His sword split the air in front of him with its wary edge, as he crept slowly down the dungeon hall. He had spent a long time studying castle plans before managing to find a way into the dungeons of this castle, and he wasn't about to waste it by getting caught. Chain's black clothing blended in well with the lack of torches, as he passed empty cell after empty cell. There were no prisoners here; something he did not understand fully. He understood that crime had supposedly decreased within Hyrule, but there should have been someone in the dungeons. Apprehension flooded him as he moved forward, and heard voices.

"Insane the Queen has four of us down here guarding her." A man's voice muttered.

"Like your complaining!" Another male voice shot back. Laughter rang.

"I'm not saying it's a bad job-but she can't do nothing, and at most we need, what? Two men, one who goes in there and the other to watch?" The first retorted. Chain stealthily moved forward, until he could see the speakers. They sat at a table, both dressed in standard guard uniforms.

"The Queen thinks she's dangerous." The second replied, shrugging.

"And, anyway, there's only three today. You, me, and Brent." The second added.

"Tom's sick, that's why. And Brent's in there, havin' fun-when he's done you going in?" Chain felt bile rise in his throat, realizing exactly what the men talked about so comfortably. He abandoned all caution, disgust and horror driving him. He moved forward, driving his blade through the chair and directly into the first soldier's heart. He released his sword and held a hand out, his hand clenching over a jewel in his gauntlet. A raging torrent of fire enveloped the second, sucking the breath out of his lungs and keeping him silent as his clothing burned, and skin blackened. Chain used all of his magical energy on burning the man to a crisp, and even after he had died, he kept the fire going until the jewel cut itself off. His blood stained the crystalline surface, and he dropped his hand to his side, absently wiping the substance on his tunic. He dragged his sword out of the chair with little difficulty, thanks to his gauntlets themselves, and proceeded on, out of the guard's chamber and into the final dungeon hall. Empty cell after empty cell, he saw nothing. Then, he heard a muffled scream, and a multitude of violent curses. His pace quickened until he was running, and he halted quickly when he reached the last cell. The door was open, and it was totally dark-but he could see perfectly. A girl, pinned to a narrow bed by a large, angry guard. The guard had been at it for a time, by the girl's bruised body and the fresh blood staining the walls. He raised his hand without thinking, releasing what was only a fraction of his true rage. The man went flying into a wall without warning, unable to make so much as a sound as Chain's power ripped his body apart. Bits of flesh and bone rained down, blood gently pattering on his hair, even though he stood outside the cell. The girl watched his parody, something close to awe in her eyes.

"Who are you?" She asked quietly, her voice barely audible.

"How long have you been down here?" He asked, his voice harsh, cold. She hesitated, then shrugged, her long hair falling in front of her face.

"I don't know." He studied her quietly. She was painfully thin, and her skin was extremely pale. Her hair was very dark, telling him she hadn't seen the light of day in what must have been years. Her skin was stained with blood, but she wasn't filthy, so someone must have been taking care of her, other than the guards. He could see no clothing in the room besides the guard's, and without hesitating dropped his gear, yanking off his own tunic and handing it to her. She flinched, but slowly came forward and grabbed it, pulling it on. He realized just how cold it was within the dungeon then, and scowled as he pulled his gear back on, frowning as it dug into his skin. He glanced at her, and his frown deepened. His tunic hung on her shoulders, her collar bone jutting out painfully beneath her skin. It hung to her knees, and as she hesitantly walked forward, he realized just how tall he was. Mentally smacking himself, he started walking down the hall, drawing his sword again.

"Why are you down here?" A silence met his words.

"My…my father did something that was…misunderstood. The Queen killed him, and to atone for his…mistakes…I was put down here." Rage threatened to choke him, and he clenched his teeth in fury. So this was what Hyrule was now. A place where girls were imprisoned for what their father's had done, criminals left to run free while innocents rotted in jail. A place where a witch with a brilliant smile ruled, with a monster at her side. How he loathed Hyrule, in that moment. After everything he had done…

"And you've always been alone down here?" The words left him before he realized he had said them.

"Ye….No. Once….once there was a child, but the guards tortured him until he died. I remember his screams…" She trailed off, and hate again choked him.

"And sometimes…a man would come here who looked like you. He was just like the guards." Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"Why do you trust me?" He suddenly asked, his voice cracking with the weight of all that the other one-the one called Link-had done. He turned, his fierce gaze locking on her eyes.

"I can feel shadows in other's souls. You are a complete shadow." She whispered, walking forward until her neck was craned up to see his face.

"And that's a good thing?"

"I said shadow, not evil. Darkness isn't evil." She said, frowning at him. Puzzled, he looked at her. Why would darkness, something purely made of the forgotten and hurt, not be considered evil? After bearing his searching gaze for a few minutes, she shifted slightly, shivering in the cold. Blinking himself out of his thoughts, he turned and resumed leading the way out. He led her into an empty cell by the staircase that led up, into the light of the castle, and entered the cell. He spoke a word in the ancient tongue, and the wall flickered and vanished. He heard her suck in a sharp breath, but didn't glance at her as he started forward. She followed him through a winding maze of twists and turns, her wrist like glass in his grip as he led her through the darkness she couldn't see through.

"You're…very warm." She said after a moment. Surprised by her comment, he glanced over his shoulder at her. Her eyes were shut, her lips pulled into a frown. He didn't reply. He didn't know what she meant. Were others colder than he was, usually? He shook his head in disgust at the thought. He wasn't normal, he should know by now even little things would differ between him and others. But her comment still bothered him. Faint light began to illuminate the end of the passage, and he pulled her out into a clearing of trees. A stallion waited for him, sharp brown eyes studying the girl distrustfully as he led her to the animal. The stallion was dark grey in color, and she laughed softly as the animal snorted at her.

"He looks like Ebon!" She exclaimed softly, gently stroking the stallion's nose.

"Cipher would normally kill anyone who dare touch him." He mused softly, swinging himself up upon the stallion. He helped her up, realizing how exhausted she was only when her trembling body leaned against his chest. She burrowed into him, as Cipher began the trek home.

"Thank you." She whispered, her voice barely audible.

"What's your name?" He asked suddenly, looking down at her. Her purple-blue eyes opened and looked up at him for a second.

"Asra. What's yours?" She asked, studying him intently. His gaze rose to the black horizon above Cipher's head.

"Chain." He said, not looking at her. And then she fell asleep, leaving him alone with his hateful, angry thoughts on his way to a long abandoned home.