In the middle of Kakariko town, the short, furry Moblin unfurled the scroll he had been given and read in a halting, guttral voice, "The Warrior Link has been defeated, the Princess Zelda has surrendered, and the Great Ganondorf is now the rightful King of Hyrule. All threats to His supremacy have been eliminated, and the monster occupation will be reversed." Apparently the Moblin saw no problem with this statement, but then they had never been bred for intelligence. "This process can be accelerated by Hyrulean citizens who wish to fulfill roles in the castle. The original castle has been rebuilt, and you may apply effective immediately."
He paused and looked around. Not a soul was in sight; every door was closed and locked tight. The Moblin read his statement again, and looked dubiously over the scroll for any change. As he started once again, a window opened a crack and a voice shouted out, "We heard you the first time!"
It slammed shut.
The monster blinked its piggy eyes in some confusion, then shut the scroll. It ambled up the stairway and through the winding mountain pass, until it reached the entrance to the Goron's town. It unrolled the scroll and began reading, completely oblivious to the rock about to come down crashing onto its head.
Damun, the patriarch's brother, picked up the scroll. He scowled at the black dust under the rock, all that remained of the Moblin. So it was a conjured monster.
He unfurled the scroll and read it, his scowl deepening the further he went. He snapped it shut, then walked back into town.
"What is it, Brother?" one of the other Gorons asked, as the entire tribe crowded around him.
"Just as we feared," said Damun. "First Darunia, then now It's over."
The other Gorons bowed their heads; the child that bore Link's name sniffled and wiped his eyes.
Damun opened the scroll and slapped it, a frown nearly splitting his face. "That evil man actually invited us to his castle! As if nothing had happened! As if we would speak to the man who tried to feed us to the dragon!"
"He doesn't seem like a fool," said one of the Gorons. "Cruel, yes, but not stupid enough to think we would fall for such a trick."
Lighting the scroll on fire using one of the torches, Damun said, "We will have nothing to do with him. The Goron tribe with seal itself in the Mountain, and have contact with no one else but the Kokiri until that man is gone."
Zelda jerked awake to cries of mourning. She squinted in the sun that came through the barred windows, trying to see through to the ground below. She doubted she was lucky enough to find that Ganondorf had somehow died during the night; so who were these cries for?
The same woman from last night came in with a simple porridge breakfast, her head down and dark circles under her eyes. "What's going on?" Zelda asked, not really expecting an answer.
To her surprise, the woman's head jerked up. "Oh, Miss, it's no concern of yours. We sent someone to bring back the exalted Nabooru from the Spirit Temple…and found that your knight had killed her."
Zelda blinked. "It wasn't Link, it was…" She stopped, realizing this woman would never believe her. "I'm sorry."
The Gerudo gave her a wan smile through her tears. "There is no need for apologies, Miss. The exalted Nabooru was a great warrior; if she fell, it only means that yours was stronger."
Zelda said nothing, staring with no appetite at the bowl the woman had left. Even the Gerudo had lost something during Ganondorf's occupation. It did not bode well for the future.
A couple days later, the guards who had brought her to the cell returned, though this time they came with children in tow. Zelda stared openly at the two small girls that stood back warily, returning her stare.
Of course they had children, and probably elders too. Likely they lived somewhere else, or deep in the fortress where they would be safe from attackers. But why were they coming here now?
One of the guards unlocked the door and opened it. "Come with us."
She didn't really have any choice, so she followed them through the corridors of the fortress. A small crowd of children accumulated as they went, chattering and pointing openly. Soon she did see elders as well, their red hair streaked with gray. Zelda was used to being stared at, but for the first time in her life she felt shy and intimidated. What were they going to do? Was this the beginning of some new humiliation? Would she be tried for some imagined crime and executed? She didn't think such a thing would happen with children present, but given they were the children of hardened warriors, one never knew…
She felt the harsh sun on her skin as they stepped outside, a huge crowd already standing in the open area between the gate and the fortress. At the head of the group stood Ganondorf, tall enough to tower over everyone without standing on a platform. They stopped a little way off to the side and Zelda stared at the ground, dreading what would come next.
