Salin and Ruto left the river after it ran into the bridge in west Hyrule Field. "Why not just try Castle Town first?" Ruto asked. "It's a good deal closer than where you said the mercenary camp was." Salin's fins fluttered in the breeze. "If he were at the mercenary camp as is most likely, it would spare us the few days it well could take looking for him in the masses of Castle Town," he countered. "If time is an issue then," the princess suggested, "we could split up…"

"No," Salin interrupted sternly. Ruto didn't care to have a similar argument to the one she had only minutes earlier and chose not to press the suggestion. "To the mercenary camp, then," she sighed in resignation.

After hours of traveling, the heat of midsummer was quickly wearing on the two Zoras, who could not stay in the harsh sun for long for fear of becoming sun dried. "I should have brought my canteen!" Ruto panted, shuffling now through the grass. Salin grunted in affirmation, showing signs of waning strength as well. The princess stumbled and finding no help from her guard collapsed to her hands and knees. She was about to rebuke Salin for his carelessness until she saw him pelting as fast as he could with his remaining strength toward a pool of rainwater. Hope now augmented her strength and she quickly joined.

Neither could cover their entire body with the water all at once, but they felt their whole strength returning quickly. "I'm getting out of shape," Salin grumbled. "I used to be able to stay out for days in sun like this before I had to wet my gills."

"Mm…" Ruto answered, but then sat bolt upright. "Look! Tents! How did we not see them! Is that the mercenary camp?" she asked excitedly, beginning to run that direction. Salin grabbed her before she even left the small pool, causing her to land face down in the the mud. She cast him a sour look while tossing her head's fishtail behind her back and then cleaning off the mud. Rising, Salin addressed her. "That is the mercenary camp. No place for royalty and definitely no place for a lady."

"Aren't you such a gentleman," the princess murmured sarcastically, then loud enough for him to hear. "I need to know if Cyrus is in there. I can handle myself from groping mercenaries," she said, flexing her fins to give them a sharp edge. Salin shook his head. "You're staying here," he ordered firmly.

"Just stop me," she countered. The other gripped his polearm, ready to strike. "As you wish, milady," he replied with an eye roll, placing a firm blow with the butt of the weapon to her head, knocking her unconscious.

When Ruto came to she found that she was tied to a branch high in a tree and was gagged. That cur, she thought darkly, shaking the tree limb. This only caused leaves to fall on her, but below she heard a voice. "What ho?" the bass voice rumbled, looking into the branches. This man was astride a proud white horse. He was dressed in fine clothes, and had a superior quality sabre at his side. His crimson red silk cloak shimmered in the afternoon sunlight as he dismounted and squinted into the tree. Without any further words, he quickly scampered up and cut the princess loose.

"What is a fine young zora lady like yourself doing tied to a tree?" he asked, helping her down. "I swear to you milady, if I find the man that did this to you…" he began.

"Thank you," she said, once they were on the ground. "But I do not require you to intervene on my behalf," she continued, allowing her more proper side to show to this company. "It was done for my protection," the princess answered. "Though it was a most… unorthodox way to do so, to be sure."

"From what, milady?" the other inquired, puzzled. The princess did not reply until she had straightened some of her skewed jewelry. "That mercenary camp over there…" she gestured, but was interrupted by the other man. "How very rude of me! I had neglected to introduce myself. I am Tsobar, milady. To whom do I owe the pleasure?"

Although Ruto was anxious to rendezvous with Salin to see what he found out about Cyrus, she observed proper etiquette to this handsome man of apparently fine upbringing before her. "Princess Ruto of the lake zora. Pleased to make your acquaintance, Sir Tsobar," she answered with a slight tilt of the head.

"Princess!" Tsobar gasped. "Forgive me, milady, for I did not know…" he added hastily as he fell to his knees.

"Arise," Ruto said directly. "You were under no fault."

"As you wish, your grace," the polite man said as he rose. "But what has brought you so far from Zora's Domain, to this dingy mercenary camp no less?" he asked.

"I am looking for someone," she replied absently, turning to look toward the camp. Small cookfires were being lit everywhere in its boundaries.

