Chapter 2: The Revelation
Link had a past full of trouble. His life as a boy had been fine when he lived with his parents and sister. It was the event that uprooted them all that started everything.
He remembered this part of his past vividly. His father had come home one day when Link was ten years old and he had seen a look in his father's eyes that he did not like.
His father owned a general store in Aboda. They were never a rich family but his father was good at what he did and the family lived in relative comfort. His name was Darrin.
He and his wife, Myla, ensured that their children were both educated and did whatever they could to keep them happy and safe.
On that day, Link looked to his father's eyes and did not see the usual sparkle of contentment there. He saw that they were dull, glassy, and contained a great deal of worry.
As soon as he entered the door to their house, Link walked over to greet him. Darrin looked down at his son and forced a smile. He did not say a word as he tossed the young boy's hair. He still would not speak as he walked past his son and into the living room where his wife sat.
Link heard his mother greet his father as he entered. As soon as his father replied he could hear the worry and urgency in his voice. Link crept closer to the doorway and did his best to listen to his parents' conversation. He strained to hear their lowered voices.
"What will you do?" Myla was asking.
"One thing is certain" Darrin replied "you must take the children and run. Go to your mother's. They won't look for you there."
"Do you expect me to just abandon you in your time of need?" Myla asked vehemently, though with a lowered voice, trying to keep the children from hearing.
"I am your wife and I love you. I can't just leave you here to die!"
At this Link gasped and as soon as he did, his parents stopped talking. They had obviously heard him and they knew he had been listening.
"Link?" Darrin called out into the adjacent room.
He turned to Myla and she saw the tears forming in his eyes.
"Darrin I think you should talk to him. He needs to know what's going on."
Darrin closed his eyes and lowered his head, wiping his eyes.
"Link, son, would you come in here for a moment?"
Link walked timidly into the living room and approached his father.
Darrin took a deep breath and stared down at his son in silence for quite some time. He couldn't think of any words to say to try and minimize his son's worry. He couldn't lie and yet he thought that telling him the truth would be worse. What could he say?
Darrin had gotten himself into a very difficult situation. There was a very notorious group of outlaws who had taken to calling themselves "The Bulblins" after the thieving, pillaging creatures of legend. They had wandered into Aboda and immediately began stirring up trouble.
They had attempted to break into Darrin's store but he had planned ahead after he saw the outlaws enter town. He had convinced Aboda's sheriff to lend him a hand in stopping them from stealing from him. They had managed to capture two of them but the rest had escaped. The Marshals of Castle Town arrived to take the prisoners back to Castle Town soon after.
The Royal Family and New Hyrule government had personally put a bounty on every known member of the Bulblins. Everyone across the country were to immediately report the death or capture of any known member of the Bulblins to the Castle Town Marshals.
Darrin was offered the position of Deputy but he declined.
It was a few months after the incident that the Bulblins had returned. The leader of the Faron Province Bulblins, who had chosen to call himself Bellum, had come to Aboda.
Bellum was one of three sub-leaders of the Bulblins and people rarely saw them show themselves. It was unheard of to see the Bulblins actual leader. In fact, there were only rumours and speculation about what the man looked like. All that was truly known about him was that he had named himself after a horrible Gerudo tyrant from ancient times known as Ganon.
Bellum confronted Darrin in his store and informed him that he would pay a heavy toll for capturing two of the Bulblins' number. When Darrin replied that he did not fear Bellum it was then that Bellum named off the members of his family and his place of residence. With a final threat to find Darrin's family to kill them all, he left.
This is what weighed on Darrin's mind as he tried to find the right words to say to his son. After taking another deep breath he finally managed to speak.
"Link, I don't know how to say this. But I guess I can tell you that there is going to be trouble. Uncle Rusl is going to come and take you, your sister, and your mother to your grandmother's house in Whittleton for a little while until the trouble passes."
"But what was that mom said about you?"
Darrin paused at Link's question and wasn't quite sure how to answer it.
"She didn't mean to use the word 'die'."
"Then what did she mean to say?"