"For years you have patiently and faithfully awaited this moment," Ganondorf called out over the group, addressing what must have been the entire Gerudo tribe. "We have worked toward this goal ever since the day I became your King, so many years ago. We suffered first at the hands of the Hylians, then lost one of our own when they sent their last force of resistance against us.
"But now he is gone! The Hylian Knight has fallen, and its Princess has surrendered! Hyrule is ours!"
Zelda stood her ground in the rush of cheers that followed. She could feel all eyes upon her and her face burned. She waited, gritting her teeth, until the cheering stopped.
"You have all earned this victory," Ganondorf continued, "And now we will take what is rightfully hours. Today we travel to our new home…to the green fields of Hyrule, to the castle where they will kneel before us!"
More cheers. Zelda focused on the dirt beneath her feet until the speech was finished. The daughters of the guards peered at her with wide eyes, plucked at her dress until their mothers shooed them away. They giggled, curious, then turned their attention back to their King.
Suddenly the crowd surged forward in a whirl of activity. Horses appeared from nowhere, babies and small children were wrapped around mothers' backs, elders mounted horses and grasped huge hide bags handed to them by the other women. Zelda watched listlessly, waiting for the long march. Thank Nayru she had spent seven years as Sheik, otherwise she would never make the trip…
"You can ride, correct?" She jerked her head up to see Ganondorf standing in front of her with a horse tacked with saddle and bridle. Zelda stared at it in surprise; all the Gerudo except Ganondorf rode bareback. "I…of course," she said slowly. "But I can walk if necessary…"
"You will ride." He thrust the bridle at her. "But you will take some supplies and another person with you. There is much to carry."
She could think of nothing to say, but mounted the horse as well as she could in her skirts. An elderly woman climbed onto the back of the horse behind her, gripping the saddle in one hand and holding out the other for a package wrapped in rope and hide. The woman said nothing to her, and Zelda kept quiet.
Zelda's horseback experience didn't seem to matter, as the horse fell into step with the one in front of it. A breeze sprang to life as soon as they left the valley, as if it really had been cut off from Farore's breath of life. Squeals of children embarking on a new adventure mingled with the whinny of horses and the clatter of hooves. She raised her eyes once they reached grass and found, to her surprise, that she could see the old castle in the distance. How had he built it so quickly, without the use of Power?
An armored black horse nudged up against hers, and she dropped her gaze again. He said nothing as he rode by her side, though he did talk briefly with the old woman behind her. She gave him a toothless laugh and slapped the saddle, startling Zelda. She looked up to see him watching her carefully. "Are you well?"
She scowled at him. "What do you think?"
Frowning down at her, he replied, "I mean considering the circumstances."
She turned away. "I'm still alive. I suppose that's something."
They rode in silence for a while longer. Finally, Ganondorf said, "This country has seen a great deal, and not just in the past seven years. It never completely recovered from the Fierce War. If you care for your country, you will assist in rebuilding it."
She smiled grimly. "Is that a request for help? I never thought I'd hear that from you…"
"You can either be an advisor or a prisoner. It's your choice," he said curtly.
Silence. Then, "I suppose…that would be the wisest path."
"When we arrive, you may choose any room as your own," Ganondorf told her. "I could only reproduce the castle itself, and we have very little of our own in terms of furniture or possessions. But I will acquire for you whatever you need to live comfortably. Within reason, of course."
She frowned. "I have no need for luxury. I learned to live without it."
"That was…admirable. Worthy of a Gerudo, in fact."
She gave him a strange look. "Are you mocking me?"
"Of course not," he snapped, rebuffed. "I was…never mind. I have other things to attend to. Do not expect us to fulfill your every need."
She stared after him as he rode off. Behind her, the old woman started singing under her breath. Zelda sighed, waiting patiently for the time when she would finally be alone again.