took the entire company. Lysander nearly choked on his stew from snickering. Gremio strummed his loot with a knowing smirk. Even Fezzik was trying to suppress a booming laugh. We all know where this is going.

"Yes…well, most generations of Gerudo are born female. Their culture trains their daughters to be fierce warriors of the desert. They usually live in separate clans each governed by a chieftain, while a circle of wise women governs from lands sacred to their culture. Once every century or so, a boy is born, and that boy is made king of the entire tribe." Link recalled his experiences from the years that never were as he said this.

"And look how well that turned out, yeah?" Fezzik muttered.

"B-but if the Gerudo almost always girls umm… how do they, you know?" Byron's words sent another wave of suppressed laughter amongst the riders. The boy himself had a face red with embarrassment.

"I know what?"

"I-er…"

"I think our poor innocent recruit is asking how Gerudo women can have little girls when there's few to no Gerudo men to share their bed in the moon light," said Lysander. "It's kind of hard for virgins to articulate such questions. I guess he has another thing in common with you Fez-…"

Link shot Lysander the glare he reserved for battle and stopped the man mid speech. The last thing the captain needed was another fight between those two. Lysander also needed to learn that he cannot be an instigator just because Link was present to hold Fezzik back. Sometimes I wonder if the court knew those two might kill each other.

"The Gerudo race is almost always female, but they allow men from other populations to join their tribe. The girls born from those unions are always born with the red hair and the brown skin of the Gerudo. Sometimes they take mates from other desert tribes such as the Zuna. In less pleasant times, they would abduct men from raiding settlements even in the Hylian territories. These days, they give asylum to men from the kingdom they deem worthy, sometimes criminals who want a fresh start, sometimes men who fancy the ferocious life of a desert thief. These men live under strict laws made by the women but they are still considered part of the Gerudo Tribe."

"No wonder their last king was a damn traitor. His bloody father was probably some deserter, yeah?" said Fezzik.

Link grimaced, he was still unsure about the welcoming they'd get from the host of the Gerudo Fortress. The last time he visited the desert was nearly seven years ago, just after he got Darunia and King Zora to bear witness to the king. He never witnessed what happened to Ganondorf, he only heard from the owl sage that the king of thieves was captured before he could rebel and taken to the fate of all who would darken the Sacred Realm…whatever that meant. Link never inquired further on the matter. He was content with the knowledge that Ganondorf failed to acquire the Triforce of Power and he had averted the years that never were, even if the rest of the realm did not know. Link had spent the next seven years doing what he was good at doing until he was again a grown man and made a knight.

Now, they were sent as emissaries of the king to reopen diplomatic relations and that in itself was strange. Ever since Ganondorf was captured, the Gerudo retreated to the desert. Link had heard that the entire kingdom was in a state of fear for the next four seasons. There were rumors of a Gerudo army preparing to strike Hyrule Castle in order to free their king, there were rumors that the king would invade the desert to punish the Gerudo for the actions of Ganonodorf. Hyrule expected the worse, another great war perhaps. However, none of that came to pass. The Gerudo never invaded. In fact, they were seldom seen at all. The king bolstered patrolling of the western border in Lanayru until reports of increasing Bokoblin raids in the eastern provinces began popping up.

So why should the King of Hyrule extend an arm of peace to the Gerudo after nearly losing his head in receiving theirs? Lysander and Fezzik were certain that this was some political trap for Link, devised by a conspiracy of nobles. If there was one thing those two shared, it was their lofty opinion of the land gentry. However, Link knew that it was the counsel of Princess Zelda that sent them on this journey. The king had given more value to her words after the she helped reveal Ganondorf's designs. It was her advice that kept him from exacting retribution on the Gerudo. The rest of court cried for war despite many of those same dignitaries vouching for Ganondorf's character when all they knew of him were the rare treasures of the desert that he filled their coffers with. Zelda convinced him to not make war unless the Gerudo attacked first. The small folk and smarter lords praised her for it, calling her the wise princess. Years later, as a maiden flowered, she convinced her father to make peace with Gerudo so that Hyrule may better guard against the more prominent threats both within and without. She felt Link and his company suited for the task of delivering the olive branch.