Darrin knew his son was too smart to buy that. He sighed and closed his eyes for a brief moment. He reopened them and spoke once again.
"Everything will be fine, son" Darrin said, his voice beginning to shake slightly.
"I just need to get you three away from here for a little while."
"Two you mean" Myla said. "The children are going but I am not."
Darrin turned to Myla.
"Myla please. You have to go. They need you."
It was then that Darrin realised that Link was still in the room. He turned back to his son and knelt down to look him in the eye.
"Link, could you go and find your sister? Do your best to tell her what is happening. I will explain everything to her later. Right now I need to talk to your mother."
Link nodded slowly and turned and left the room. He walked out the front door and walked around to the back of the house to try and find his sister, Aryll.
Aryll was behind the house, picking dandelions and tearing the flowers from their stems. It was something she would do when there was nothing else to do or nothing else she felt like doing. She noticed her brother approaching and walked to meet him.
"Aryll there's something I need to tell you" Link said.
Aryll could tell from the monotony of his tone that whatever he was going to say deeply troubled him.
"Dad says that we need to go to grandma's for a little while. He says that there's going to be trouble here and that he is going to stay here while the rest of us go to grandma's. Uncle Rusl is supposed to be coming to get us."
Aryll had so many questions in her mind that she didn't know what to say in reply. All she could muster was one word.
"Why?"
Link shook his head.
"I still don't really know. Dad wouldn't really tell me."
Aryll knew that whatever was happening was serious but didn't understand what possible reason their father would have to just send his family away from home.
While Aryll and Link spoke, so too did Darrin and Myla. She was insistent on staying with him and was doing everything she could to convince him.
"I will not abandon you to die alone to those barbarians! I cannot live with myself knowing that I could have helped you."
"There is nothing you can do, Myla. It is my sole purpose in life to keep my family from harm and that is exactly what I intend to do!"
Myla would not be swayed.
"We can protect the children together. I have not abandoned you after all these years, I'll be damned if I do so now."
Darrin rubbed his forehead in frustration.
"Think of the children, Myla. What will it do to lose both of their parents? At least they'll have you to console them."
Myla was equally as frustrated as her husband.
"You would have me bear the pain of knowing that you died here alone while those bastards dancing around our house, firing their guns in the air like savage fools? I cannot do that. I will stand and fight by your side and we will die together if necessary."
Darrin turned away from his wife and took a few strides toward the living room window. He sighed and ran a hand through his dusty blonde hair. He stroked the thin beard on his chin and sighed deeply again as he placed his hands at his side to rest once more. He did not turn around to speak to his wife again.
"It's taking all of my strength to keep my mind from slipping into madness. I have resolved to die for the three of you and I cannot bear the thought that one of you will have your life taken before your time."
"It isn't before my time, my love" Myla replied softly.
"I am not going anywhere and I have resigned to my fate as well. I will die with you and the children will be safe. If I can be of any use in this life, ensuring my children grow and live full lives is the best use of it. If that requires me to die by my husband's side defending them from outlaws then so be it."
Tears formed in her bright green eyes as she spoke.
"I am not going anywhere. I am here with you and for you, always."
Darrin felt tears forming in his eyes as well. He turned to face his wife and they embraced as soon as he did so.
"I am sorry for bringing this on us" he said, choking slightly on his words.
"Don't you dare blame yourself" Myla said firmly, stroking the back of Darrin's head.
"If you do I will never forgive you."
They stood in their silent embrace for quite some time, shedding tears on each other's shoulder. When they finally ended their silent embrace, Darrin spoke.
"I'll have to get the message to your brother" he said, still choking back his tears.
He left the room and managed to scrawl out a hurried letter and immediately left the house. He made his way to the Aboda post office and paid for a rushed delivery of his letter. He was promised that it would reach its destination, Rusl of Whittleton, before sundown. It was with that letter that the wheels of fate were set in motion.
It was just after sunset when Myla's brother Rusl arrived with his horse and cart. As Myla and Darrin said their goodbyes to their children, Link's mind was suddenly swimming. He knew that this would be the last time in his life that he would ever see them. He was reluctant to leave. He panicked. He cried. But in the end he was finally whisked away by his uncle's cart with his parents' teary-eyed faces lingering in mind, forever to haunt his dreams.
