Part Two: The Demon King
Chapter One: The Mission to Hyrule
There were two women in the sparring ring that morning. One was a sprightly young warrior who didn't look a day over sixteen. She had just finished training school, and she never backed down from a sparring challenge. It gave her the chance to hone her skills, to test where her shortcomings were and how she could improve them. On nimble feet, she sprung into the air and somersaulted over her opponent's arm, delivering a blow to the back.
The opponent, despite being about twenty years older than her adversary, jumped away quickly, turning her body so she was facing the younger warrior full on. She attacked with a great deal of energy, but over years of training she mastered the art of balancing just how much of this boundless power she packed into a punch. Eyes keenly watching the opponent, she took the defense and dodged every blow the younger warrior had to offer.
Both warriors were nearing the point of exhaustion. For about two hours they had trained together, the older warrior viewing the younger warrior's attack and defense forms and giving pointers. Now to end their session, they fought each other using these attack and defense combinations. It almost looked like a dance, the way they tumbled and turned over and around each other.
As the younger warrior ran forward in an attempt to slash her opponent using her blunt sparring weapon, the older warrior ducked and rammed her curled up shoulders into the younger warrior's side. The younger warrior flailed, caught off guard by the move, and her hand unwittingly released her weapon. The older warrior rolled to the ground and grabbed it, pointing the blunt spear towards her opponent's chest. The younger warrior fell to her knees, accepting the defeat.
"Your core wasn't engaged, Nabooru," said the older warrior. "If you keep the center of your balance stable, your body won't be caught off guard if it's suddenly hit like that. Otherwise, excellent work." She held out her hand to help Nabooru to her feet, wiping sweat from her forehead with her other forearm.
"Thank you for the advice, Niut," Nabooru replied, bowing her head in respect. From the other side of the room, claps echoed in the space. The women turned towards the stands and saw that there was a male figure dressed in black armor watching them. There was no doubt in their minds who this man was—the King of the Gerudo himself, Ganondorf. They fell to their knees, bowing respectfully to him. Nabooru glanced towards Niut, her eyes wide with shock, as the Gerudo king approached them. It wasn't very often that he left his chambers in the fortress.
"Very impressive, both of you," he said, his voice a low grumble. The air in the room seemed as though it had become stiflingly heavy. Niut's chest constricted as she tried to take in a breath.
"Thank you, my lord," Nabooru responded humbly.
"I am setting out on a mission to Hyrule with a small party. Have your horses prepared by sun-high," he commanded.
"Yes, my lord," said Nabooru. As quickly as he entered their sight, Ganondorf turned and walked to the exit. Nabooru was the first to rise to her feet, but it took Niut a few moments to collect herself. By the time she was standing upright, she saw only a flash of red from his cape stepping through the doorway.
"Nabooru, please put our sparring weapons away. I have a few duties to attend to before we leave," Niut said. She did not wait for a response from Nabooru—instead she jogged to the door, swinging it open and staring down the corridor. Ganondorf was only a little further down the hall. It was hard to believe that so much time had passed by since that fateful night, a long twenty-nine years. She had heard her brother's first cries, and now he was a full-fledged warrior, tall and overbearing. The creature she wanted to hate had turned into the man she both respected and feared.
"My lord!" she called out. As he turned to face her again, she jogged towards him and fell to one knee. She placed both hands on her knee, hoping she could hide how much they were trembling.
"Yes, Niut, what is it?" he asked, almost growling. Not wanting to test his patience, Niut pushed aside her nerves and opened her mouth to speak.
"My lord, I was simply wondering…is my lord sure he wants an older warrior on this mission? I-I am not as strong or fast as some of the other younger warriors are. I simply do not see how I would be useful to my lord's mission."