"A rouge guard perhaps?" the other suggested.

"That's who I'm waiting for," Ruto whispered, letting her etiquette slip with the contractions and jabbing response concerning the zora that accompanied her. Tsobar ignored this however, and offered his assistance to find whoever she had lost. "And if I may be so bold," he continued. "But you are quite breathtaking. May I have the pleasure of your company after I have found who you have lost in yon camp?"

The princess was taken aback by the forward request, and made it known in her polite fashion, also notifying this charming fellow that it was her husband she was looking for.

"Honorless dog!" he sputtered. "Leaving you alone like he has and going to the mercenary camp!" This was a grave mistake to his attempts to woo the zora.

"I happen to love the man which is why I am searching for him. He might be Laird's Son of Gleight but it was not for political reasons that we made our union!" she rebuked coldly. Something about the mention of her husband being heir to the throne of Gleight struck the other man.

"Is your husband Cyrus Mhic Gleight?" he asked flatly. The princess nodded in affirmation, still somewhat offended at the insult of her husband.

The man before her now cut an imposing figure, standing tall with his well-trimmed ebony black hair and beard hiding his perturbed expression slightly. "How do you know him?" the princess now asked out of curiosity, but she was now wary.

"That… man," Tsobar began, catching himself before he called Cyrus something terrible. "Had no regard for my commands whatsoever. I daresay it must have been the influence of that loose arrow of a Zora that liked to be called 'the Unchained Barracuda,' no offence to one of your own, madam," he explained. The zora he was referring to was Salin, who during his mercenary career had gained this title due to his willfulness. As such, when he was given assignments he was often forced to work under particularly firm commanding officers. Ruto knew of Salin's previous call name, and was beginning to suspect something. "Are you a mercenary yourself, sir Tsobar?" she asked.

"I prefer the term 'free soldier,' if it pleases milady," Tsobar replied, his temper falling at the change of subject. "I may hire out my sword, but I do it with honor and dignity unlike the rest of the swine here."

Before they could continue their conversation, Salin came bounding toward them, with egg and various smashed vegetables marring his formerly shiny armor. "Princess Ruto!" he called out. Tsobar recognized the voice instantly and his hands clenched into fists. "You keep company with this lout?" he growled while the other zora approached.

"Princess Ruto," the guard repeated. "Cyrus is not there. Nobody in the camp has seen him for months, they said." He now turned to face Tsobar. "If it isn't Colonel Dandy! Trying to steal the princess's heart?" Salin addressed with contempt. The zora now tried to lead his princess away. "Listen to nothing this man says. He's not to be trusted. Almost got Cyrus and me killed because he was jealous that we kept getting his contracts."

Tsobar strode forward, his deep bass voice almost causing the ground to tremble as he thundered, "Salin you impudent fool!" The mercenary then withdrew one of his gloves and was about to strike Salin, a sign of a duel, but Ruto grabbed his arm before the blow would land. "I will not have you declare a duel upon one of my subjects," she ordered firmly.

Tsobar's eyes grew dangerous. "Take the advice I give you, princess: Cyrus has no honor and should not be trusted, as evidenced by his leaving you. Come find me, milady, when you realize your mistake. I shall await your return," he said smoothly, kissing her hand after removing it from his arm. He then mounted his horse and galloped to the camp.

The zoras watched the figure retreat for some time before either of them spoke again. "Tsobar. Never has a greater dandy been in the ranks of Hyrule's mercenaries. He is a good fighter; you have to be to make it out of the brawls that will follow you in the camp if you dress like that," Salin explained. Ruto paid no heed to her companion, but only looked him up and down to examine the many bits and pieces of food and dirt that were stuck to him, as well as some blood on his right gauntlet.

"What happened in there?" she asked. Salin looked at himself and grinned. "The crabs in there think that I think I'm better than they are now because I became a regular. Don't worry, the only thing they really injured was my pride, but even that I got back fairly quickly. When you're in the camp, you need to show that you're not to be trifled with," he said as he was scrubbing the blood from his gauntlet. Ruto looked at it disapprovingly. "What about Cyrus? Had anyone seen him?"