They talked and jibed for another hour but soon the fire died down and weariness took hold of the party. Link took the first watch for the night as he usually did. The other riders drifted to slumber. He noticed Byron holding a satchel to his heart as he slept, a precious something from home no doubt. Link patted a pouch on his hip where he stored his own keepsakes from two of the most important people in his life: a fairy ocarina and a dainty scarf with a bronze dragon head slide. Guess we have some things in common.

Then it dawned on Link that Byron was naught but a year his junior, at least by most people's reckoning. After the years that never were and the years of three days, Link often forgot what his actual age was supposed to be, that to the casual observer, he was a young man as green as the clothes on his back. This played out in his favor more than once, when his adversaries made the fatal mistake of underestimating him in battle. More often than not, it reminded him that even amongst other Hylians, he was different.

He had friends across Hyrule and beyond, there was a stead for him to spend his days of rest, and fiery haired Hylian maiden with whom the time he spent he treasured with a passion. However, he seldom gave his friends much chance to repay the countless favors he did for them, he never could think of the ranch as a home, and even with Malon, there was a piece of his heart that he kept hidden. She noticed it too as she had told him one night when they were cuddled together and gazing at the stars through the hayloft. It was not just the years that never were though. It was something that could be summed up in a single phrase.

I live for the fight. He had realized that a while ago, in the midst of a long bout against a Bulblin chieftain. That feeling people referred to as being at home was something he felt in the swing of his blade, the clang on his shield, the echoes of an unexplored cave, the vibration of the bow from a released arrow. Home was always a fleeting instant that went as quickly as it came. Sometimes he could find his home in a restful tune on his ocarina or in the time he spent with Malon. However, he inevitably found himself missing the call of the field and the thrill of the unknown.

***

Two days passed. The air became drier, the grass became sparser, and the land began to slope and jut into hills and cliffs. On the horizon, Byron saw the escarpment of the plateau that bordered Hyrule and the desert. The guay flew overhead to inspect the travelers and field peahats rose to the sky to in a warning display as they passed. However, the company treaded carefully enough to provoke no attack. They rode with Link at the front, followed by Fezzik and Gremio abreast, and Lysander and Byron at the rear. Lysander, not being fond of silence decided to chat with the young rider.

"You know, I didn't really take our captain seriously until the day he stuck an arrow straight between the eyes of a Bulblin as far away as that shrub yonder." He pointed to said shrub on a cliff close to the horizon. "That was before he got Fezzik in line."

"Fezzik?" Byron had never met a more dutiful man.

"Yeah...as loyal as he is now, it wasn't always the case. When he first joined up, Fezzik felt he had gotten shafted on his whole serving under the finest knight request. He thought that Link was a joke of a knight and that that nobles upstairs kept him as a means of sweeping people they didn't like under the rug. So for the first couple of days he'd been passive aggressively mocking the captain. Then one day he upped it to a blatantly rude and that was the last straw. So the captain walks up to Fezzik all nice and calm-like. Then wham!" Lysander clapped his hands. "The next instant, he had the big guy on the ground locked in a painful arm hold. Then he made Fezzik sweep horse shit for the next couple of days. After that, Goron-face would gladly sweep after Epona without Link having to ask."

"You're joking…" said Byron. Maybe he could believe the story about the arrow, but how could anyone the captain's size take pin someone like Fezzik?

Lysander shrugged. "Believe me or not, just don't let him know that I told you that story."

Byron sighed. He had thought that the incident on first night was just a rare occurrence. The next two days convinced him that it was part of a routine. Each day, they would get into a squabble and nearly come to blows before Link stepped in to break it up. Gremio said it was typical when they were on the road. Byron still worried. Back at the barracks, this type of behavior would have been strictly disciplined by the master-at-arms. They were always lectured about maintaining coherency and camaraderie and showing discipline on the field. How could he hope to survive with this motley crew?