"I have no doubt in your skills as a warrior. From what I could see, you were more than capable when battling one who is twenty years your junior. But my real reason for bringing you on this mission is for your expertise with the younger warriors. I plan to return here with a second-in-command chosen, and because you have trained the contesting warriors at some point, you know their capabilities better than I do." He spoke in a low monotone, a voice that was almost a gravely mumble but still possessed much power and substance. He was very matter-of-fact with his words, speaking tersely so not to waste time.
"Yes, my lord. Thank you, my lord," Niut replied humbly. He turned away and continued towards wherever he was going. The shadows of the hallway enveloped his form. Taking in a deep breath, Niut went to her home and packed her satchel with supplies. Ganondorf never said how long the mission was supposed to be, so she packed more food than she normally would have for a mission just in case.
Before going to the stable to saddle her horse, Niut went to the archery range, where she found the youngest warriors-in-training practicing their shooting skills. She approached the trainer, a fellow senior warrior, and asked if she could speak to her daughter.
"Miry! Take a break for a moment, your mother is here," the warrior called. One of the girls, who was slightly shorter than the rest, lowered her arms from their shooting stance and relaxed her grip on her bow and arrow. She reached behind her and slid the arrow into its quiver before jogging to the perimeter of the ring.
"What is it, Mother?" the girl asked.
"The great Ganondorf has invited me to go on a mission that I cannot decline. I don't know when we'll return, but I expect you to be on your best behavior for your aunties. Make sure you study your letters before you go to sleep."
"I will, Mother," the girl replied. The two stared at each other for a moment, trying awkwardly to find a way to say goodbye. Miry was smaller than all of the other girls her age, and she was weaker. Niut initially blamed her daughter's feebleness on her father—he was quite drunk when they conceived her, so perhaps his sluggish seed was the culprit. But behind closed doors and covered ears, the other warriors devised alternate reasons—Niut focuses too much on training warriors; Niut only cares about Miry's fighting skills; Niut never embraces her daughter.
"Goodbye," Niut eventually settled into.
"Have a safe journey," Miry replied before returning to her target.
Niut found another young warrior named Arjuna in the stables, also preparing her horse for a long journey. The older warrior nodded in greeting, to which Arjuna replied with a deep bow of the head. They worked silently a few stalls from each other, saddling and bridling their mounts with silence, precision, and deep concentration. Niut's gaze bore deeply into the dark eyes of her mare, Dusty, so aptly named because of the dark gray color of her coat. After tightly securing her saddle to the mare's back, Niut fed her some oats and stroked her nose, a reward for being still. The Gerudo tried to exercise a way of positive reinforcement to keep their horses from misbehaving, but there was always a whip nearby in case severe punishment needed to be dealt.
At sun-high, Niut waited for the rest of the party to arrive at the gate. Nabooru had reached the area first, and shortly after Niut arrived four other warriors (including Arjuna) had joined the group. Niut did not know how many other warriors were coming along, but they did not matter as much as their king did. He was easy to spot as his horse walked, taking large and heavy steps towards the gate. The black horse was unmistakably the horse of Ganondorf—like his master, the stallion walked with a powerful stride and an air of serene confidence. The domineering gaze of both horse and rider was truly a sight to behold. The warriors grasped their weapons in their left hands, crossed their right hands over their chests, and bowed on one knee as the King of Thieves approached.
"Rise," he commanded. "The entire party is here. We will set out on our journey, then. Hya!" The stallion reared slightly before breaking into a run. The six warriors quickly jumped onto their mounts and followed, leaving behind a cloud of sand. Not far behind her Niut could hear cheers rising from the Gerudo they left behind.
Arjuna and Rinna, the oldest warrior in the group aside from Niut, rode on either side of Ganondorf, ready to take an arrow in case an enemy tried to attack their King. The remaining four trailed in the back, creating a semi-circle as wide as the beaten path allowed them to. The path through the Gerudo Valley was rather straight, allowing the party to ride at a very rapid speed.