It wasn't until a few weeks later when he was told that his parents had been killed. He and Aryll cried together for hours. Their uncle and grandmother did everything they could to comfort them but the two only seemed comforted by the presence of each other. They didn't know it at the time but they never strayed from each other's sides for weeks because they were all that was left of their broken family. They wanted to at least protect what was left.
Life was relatively peaceful for the two years the family of five was all together. Rusl had adopted a boy named Cal a few years prior to Link and Aryll moving in. He was a few years older than Link at the time when they had first met. Link and Aryll didn't dislike Cal but they remained wary of him for a very long time. Their trepidation was only caused by the fact that he was not a blood relative and that they had become highly protective of each other.
It wasn't until the Bulblins tracked them down again that their wariness of Cal disappeared.
Link sat with Aryll on the front porch one day when they saw Rusl running toward the house very quickly. He had walked into town for the day but obviously something had gone wrong. Link stood up and watched, shielding his sister.
"By the gods, not again!"
"What's he running for?" Aryll asked, still not fully aware of the situation.
Rusl started shouting for them and it was then that Link noticed he could hear the sound of hooves beating behind his uncle.
"Run!" he was shouting. "Get away from here!"
It was then that the booming shot of a rifle could be heard. Link was startled by the sudden noise and watched in horror as he saw smoke flow through his uncle's chest. Rusl hit the ground hard and tumbled and rolled on the ground until finally stopping. He did not get up.
Within seconds, Link caught his first glimpse of the Bulblins. There were six of them riding straight for the house. Link immediately turned to his sister and grabbed hold of her arm. He dragged her inside. Once they were in, Link turned to his uncle's gun cabinet and pulled out Rusl's revolver.
"Go down to the cellar" Link instructed "I'll get grandma down there too."
"But Link, they'll kill you! You haven't used a gun for years! Not since dad taught you!"
It was true that Link had not used a gun for a few years. His father had taught him to shoot when he was around nine years old. Darrin had said at the time that it was for his own good but Link had always hated guns, in spite of his natural talent for using them. But he had made up his mind that he would protect his family at any cost.
"Get downstairs" he said sternly. Before she could do that, they heard a rifle being fired from the front porch and the distant sound of a horse's whinny. Link immediately ran to the porch and was startled by what he saw.
Cal stood there, one of his yellow eyes closed, taking aim at the charging outlaws. He brushed his long black hair out of view and quickly fired again. Link looked at where he had fired and saw one of the charging Bulblins fall, lying next to one of his comrades.
Cal continued on like this until there was only one left. Link watched him in awe without realizing that the final Bulblin had gotten very close. As soon as he did, he saw the man raise his pistol and point it directly at him. Link tried getting his uncle's revolver ready but it was far too late. The man was going to fire and Link was going to die, as far as he was concerned. Before the man could fire though, another loud shot from Cal's rifle was heard. The bullet ripped straight through the outlaw's chest, knocking him off his horse. He hit the ground and did not get up. Link was frozen in place. So many emotions threatened to overwhelm him that he could not think. It was then that he could hear Cal's voice.
"Hey, Link! We need to go. They'll surely be after us now."
Link finally managed to compose himself and speak but he still only managed a single word.
"Why?"
Cal's strong, deep voice that had changed even before Link had met him replied quickly.
"We just killed, or at least injured, six of these guys. If they had already tracked us down then surely they'll notice that these guys didn't come back. We need to go."
Link realized that Cal was right. But where would they go?
"What's going on out- by Farore no!"
Link turned to the front door and saw his grandmother standing there. She looked out at the horrid scene in front of her and could not speak.
"It's the Bulblins. We need to get out of here. They'll be coming for us again if we don't" Cal repeated to his adopted grandmother.
"Where's Rusl?" she asked, suddenly panicked.
