Chapter One: Murmurs

Link sat at the center of the long table of the Private Meeting Chamber alone in silence. The midday sunlight shot small rays through the open windows that lined the wall behind him. The light reflected from various angles throughout the room, driving off darkness, but at the same time lighting the room just enough to give it a comfortably dark and relaxed feeling. Link rested his chin on his joined hands that rested on the table top. He was meditating over the meeting that he would have with the three Dukes of the Kingdom; Duke Gregora of the Duchy of Sapientia, Duke Antoni of the Duchy of Poder, and Duke Aloiso of the Duchy of Fortitudo.

The three Duchies were devised after the last great battle, twenty years ago, to strengthen the Kingdom's defenses against any future insurgency or crises. Sapientia was the northern and western part of Hyrule, Poder was the eastern part of Hyrule, and Fortitudo was the southern area. The respective Duke of each area maintained political order and balance in each Duchy and commanded a brigade of soldiers that served to protect the area. In addition, each Duke was a member of the Royal Family; distant cousins or uncles to the Queen.

Though these Duchies were supposed to relieve some of the stress of single-handedly ruling over a Kingdom, creating them had little effect for Link. He still found himself working as hard as ever, ensuring that each of these systems ran perfectly, or as close to it as possible. To add further to his stress, he had been hearing murmurs of the people being restless in the face of him and Zelda's rule. He couldn't help but to be slightly worried that someone may be stirring up trouble for him somewhere.

Link leaned back in his chair, looking up to the ceiling and let out a slight chuckle. Looking at his own situation, he drew a humorous – but disturbing – parallel to the former King that caused the conflict with the Sheikah tribe, thirty six years ago. He could see how that King slipped into a paranoid madness, especially since Link was under such immense pressure that he too felt as if he could snap into said insanity.

As Link reflected, he heard the latch of the door suddenly click. He sat up as the door opened up, revealing Rauru, the late King's surviving advisor and current Sage of Hyrule.

"Good day, Sage Rauru," Link greeted the man, rubbing his scruffy beard, more out of nervousness than because of an itch.

"The same to you, Your Majesty," Rauru replied, nodding his head slightly as he made his way to an empty seat to Link's right. He sat in the chair and straightened his brown monk robe. "Are you troubled, Your Majesty?" he asked, taking note of Link's uneasy countenance.

"Did the late King ever have any stressful periods during his reign?" Link asked, starring down at the table.

"His reign was nothing but a stressful time for him. He was left with the mess that his predecessor left behind, his wife died giving birth to Her Majesty, and he had to deal with the tense situation with those Patriarchs of that tribe."

"The Ranul…" Link added, his words trailing as he spoke them. That time period was a sad one for him and all of his close friends that lived through it. Many people died trying to protect the Kingdom from that tribe. The power lusts of a few men caused the deaths of hundreds of people. Link felt a sense of regret every time the subject was brought up.

Rauru put his hand on Link's shoulder. "Your Majesty, I know that you are having a hard time dealing with this burden, but you must know that you have the aid of all of the Sages, your General, and the Dukes. You are trying to do everything yourself and you are finding that you are unable to accomplish everything alone. Do not make the mistake of ruling the Kingdom on your own."

Link looked Rauru in the eyes. Those words reminded him of similar words that were spoken to him many years ago.

'You have friends to depend on, don't do this alone.'

Medi, the Village Chief of Kakariko Village, spoke those words to him. He smiled and stood from his chair and made his way to a window. "You sound just like Medi, Rauru," Link said as he looked outside the window to Castle Town in the distance.

"Sage Medi from Kakariko, Your Highness?" Rauru asked with slight confusion.

"She said similar words to me during my time as the Hero." Link focused his gaze on the Temple of Time. "It's a lesson that I often forget."

The door creaked open once again, the Chief of Sheikah passing through this time. His long black hair wore bands of gray that displayed his progressing age. "Your Majesty," he began as he walked to a vacant spot, one seat away from Link's left, "The Dukes are on their way here. They have just entered the Castle."

"Thank you, Chief," answered Link, turning to him, away from the window. "Have you heard anything new?" he asked in a more serious tone.

The Chief of Sheikah took his seat. "There have been reports of a troublesome rumor going around." He paused to briefly scan the room. "There's been talk of a plotted uprising among certain soldiers and even some citizens in Agri Village."

Link rubbed his bearded chin. "That's Duke Gregora's territory…" he said, almost to himself.

"And also," the Chief started, hesitantly, "Recently, there has been reports of some tension between some Hylians and Sheikah in Castle Town."

"Tension?" Rauru repeated for clarification.

"Yes. Castle Guard has had to make a few arrests of some unruly citizens starting trouble with some of the Sheikah in Castle Town."