When they reached the bridge, Ganondorf did not slow his horse to a trot to traverse the bridge. Instead, he increased his mount's speed and commanded it to jump over the large gap. The dark steed stretched its long legs, pushing itself up and over the gap with great power. It landed quite far from the opposite ledge, showing its incredible jumping ability. The warriors followed suit, landing a comfortable distance away from the opposite ledge, but none reached as far as Ganondorf's horse did. As Nabooru's horse's feet touched the ground, Ganondorf continued riding through the border.
The transition from Gerudo Valley to the green Hyrule Field was abrupt. The blue in the sky was serene and welcoming, while the grass below their steeds' feet was green and lush. The wind's character was different—cooling and refreshing, full of life and beauty. As she breathed the crisp, clean air through her nostrils, Niut was reminded of the one time she ever left the Gerudo Valley, when she went into Hyrule Castle Town to find a man who would father her child.
The party hadn't travelled far when they came across a caravan bursting with goods. A lone, feeble-looking merchant was the only inhabitant of this caravan. He had stopped off the path, presumably to sit down and have lunch before continuing. The Gerudo hid themselves in the trees outlining the field.
"Look at that old merchant, if you ask me it's awfully greedy of him to keep all those goods to himself," Aveil remarked with a chuckle. From the sheaths on her sides, she drew her dual scimitar blades.
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Rinna questioned, using one of her own blades to calm Aveil's. "We just started our journey—we don't want to be lugging all this stuff with us while we're travelling all the way to Castle Town."
"We should steal this guy's loot, then we'll send one or two of us back to the fortress with the goods," Nabooru interjected. As she said this, she reached into the pack on her horse's saddle and pulled out a length of rope.
"That sounds like a great plan, Nabooru!" Sati chirped, almost too loud.
"Hush!" Nabooru snapped. "All right, follow my lead. That is," she turned towards Ganondorf, bowing her head almost sheepishly, "only if my lord permits it." Ganondorf simply nodded, and Nabooru shifted her focus back to the caravan. "All right, draw your weapons and follow my lead," she whispered as she lifted her leg over the bush in front of her. Quickly and silently, she rushed to the backside of the caravan like she was running on the wind. She ducked under the caravan to make sure the merchant was not suspicious that he had company. Then she sneaked around on the right hand side, unraveling the rope as she tiptoed.
Niut was about to join the group, but she felt a large hand on her shoulder holding her back. She glanced to her side and looked up at Ganondorf, whose gaze was fixed straight forward on the band of thieves.
"Stay here and observe them," he said. Even a simple request seemed like a demand.
"Yes, my lord," Niut responded. It took a moment before Ganondorf released her shoulder from his grasp.
They heard a cry coming from the merchant. Nabooru had jumped on him and the two rolled a little to the side, just past the caravan and within Ganondorf and Niut's line of sight. Nabooru had the man pinned down and was digging her knees into his back as she started the knot at his neck and worked her way down his body. While Nabooru was busy tying the merchant up, the other thieves broke into the caravan and ran back into the forest with the bags of goods.
"What about the horse?" Aveil asked. A wry smile on her lips, Nabooru glanced over her shoulder towards her fellow warrior.
"Cut her loose, but bring her over here," she responded. Aveil did as she was told, using the blade of her glaive to cut the ropes tying the horse to the cart. She grasped the bridle and brought the horse to Nabooru and the squirming, squealing merchant. Nabooru bent her knees and held the merchant in her arms, slowly lifting him from the ground and onto the horse. With a twisted laugh, she slapped the horse's rump, sending it running into the field with the squealing merchant flailing about.
"That was great!" Rinna exclaimed, her voice rising into a laugh.
"Yeah, I never would've thought to send the guy riding away on his horse!" Sati added as she tossed one last bag out of the caravan.
"Excellent work," Niut said as she led their horses out from behind the bushes. "Nabooru, your quick and clever thinking made this a success. As for you, Aveil, and you too, Rinna, you both worked together very well. Wonderful work, all of you."