Link halted the company and looked at Fezzik "You hear that?"

"I smell it. Guess the gods favored us with a change of the wind, yeah?"

Hear what? Byron looked around. There was nothing but a couple cliffs and hills.

Gremio dismounted and placed his ear to the ground. "Seven mounts, they're making their move around the cliffs up northward."

Byron's eyes widened, "Raiders?"

"Well those aren't horse hooves."

"I'd recognize that pig stink anywhere," said Fezzik.

Lysander sighed. "Musta noticed us passing by. Or maybe they've been looking for us this whole time. Ever since you killed that chieftain, seems like the Bulblins have it out for you, captain."

"Just my luck," Link replied, "To arms! We'll wait for them here."

Lysander stringed and notched his bow, as did Gremio when he got back on his horse. Fezzik brandished his war axe, his knife being too cumbersome for mounted combat. Link drew his own sword, a lavender blade with a black rose and green inlay etched on the flat. It looked more like a ceremonial fetish than a weapon for combat. Byron drew his blade as well, his heart thundered in his chest.

"You know how to use that thing on horseback?" asked Link. Byron nodded.

So they waited. Byron now heard the stomping from the direction Gremio pointed them in. Then they came into plain view riding on seven Bulbos, boars as large as horses. Their riders were green skinned with hunched horned heads, red eyes peaking between leathers caps and masks, long torsos dressed in skins and linens. Each mount carried two Bublins, one with the reins the other with a weapon. Two of the mounts carried archers while the rest raised clubs.

"Take out their marksmen," Link ordered.

Lysander and Gremio both loosed their arrows. Lysander's struck a Bulbo right through the eye. It skidded across the ground sent its passengers sprawling forward. Gremio's shot hit the neck of a rider, who lifelessly fell still from his mount clutching the reins, forcing the beast to charge into the Bulbo next to it. With two arrows, they managed to cut seven mounts down by three. Link, Fezzik, and Byron charged the remaining four. Link's sword flashed, beheading both the rider and the passenger. Fezzik's axe cleaved the face of a rider while he ducked under a swinging club. Byron's sword found the gut of a Bulblin whose club grazed his shoulder. Lysander downed the remaining pair by killing their mount.

In the distance the Bulblins that were downed by the archer regrouped on their surviving mounts. Link ordered Fezzik and Byron to stay put and he spurred Epona forward towards the charging foes. He ducked low with his sword pointed back. A gleam of Force traced the length of the Great Fairy Sword. As his horse passed between the boars, Link swung. A razor arc circled him!

The Bulbos slowed their charge to a trot. Their riders swayed for a beat. Then blood spurted from hidden wounds. Two heads and an arm hit the ground followed by four Bulblin bodies.

In the distance, Link turned Epona about to face his handiwork. His sword had no trace of Bulblin blood as he sheathed it. Neither panic nor a bead of sweat marred his countenance. He only glared with slanted brows.

"By Hylia," Byron muttered as he surveyed the battle field. The only Bulblins still alive were in flight. Did they really do all of that? He looked at his blade, stained with blood. His instructors' words echoed in his head and he quickly wiped his sword with some cloth before sheathing it. His heart still pounded furiously all the while.

"First time you killed somethin', yeah?" Fezzik asked with a hearty chuckle. Byron nodded meekly.

"A bloody good shot, Gremio," said Lysander.

"A lucky shot," said Gremio correcting. "I was lucky it dragged one Bulbo into another. At least you aimed for that eye."

The party regrouped, lining abreast before Link. "Is everyone alright?" When they answered in the affirmative he gave a sigh of relief. "Good, we should probably move on. Those stragglers might send more raiders our way."

"You think we couldn't afford to tarry a while captain?" Lysander asked. He was eyeing one of the slain Bulbos. "I mean that fight probably worked up a fierce appetite in all of us, and just letting fresh boar meat go to waste seems like a…well a waste to me."