Cal shook his head and turned to Link. He knew Link had seen what happened. Link's expression turned grim as he pointed out to the front of the house to where Rusl had fallen. She rushed past him off the porch and out to the place where Rusl had fallen. When she found him she knelt down to him and shook his shoulders. He slowly opened his eyes and looked up and saw his mother staring down at him.
"I'm sorry" he said hoarsely.
"Don't apologize" she said softly, tears forming in her eyes.
She did her best not to go insane right there in front of him at the thought of losing her second child. First Myla and now Rusl, she thought.
"No I have to. I'm sorry I couldn't do anything to protect you and the children. I'm sorry that I'm joining Myla now and causing you more pain. I wish you wouldn't grieve for me."
"No, Rusl. Stop that" she said.
She knew he was dying but she still tried to console him.
"You need to get the children out of here. They are sure to come back."
"Yes, that's what Cal said."
Rusl closed his eyes at the mention of his adoptive son.
"How is he? Is he all right? Is he safe?"
"Cal saved us, dear. I saw him on the porch with that rifle of yours. He defended us. You've raised him well. I saw him save Link from being shot as well. You did help protect us, dear."
Rusl's eyes welled up when his mother told him this.
"I'm glad that I could be some use then. Tell Cal that I'm proud of him, won't you?"
"I will."
"Thank you."
With those last faint words, Rusl could hold on no more and joined his sister and brother-in-law in death.
Cal and Link had walked out to their grandmother as she knelt next to her dead son.
"We need to go, grandma" Link said softly.
She nodded and slowly stood up, walking back toward the house with the boys. They packed what they could into burlap sacks and various carrying cases. The loaded up Rusl's cart, reined the horses and, with Cal driving, moved quickly away from their house.
They lived out of that cart for years after that. The four of them travelled around from place to place in Faron province. Link and Cal did what they could to find work but neither of them was successful. They lived a meagre and poor life until Link was sixteen. It was then that he decided to start taking on bounties. Cal would help him occasionally but it was clear that he was soon to move on.
A day came that he finally did. It wasn't because of bad blood or that he didn't feel loved by his adoptive family, he simply had a desire to travel. He knew that they wouldn't need him because Link was around. Link was angry with him at first for wanting to leave and as a result, he didn't for the longest time.
They would fight about it often but Link didn't resent Cal for his wanting to leave. He feared for him and had grown to love him as a brother and didn't want him to have to face the world alone. Cal did everything he could to reassure him and it took a while before Link finally relented and accepted Cal's departure. It was a tearful goodbye when he left but Link decided that Cal would be fine.
Link had become a highly successful bounty hunter but he didn't earn enough consistently to feed both his sister and his grandmother. She would often pass up meals so that the children could eat. Every time Link tried to give her his meal she refused and wouldn't speak to him until he ate. She was growing sick and Link desperately wanted to help her.
It was soon after he turned seventeen that he met a man from Aboda who saw his prowess for shooting and his lightning quick draw. The man suggested to him to try out competitive gunfighting in Aboda. He was reluctant and hesitant at first but upon learning of how much money he could make from it he decided to do it. He had to save the only family he had left.
His first gunfight was against a man known as Byrne "Dead Shot" Harlem. He was widely known as the fastest and most accurate shot in New Hyrule. When Link finally got the chance to face him, Dead Shot didn't even stand a chance. He had hit the ground before his gun even cleared leather. People were stunned at this unknown kid's speed and accuracy.
Link hated what he did but, in the end, it saved his family. Link would participate less and less in the gunfights with each passing year.
Their grandmother died when Link was twenty. He did not take it well and for years he would mourn for her. It created a great deal of anger in his heart and only served to scar him further.
He continued gunfighting for fourteen long years. He was haunted by the faces of sixty-seven men he killed until that final day when he killed the dark-haired, yellow-eyed man. It wasn't until he got home that he realized that the man he killed was none other than Cal.
The man who, so many years ago, had saved Link and his family's life; the man who had become a brother to him. Link had shot him to death with his very own hands. Apparently he had turned to gunfighting as well. Link didn't know if Cal had recognized him but guilt and grief swept over him as soon as he realized what he had done. If he hadn't made up his mind about quitting earlier then this surely would have done it for him.