Salin shook his head in response, occupied more with cleaning his dirtied armor.

"You didn't hurt anyone… too badly, did you?"

"Just knocked a few teeth out, but they were going to rot out in a few months anyway, probably," the soldier replied, with much less remorse than Ruto thought should be in his voice.

The failure to find Cyrus prompted a sigh of frustration from Ruto as she looked toward the north. "Castle Town next, then?"

"In the morning," Salin replied, spreading bedrolls for himself and the princess. "They close the gates at night, you know that," he said before the princess could protest.

"Even so, it's still quite early," Ruto persisted, looking toward the sun, which was still an hour or so away from dusk. Just how long was I unconscious for? she wondered as she looked at Salin. He was now removing his armor and immersing himself in the pool of rainwater that they had used to refresh themselves earlier that day. Finally, he answered, "We can get up early and hopefully arrive in town before noon."

Ruto then looked critically at the bedrolls. "And won't these be too hot to sleep in at this time of year?" she asked.

"Better than having rats eat the soles of your feet," Salin replied, getting into a comfortable position. The princess shuddered and grumbled as she got into her roll for a fitful and sweaty night's rest, but sat up with a start.

"Salin!" she barked. The guard rolled over tentatively. She sounded very angry. "What?" he asked with a groan. Suddenly he felt himself tumble out of his bedroll when she pulled it up and dumped him out to sprawl into a heap on the ground. "Unf!" he grunted. He was laying on his head's fishtail which caused him pain when he tried to shift his head as it remained under some other part of his body. Looking upside down, Salin saw the princess's furious gaze leering at him from her black eyes. They looked like they would devour his very soul.

"How dare you strike your princess, one of the royal house of zora whom you swore to protect!" Ruto blustered. Salin's own emerald green eyes met the princess's without fear. "Oh, that's what you're so mad about. That was hours ago," he mumbled as he picked himself back up. "Just obeying your orders to stop you, milady," the guard replied coolly, sinking his teeth into the last word. He knew how much she hated to be addressed by this particular title. It wasn't necessarily because it was formal title, it was just that for some reason, being called "milady," bothered her.

Ruto heaved a few stuttering breaths as she usually did when she was angry. "You know full well, Salin Bluescale, that such an offence is a crime with severe punishment!" she roared. The other only regarded her the way he would an unarmed bokoblin that was threatening a child's stuffed animal. "Are you even listening!?" the princess continued to the seemingly unabashed zora. Her temper rose even further at the lack of response, and her gills opened and released their water to show it.

"Are you through? I want to get back to bed," Salin requested with a yawn. The princess's eyes widened. "The gall…!" she sputtered. The guard attempted a grab at his bedroll that his princess was still retaining, but she yanked it out of reach. "I do not think you appreciate the gravity of this situation," Ruto huffed. Her voice had lowered now, but the level of anger had not. Making another grab at the bedroll and failing, Salin now moved toward the princess's unoccupied roll to claim it, but was intercepted. "Yes, yes, I know the gravity. Such disrespect for the crown deserves no less than loss of fins, a sea urchin bath, forty lashes followed by forty whacks with a cane in the same place and execution on subsequent offenses," he recited disinterestedly. "But who out here saw that I knocked you out? And would you really chop the fins off of the head of the guard? Plus a worse fate than that would have been in store for you had you actually gone into that camp."

Ruto was growing more irritated by the lack of respect Salin was exhibiting, and he could tell. However, he was beginning to see that this situation wouldn't be like similar ones he had in his mercenary days; he wouldn't be able to escape punishment by throwing a few punches (Hylian mercenary laws were not rigidly enforced in regards to insubordination. Ironically, Salin escaped justice for such by boxing his superiors and knocking them out. Brawling and winning brawls earned one great respect for oneself as a fighter among the mercenaries,) but he would need to resort to a different approach. "Could it wait until we return to Zora's Domain, at least? There's the matter of Cyrus…" he reminded. Ruto untensed at the show of submission and returned the bedroll to its owner. "I'll hold you to it," she warned, returning to her own bedroll. Salin grinned as he did so as well. I think you might change your mind when we find Cyrus again, he thought.