"It's true," Fezzik agreed. "Seems like an un-knightly thing to let good meat go to waste, cap'n. I don't think jerky and cheese is gonna sate us after that workout. Also this is Byron's first fight, we should celebrate with good meat tonight, yeah?"

Link smirked. "I guess we have no choice. If you are willing to tie up and carry one of those Bulbos, then we should have a little feast tonight."

They ate well that night.

***

The ground turned to an orange dust. It was just past was dawn when they reached the path to the Gerudo Valley. Weatherworn flags marked the entrance through rocky wall. It was a narrow ravine carved by eons of wind and water long since dried up. They rode single file in the shadows. The morning sky was like a river peaking between to the towering uneven walls of sandstone. For a moment, Byron feared those jagged walls might close on them all, but then he heard the sound of running water and the passageway widened.

They reached a clearing that overlooked the Gerudo Valley, which was more of a canyon that stretched even deeper than the ravine. At the very bottom was a mighty river. Refracted light dance off the misty water that cascaded down several cataracts until it vanished around a bend on its journey to Lake Hylia. The only means of crossing was a wooden bridge with no railing and planks spaced too far apart for Byron's liking, right in front of them.
Link halted the company. At first Byron thought the captain shared his opinion about the bridge, but Link hardly glanced at it. Instead he looked around the valley and at the buttes and archway across the gap. Then he addressed the riders.

"Whatever happens when we cross the bridge, do not draw your weapons. Keep your horses steady and let me do the talking."

They answered with silent nods. Fezzik, Lysander, and Gremio took the order with a steel resolve. Byron felt slightly worried but the days he spent with the band had instilled him with more confidence. If anything else, they would not die like cowards.

They crossed the bridge without incident. Just as they approached the entrance to the next ravine, an arrow buried itself in the ground in front of Epona, followed by four more next to it. They were surrounded. Swift warriors appeared as if from nowhere. All of them were women with red hair and brown skin, Gerudo. They wielded spears and swords with sharp curved blades the like of which Byron had never seen in Hyrule before. They wore strange cloths, sleeveless tops that bared their midriffs, trousers that were baggy around the waist but tapered around their calves, and veils over their mouths, all of which had angular patterns and amber gem facets. The colors matched their weapons. Five archers in white stood atop the cliffs. The seven bearing pole arms at the horses and riders wore violet garb. The three who carried were dressed in red.

One the sword wielders stepped forward, removing her veil. "Is it courage or foolishness which brings these five Hylian riders to our doorstep on this lovely morning?"

"I am…Sir Link. We are emissaries on behalf of the Royal Family of Hyrule here to negotiate peace between our peoples," Link answered.

"Well met, Sir Link. I am Aveil," The Gerudo tilted her head and furrowed her brow. "Does the Royal Family dress all of their emissaries like fools, or just the one they send us?"

"No, I just forgot to don my armor before we left."

Gremio and Lysander exchanged grins. Link often forgot his uniform for most occasions.

Aveil whispered an order to another red Gerudo who ran off past the cliffs. Then she turned to Link. "You'll have to forgive our skepticism but for the last seven years, we expected the next we saw of the Royal Family would be a poisoned dagger."

Fezzik muttered something that Link prayed the Gerudo did not hear.

"We shall take you before the chief and the wise circle. You shall make your case to them." With that, Aveil sheathed her weapons and clapped her hands. The rest of the Gerudo took a relaxed stance. Link and the riders followed her to the fortress under the watchful eye of Gerudo warriors.

***
Author's Note:

The goals of this fanfic are the following: writing a drama/horror with a little bit of comedy and romance on the side; exploring the character of Link, and how the events of OoT and MM would affect him as person and his relationships; exploring the ideas about the Gerudo such as how the unique aspects of their race affect their relationships with other societies; good suspense and actions sequences; writing convincing female characters; writing original characters that are not Sue-ish. Let me know how well I am doing in regards to these goals.