Link took his seat. "Do you believe that there's some relation to the rumors?"

The Chief of Sheikah shook his head. "I can't say if there is or not. Let's just hope that all they are is rumors."

There was a knock at the door.

"You may enter," Link called out.

The door opened; the General proceeding through. "Your Majesty, now presenting the Duke of Sapientia, the Duke of Poder, and the Duke of Fortitudo." The General stepped aside as the three Dukes entered the room, followed by the twelve Knights of Hyrule. The Dukes took their seats on the opposite side of the table that Link sat at. The Knights of Hyrule formed on both sides of the room, six behind Link, the other six behind the Dukes. The General closed the door and took his seat at Link's left.

"Greetings, gentlemen," Link started, "I trust that your escort here was fine?"

"Oh yes, Your Majesty," Duke Gregora said, "I always enjoy the ride to the Castle through the plains of Hyrule."

"I see that the Castle is as fine as ever," Duke Antoni noted, looking around the room.

"We have been working hard to renovate the Castle. I'm glad for your complements," Link replied.

"Well, your architects must be worth their keep to make such great progress in only half a year," said Duke Aloiso.

Link leaned forward in his chair. "Before I begin, is there anything of significance to report concerning your respective Duchies?"

Duke Gregora stroked his lengthy parted moustache. "Hmm… I have been hearing a quite curious rumor lately about a plotted uprising."

"An uprising?" Duke Aloiso asked looking slightly surprised at the information.

"Yes, some of my soldiers have been talking about this rumor. I haven't been able to discover who's behind it though."

Duke Antoni folded his arms in thought. "Now that I think about it, I do remember hearing a servant or two gossiping about something similar."

"Do any of you have any ideas as to where these rumors could be coming from?" the Chief of Sheikah asked.

Duke Antoni shook his head. "Haven't the least bit of idea."

"I can't say that I have heard anything about these rumors. Fortitudo is usually pretty quiet. Not much news or anything goes through their too much, save for the occasional murmur in Lacus Village," Duke Aloiso imputed.

"If that is all," Link began, "Then let me bring up the reason why we are meeting today." He paused, collecting his thoughts quickly. "As of late, it has been brought to my attention that there has been some unrest among the citizens about the state of the Kingdom. Is there any reason that any of you can think of that would cause this?"

"Maybe it's just that after going through two conflicts in a relatively short period of time, they just aren't used to peace anymore," the General said.

"I've been hearing that some people don't think that you understand them. They believe that you only stay within the confines of the Castle, not wanting to deal with the people." Duke Gregora added, almost with an agreeing tone.

"In addition to that," started Duke Antoni, "Some of them don't agree with a King not being a proper member of the Royal Family."

Link looked at him in surprise. "How does anyone know that I am not of the Royal Family proper? No one was informed about my origin."

"Well, it was likely the help around the Castle that somehow overheard and spread the word. You know how they are," Duke Aloiso said in a condescending manner.

"Are you sure that none of you spoke anything within your own estates?" Rauru asked, not convinced that what Duke Aloiso said was the case.

"Rauru, you wound me with your words!" Duke Aloiso rebuked, "We would never be so careless as to speak such secrecies within danger's earshot."

"And what would lead them to believe that I do not know the people?" Link asked.

"It might be related to the fact that they somehow know that Your Majesty was not nobility," answered Duke Antoni.

Link held his chin in thought, not saying anything for a moment. "Well, I think that this is a good time to end our meeting for now. I know that you three must be tired after traveling here from your estates," he said, standing up from his chair. "My Twelve Knights, please escort them to the Northern Tower and show them to their quarters."

"By your command!" the Knights all sounded off as they formed at the door, preparing to escort the three Dukes.

"We look forward to our meeting tomorrow, Your Majesty," Duke Gregora concluded as he walked to the door.

"Please give our best regards to Her Majesty," Duke Aloiso said as he followed the rest out the door.

"Good day, Your Majesty," the General said as he closed the door behind them.

"What do you think?" Link asked the Chief of Sheikah, taking his seat once again.

"They are definitely up to no good," the Chief said, folding his arms.

"I had forgotten that there's almost nothing a Sheikah cannot see," Rauru remarked.

"I can't tell what exactly their goal is, but it seems that they've been planting these so-called rumors among the people," the Chief added.

Link stood from his chair and began walking to the door. "Chief of Sheikah; please task someone to keep an eye on them and see if they're up to anything."

"I will, Your Majesty," he replied, standing from his seat.

Rauru followed suit. "Are there any other preparations that you wish to make?"

Link stopped at the front of the door and looked back. "Let's not be too quick to make any moves just yet. We'll see if this is really anything to worry about before we take action." He opened the door and left the room.