"Arjuna, Sati, you two will return to the fortress with the goods. The rest of us will continue on the mission," Ganondorf commanded, already mounted once again on his horse. The thieves tied the bags of loot onto Arjuna and Sati's horses, and then they set out in the opposite direction, back home. The remaining members of the group mounted their steeds and followed Ganondorf through the field.
At moonrise on their second night of travel, the group stopped travelling and set up a camp for the night. Rinna, Aveil, and Nabooru gathered firewood, and then Niut started the fire and prepared their simple meal. After their immediate hunger was satisfied, the younger three warriors set up two tents—one for the women and one for Ganondorf. Niut tied the horses to the tent stakes before subduing the fire.
In the middle of the night, Nabooru, who was keeping watch, shook the tents trying to wake everyone up.
"There are stalchildren coming towards us!" she exclaimed. This was enough to jolt the warriors out of their sleep and grab their weapons in a flash. Rinna tore the flap of the tent open and jumped to Nabooru's side. In the distance, the small, glowing, skeletal figures were shuffling towards the camp, their weapons raised high. The warriors knew that those little enemies would be no problem to wipe out, but the numbers would simply keep increasing with each monster they destroyed.
"My lord, there are stalchildren coming to the camp," Nabooru said to the flap of the other tent.
"I am aware of that," he responded, but instead of from his tent, the voice came from behind the fire pit. He stepped forward, his boots crushing the burned wood, and placed himself at the head of the small band of warriors. The approaching stalchildren halted for a moment, their soulless eyes staring up at the dark man.
"Hya!" Nabooru cried as she leapt out from behind Ganondorf and plunged her weapon into the ribcage of one of the creatures. It let out an ear piercing shriek and burst into green flames. The other warriors followed suit, rushing further into the fields and slaying the first creature they set their eyes on. However, with each stalchild that was killed, another one or two would appear on the horizon and quickly make its way towards the camp.
"They are coming too quickly!" Niut called to the other warriors. "The more we kill, the more will come after us!"
"We can't stop now!" Nabooru argued.
"Return to the camp at once," Ganondorf's voice called. Even though they were not exactly within a close proximity to the camp, his voice seemed as loud as if he were speaking right in their ears. The warriors turned away from their enemies, even if they hadn't the chance to kill them yet, and dashed back to the tents. The fire had been completely put out, so it was difficult to see exactly where the camp was. Rinna, who was the first to reach the camp, reached into the tent and lit a lantern.
"We will quickly pack up our camp and move it to the path. As long as we remain there, the stalchildren will not attack us," Ganondorf said as he went to untie his horse from its stake. The horses did not stir even though there were strange creatures approaching, since for some reason the stalchildren did not dare to step too close to the camp. As quickly as they could, the three warriors uprooted the stakes in the tents, disassembled them, and packed them into their large bags. They attached the supply bags to their horses and jumped into the saddles. Ganondorf led the way, breaking his horse into a jog. It was the night of a new moon, so the moon could not offer its guiding light to the group. Every so often they would spot more stalchildren materializing and chasing after them, but they never reached a proximity from which they could attack the group. After traveling for about ten minutes, they reached the packed earth that formed a path from Castle Town.
"Set up camp here," said the Gerudo King as he dismounted. The warriors slipped off of their saddles and unpacked their supplies once more. By then their eyes had adjusted to the darkness. Working quickly so they could return to sleep for a few more hours, the warriors set up the tents and tied the horses to the stakes. On the safety of the path, they could finally sleep without worry of have unexpected visitors.
"That sounds like something you tell a kid so they don't wander off at night," Nabooru grumbled as they rolled out their sleeping mats.
"What are you talking about?" asked Aveil through a wide yawn.
"You know, 'stay on the path or else the stalchildren will come for you'. It's ridiculous!"
"Just go to sleep," Rinna groaned.